Ryan Garcia confirmed on Friday that he will fight Isaac 'Pitbull' Cruz in May in New York's Times Square. Devin Haney vs. Jose Ramirez will also be on the card.

Garcia (24-1, 20 KOs) said Cruz (26-3-1, 18 KOs) is an opponent he's wanted to fight for a long time but hasn't had the chance until now. Cruz is being brought in to prepare Ryan for a rematch against Devin Haney in October in Riyadh.

Big Apple bout

Cruz is a former WBA light welterweight champion. He lost his title in his last fight to Jose 'Rayo' Valenzuela via a 12-round split decision on August 3rd.

“Yeah, in May. We're going to fight there. It'll be good. Another big fight. I'm ready to do it,” Ryan Garcia said. KO artist sports About fighting Isaac 'Pitbull' Cruz in May in New York. “Pitbull is still a great fighter. He may have lost once (edit: 3 times), but the fans love him. He is a big f****.

“There were a lot of people in London, and they were all meeting the Turk. It was nuts. Times Square, yeah,” Ryan said of where he plans to fight in May. “Me and Pitbull were going to fight on many occasions. It never went down.

“I think this is a fight that the fans wanted for a long time until he (Pitbull Cruz) lost (to Jose 'Rayo' Valenzuela on August 3rd). I don't think it should make any difference. He is still an explosive fighter. Rayo boxed a great fighter, so you can't take anything away from him either,” Garcia said.

For the record, Pitbull Cruz lost three times as a pro to these fighters:

– Jose 'Rayo' Valenzuela
– Garvonta Davis
– Luis Montana Alvarez

It doesn't matter that Cruz is coming off a loss to Rayo last August because casual boxing fans will be clueless and hardcore fans won't mind. They just want to see Ryan Garcia in action against someone. For most fans, Ryan could fight with a cardboard prop and they'd be happy.

“If he doesn't win, we'll have to find a replacement, but I'm sure he will,” Ryan said of Isaac Cruz's Feb. 1 fight against Angel Fierro at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. “When I win, I'll fight him (Devin Haney) again, beat him again. Then, I can finally put it to rest and move on with my career. Maybe fight with Teofimo. This is how it will continue.”

There's a good chance Pitbull Cruz could lose to Angel Fierro next month on the David Benavidez vs. David Morrell card. Fierro is a big puncher, and he's catching Cruz coming off a loss to Jose 'Rayo' Valenzuela.

If Curz is beaten, Ryan's team will have to act fast to find someone in a hurry to fight on the May card. One good thing Garcia has going for him is Turki Al-Sheikh. He would probably give a top-level fighter a chance to fight Ryan and they would jump at it.