Ryan Garcia’s first defense of the WBC welterweight title is official. Garcia will face Conor Benn on September 12 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, with the card streaming live globally on Paramount+, Turki Alalshikh announced Wednesday on X. Zuffa Boxing’s Dana White posted his own announcement of the fight, which was finalized after two months of negotiations that at one point produced a cease and desist letter.
Alalshikh billed the event as “USA VS UK” in his announcement. Garcia (25-2, 20 KOs) won the WBC belt in February with a unanimous decision over Mario Barrios in the same building, scoring a first-round knockdown on his way to wide scorecards. Benn (25-1, 14 KOs) is the WBC’s No. 1 contender at 147 pounds and receives the first world title shot of his career.
Golden Boy Promotions posted its own announcement, with the official poster carrying the Golden Boy and Zuffa Boxing logos side by side.
Broadcast Standoff Resolved
The broadcast arrangement settles the issue that held up the fight for weeks. Paramount+, Zuffa Boxing’s streaming partner, will carry the card globally, while DAZN holds exclusive rights in the UK and Ireland. DAZN’s own announcement on X tagged Ring Magazine.
The split matters because broadcast rights sat at the center of the dispute that nearly derailed the fight. In June, Golden Boy Promotions sent a cease and desist letter to Zuffa Boxing, TKO Group Holdings, Paramount and Sela, alleging interference with Garcia and asserting that his fights were contractually tied to Golden Boy’s streaming partner. A copy of the letter was obtained by ESPN, which reported that Golden Boy had not been involved in negotiations for the bout. Golden Boy chairman Oscar De La Hoya told ESPN at the time, “I’m willing to work with anyone, including Dana White and Zuffa Boxing,” to make major fights.
A Deal Two Months in the Making
Garcia first revealed the matchup on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon in May, telling the host, “His name is Conor Benn. And he’s talking a lot, he’s talking crazy.” At the time, no contract had been signed, and the announcement set off the promotional standoff.
Benn’s side of the deal was completed weeks ago. “I know our side is signed and we’re ready for the fight,” Benn’s manager Keith Connolly told BoxingScene earlier this month. The parties gathered in Las Vegas around the UFC 329 weekend, where Dan Rafael reported plans to announce the fight at the ceremonial weigh-ins. That announcement never came, with Rafael citing unfinished paperwork on Garcia’s side.
The Matchup
Benn, the son of former two-division champion Nigel Benn, has not made the welterweight limit since 2022. He spent 2025 in two middleweight bouts with Chris Eubank Jr., losing the first and winning the rematch, then returned in April with a unanimous decision over former 140-pound titleholder Regis Prograis.
The September 12 date opened up for Garcia and Benn after Canelo Alvarez’s WBC super middleweight title fight against Christian Mbilli was pushed back from that date to late October in Riyadh. Mbilli’s promoter, Eye of the Tiger Management, confirmed the move, which repositioned the Alvarez fight within Riyadh Season’s calendar as the program’s seventh edition opens in October.
