Ryan Garcia is back on the mend, this time to allow a hand injury to heal after his latest procedure.
BoxingScene has confirmed that the 26-year-old boxing superstar underwent successful surgery on Tuesday to clean up lingering damage to his right hand. Garcia was cleared – to an extent - after his visit with renowned orthopedic surgeon in Los Angeles, California.
The caveat is that he must now allow another five-to-six weeks for his hand to fully heal before he can resume his career.
Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix was the first to report that Garcia was due for surgery on Tuesday.
Garcia, 24-2 (20 KOs) ultimately injured both hands prior to and during his eventual May 2 unanimous decision defeat to Rolando Romero at New York City’s famed Times Square.
The right hand damage was suffered during training camp, though Garcia did his best to fight through the pain to avoid canceling the high-profile fight which headlined a DAZN Pay-Per-View event. He injured his left hand early in the bout with Las Vegas’ Romero, 17-2 (13 KOs), in addition to suffering a second-round knockdown en route to the lopsided loss.
Garcia and Romero combined to throw just 490 punches on the night, which at the time was the third-fewest in CompuBox history. Garcia threw just 48 power punches on the night, the second-fewest ever in that category since CompuBox began tracking such data 40 years ago.
Plans for a rematch with Devin Haney – who outpointed Jose Ramirez in a dull affair on the same show – were in place with a Garcia win. The two met last April 20 in a bout initially won by Garcia before the verdict was changed to a No-Contest after he tested positive for the banned substance Ostartine.
The rematch is not yet dead altogether, though Garcia’s defeat coupled with a general disinterest on his side – along with Golden Boy Promotions – already threatened to delay those plans.
The injury and subsequent surgery adds another layer, though it was also a blessing in disguise.
Garcia injured the same hand in 2021, and visited Cedars-Sinai Kerlan-Jobe Surgery Center for an emergency procedure.
Tuesday’s surgery helped clean up any lingering effects.
Garcia’s bout with Romero was his first following a year-long suspension for his abovementioned drug testing incident. Following the May 2 show, Golden Boy seemed more interested in a rematch with Romero than with Haney for Garcia.
Golden Boy and Garcia will have to huddle with Turki Alalshikh, who financed the Times Square event and who originally planned to host Haney-Garcia II at the start of Riyadh Season later this October. A follow-up meeting is expected to come once Garcia is cleared for training and has a firm timetable on his ring return at full health.
Jake Donovan is an award-winning journalist who served as a senior writer for BoxingScene from 2007-2024, and news editor for the final nine years of his first tour. He was also the lead writer for The Ring before his decision to return home. Follow Jake on and .