Ryan Garcia has volunteered to fight Manny Pacquiao on Netflix if Tyson Fury’s December 11 bout with Anthony Joshua falls apart. The WBC welterweight champion believes the matchup could keep the date alive, though neither fighter has announced talks for it.
“Put me and Manny Pacquiao on Netflix – we’ll save the day. Me and Manny Pacquiao we’ll save that date.”
Ryan made the comment during a recent livestream. He went on to say the fight would save the date “guaranteed.”
It is a bold offer from Ryan, who stopped Conor Benn in two rounds on September 12 and has also been calling for a December fight with Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz. Pacquiao would bring a much bigger name to the broadcast. It would also put Ryan across from a former champion who turns 48 in December and has fought only once since returning from a lengthy absence.
The appeal to Netflix is obvious. Ryan and Pacquiao are recognizable well beyond boxing, and their names would give a replacement show immediate attention. Whether that is enough to substitute for Fury against Joshua is another matter.
The heavyweight fight was built around two British stars meeting in Cardiff; changing the headliner would mean rebuilding the event, its promotion and potentially its venue around a different audience.
Ryan’s offer also comes while Fury and Joshua are expected in London for their first face-off on Wednesday. The parties are still working to move that fight forward, so Garcia–Pacquiao remains a contingency Ryan floated publicly, rather than a bout Netflix has chosen, or Pacquiao has accepted.
For Ryan, the pitch keeps him in the conversation around one of boxing’s biggest dates. For Pacquiao, it would mean taking on an active 28-year-old welterweight champion. Before “saving” December 11 becomes a real plan, Pacquiao would have to want that fight, and the organizers would have to decide it can carry the show.
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