Mario Barrios and Ryan Garcia will face each other in the ring in “The Ring: High Stakes” on Saturday, Feb. 21 in Las Vegas for the chance to win the WBC world welterweight title.
Barrios has remained the welterweight champion since 2024, so he’ll be looking to continue holding onto his title. On the other hand, Garcia will be aiming to knock Barrios off of his reign and begin his own. Should he win Saturday, it would be Garcia’s first world title.
There’s a lot at stake for Garcia’s career heading into Saturday’s fight. He is trying to redeem his image in the boxing world after ending his one-year suspension last spring. He’s trying to rise up the ranks again. To add to the drama: Barrios’s current trainer is Joe Goossen, who used to train Garcia.
Here’s everything you need to know about how to tune in to DAZN’s pay-per-view fight on Saturday.
How to watch Mario Barrios vs. Ryan Garcia
- Date: Saturday, Feb. 21
- Channel: DAZN pay-per-view
- Main card time: Approximately 8:53 p.m. PT, 11:53 p.m. ET and 4:53 a.m. GMT
The Ring: High Stakes fight card
For fans wanting to tune in to the whole night of fights, here’s the full list of participants.
- Mario Barrios vs. Ryan Garcia: Welterweight, for the WBC title
- Richardson Hitchins vs. Oscar Duarte: Junior welterweight, for the IBF title
- Gary Antuanne Russell vs. Andy Hiraoka: Junior welterweight, for the WBA title
- Frank Martin vs. Nahir Albright: Junior welterweight
- Bektemir Melikuziev vs. Sena Agbeko: Super middleweight
The fight card list will begin at 2:45 p.m. PT, 5:45 p.m. ET and 10:45 p.m. GMT.
Ryan Garcia looking to overcome his tumultuous past
When speaking with Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix before the fight, Garcia opened up about what led to his suspension in 2024 and what he dealt with during that year off from fighting.
Back in 2024, Garcia faced Devin Haney and knocked Haney out three times. However, he missed weight by more than three pounds for the fight, and then Garcia tested positive for Ostarine, a banned substance. The fight was overturned to a no-contest, and Garcia was given the one-year suspension. During his time off, things got worse for Garcia. He used racial slurs to attack Blacks and Muslims on social media. He was arrested for trashing a hotel room in Beverly Hills. His social media posts grew more and more bizarre. His own promoter, Oscar De La Hoya, declared him bipolar. Garcia claims he was drinking heavily during this period.
Garcia faced Rolando Romero after his suspension and lost. He’s looking to redeem his career in UFC with the fight against Barrios.
Garcia fined for missing weight check
Ahead of his fight against Barrios, Garcia failed to send in his weight check before the deadline. He was fined $5,000. The weight requirement is set at 147 pounds.
Garcia later sent video proof that he’s only 5% over the 147-pound expectation.
Mario Barrios aiming to defend WBC welterweight title
Barrios was named the interim welterweight champion back in September 2023 when he upset Yordenis Ugás. Barrios was promoted to being the official welterweight champion in June ‘24 after Terence Crawford was demoted following his fights in the super welterweight division.
Since then, Barrios has successfully defended his title against Abel Ramos in November 2024 ahead of the infamous Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson main card event in Texas. He then faced boxing legend Manny Pacquiao, who was coming off a four-year retirement, in a fight for the welterweight title in July 2025.
More Boxing on Sports Illustrated
- Pound-for-Pound Rankings: Shakur Stevenson Is Among Boxing’s Best
- Ryan Garcia Is Ready to Put His Tumultuous Past Behind Him With Mario Barrios Fight
- Andre Ward Has High Hopes for the Changes Zuffa Boxing will Bring to the Sport
- Pro Boxer Had Incredible Line After Getting His Toupee Knocked Off During Fight
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Everything to Know Ahead of Mario Barrios vs. Ryan Garcia Fight.
