Ryan Garcia made sure to march to the beat of his drum in his comeback fight after suffering a knockout loss to Gervonta Davis in April.

Davis forced the blockbuster bout to be contracted at a 136-pound catchweight with a maximum 10-pound rehydration clause for the next-day morning weigh-in.

Garcia wanted the clash to take place at 140 pounds and revealed after the fight that he was weight-drained, in addition to heading into the ring with an existing rib injury. 

For his Saturday night fight against Oscar Duarte, Garcia (23-1, 19 KOs) insisted on fighting at a 143 catchweight, forcing the 135-pound Duarte (26-1-1, 21 KOs) to climb up eight pounds for the challenge.

The 143 pounds Garcia weighed on Friday was the heaviest to date in his seven-year career. 

“Ryan Garcia wanted a catchweight at 143 pounds, so we made it happen,” Garcia’s promoter and Golden Boy founder Oscar De La Hoya told BoxingScene.com in an interview on Friday following a turbulent week in which their ongoing feud was reignited amidst ongoing legal matters.

“It's always been 143. That has always been the contractual weight. I am concerned because why not make it at 140? If you're a professional, you're going to train hard and work hard, then 140 should not be a problem. I have no idea why he wanted this fight at 143. It's concerning. I'm genuinely concerned about him and where he's at. It's my right to be concerned because I care.”

Immediately following the Davis loss, Garcia said he felt much stronger at 140 pounds and would resume his career there.

Before the Davis loss, Garcia knocked out Javier Fortuna at 140 pounds in July 2022 and scored a unanimous decision against Emmanuel Tagoe at 138 pounds in April 2022. 

For the Duarte fight, Garcia ended a three-fight run with Hall of Fame coach Joe Goossen and linked up with reigning trainer of the year Derrick James. 

Garcia versus Duarte will headline a Golden Boy show on DAZN from the Toyota Center in Houston. 

Manouk Akopyan is a sports journalist, writer, and broadcast reporter. He’s also a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and the MMA Journalists Association. He can be reached on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube at @ManoukAkopyan, through email at manouk[dot]akopyan[at]gmail.com, or via www.ManoukAkopyan.com.