The Rumor Mill – Barrios already planning next move?
Less than a week ago, Mario Barrios lost the WBC welterweight title to Ryan Garcia in Las Vegas by a wide margin. The native of San Antonio was behind from the start as Garcia was able to score a knockdown in the first round and Barrios could not keep up with the speed of his opponent. Garcia won almost every round, and when the fight was over there was a lot to be said as to what went wrong.
While Barrios did have Hall of Fame trainer Joe Goossen in his corner, it was not enough to get the win. Despite being the WBC welterweight champion since 2024, Barrios was 0-1-2 during that time. Before his bout against Manny Pacquiao there was a suggestion that Barrios should move up to the super welterweight division. The loss against Ryan Garcia and rumors circulating around what was going on before the loss have resurrected those feelings, and now it could be a possibility.
Barrios is 30 years old and has competed in multiple weight classes from featherweight up to welterweight. He has been a pro for 12 years with 34 fights on his resume. For the bout against Ryan Garcia, it took some effort for him to get to the welterweight limit of 147 and his performance in the ring showed that he was not at world championship level. Now he may be seriously considering making the move up to super welterweight, and if he does he could seek a big fight in the division.
In the past few years, Barrios has been put in the position to face well known fighters such as Tank Davis in 2021, Keith Thurman in 2022, and Pacquiao in 2025. The fight against Garcia was another bout that generated a lot of buzz in the boxing world so this could mean that Barrios is interested in securing another high profile fighter to face at 154. There are multiple champions in the division and top contenders for Barrios to consider. Will those fighters have the name that Barrios is looking for?
If not, then who would have the name big enough to spark his interest?
Stay tuned…
