The boxing calendar is filling up brisk, with headline fights already announced featuring some of the sport’s biggest names, including Tyson Fury, David Benavidez, Deontay Wilder, Alycia Baumgardner and Oleksandr Usyk.

However, several other potential matchups rumored to take place this year remain in limbo.

Will Devin Haney fight Ryan Garcia, Rolando “Rolly” Romero – or both? Is the Floyd Mayweather vs. exhibition Mike Tyson still happening?

Will Gervonta “Tank” Davis return to the ring after her legal troubles to face Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz in a long-awaited rematch?

Andreas Hale answers these questions and more as he tries to explain some of the most intriguing stories in state-of-the-art boxing.

What’s modern at the Floyd Mayweather-Mike Tyson exhibition?

Since it was announced last September that Mayweather and Tyson would meet at this year’s show, details about the event have been meager. There are no updates on where the fight will be broadcast/streamed, and sources close to the event told ESPN that reports of an April 25 date in the Democratic Republic of Congo were “extremely premature.”

Mayweather announced he will face Manny Pacquiao on September 19 at the Sphere in Las Vegas, leaving the status of the fight with Tyson unclear. At this time, Tyson’s fight is still anticipated, but there are no specific details.

Tyson appeared on “The Ariel Helwani Show” on Wednesday and said he “believes” the fight will take place on April 25 in Africa “in the same ring where Muhammad Ali fought George Foreman.” Ali became notable for knocking out Foreman in the eighth round of the “Rumble in the Jungle” at the May 20 Stadium on October 30, 1974 in Zaire, now recognized as the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Wearing a cast, Tyson said he sprained his hand in training and was unsure whether the injury would impact Mayweather’s fight schedule.

Mayweather has remained quiet on the matter, but in early March he posted on social media that he would fight kickboxer Mike Zambidis in June in Athens, Greece.

Who will Devin Haney fight next: Ryan Garcia or Rolando Romero?

Haney, the WBO welterweight champion, has narrowed his options to two opponents for his next fight: Garcia, the WBC champion, and Romero, the WBA titleholder.

Sources told ESPN that a deal is on the table for a May 30 unification fight between Haney and Romero. However, the decision now rests with Haney, who is also considering a more lucrative rematch with Garcia – after Garcia failed a drug test in April 2024. Garcia won the WBC title with a one-sided unanimous decision over Mario Barrios in February and has stated he would be interested in a rematch with Haney. It was suggested by Garcia’s promoter, Oscar De La Hoya of Golden Boy he is not interested in a rematchconsidering his fighter dumped Haney three times and initially won by majority decision before the result was overturned.

Haney appeared on “Inside the Ring” and confirmed that negotiations are ongoing for a unification fight with Romero. He said he was “working on it” with Premier Boxing Champions, Romero’s promoter, but added that a deal had not yet been struck. Sources tell ESPN that Haney is also likely waiting for an offer from Turki Alalshikh, chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority.

Realistically, fighting Garcia isn’t going anywhere. Haney could face Romero in May and unify the titles, which would likely make the fight with Garcia even more vital. Garcia also fights WBO junior welterweight champion Shakur Stevenson, but weight could be an issue as Stevenson has yet to fight at 147 pounds.

Will Gervonta Davis return this summer against Isaac Cruz?

Maybe. While there have been reports of advanced negotiations for the Davis-Cruz 2 140-pound fight this summer, there are major hurdles that will need to be cleared before the fight can be made. Davis is facing legal issues stemming from an October 2025 domestic incident with ex-girlfriend Courtney Rossel. Davis was arrested in January on charges of battery, false imprisonment and attempted kidnapping, two weeks after the arrest warrant was issued, and was released from jail the same day after posting $8,500 bail.

It has not yet been confirmed when Davis will next appear in court, but the looming legal situation will have an impact on if and when Davis decides to return to the ring. Davis is also reportedly dealing with a knee injury that could impact his return. In a now-deleted post on X after he was pulled from his fight with Jake Paul in November, Davis mentioned the injury and said he would return to the ring “as soon as my knee gets better.”

A rematch with Cruz, whom Davis fought to a unanimous decision victory in December 2021, could be another exhilarating fight, but Davis has a lot to deal with in his personal life before resuming his career. Not to mention he did it multiple times discussed early retirement from the sportwhich makes the timeline for his return arduous to predict.

Is the junior welterweight category the strongest division in boxing?

The 140-pound division currently has the strongest and richest collection of fighters. Shakur Stevenson is at the top of the ESPN rankings, sitting fourth in the pound-for-pound rankings after dismantling Teofimo Lopez Jr. in January. and became champion of four divisions. Most of the junior welterweight divisions feature fighters in excellent shape. ESPN’s top five fighters in the division – Stevenson, Lopez, Keyshawn Davis, Richardson Hitchins and Dalton Smith – are either undefeated, current world champions or have won world titles in other weight classes.

But the division is also extremely deep – Subriel Matias, Gary Antuanne Russell, Alberto Puello, Arnold Barboza Jr. and Andy Hiraoka are in the bottom five. That doesn’t even include Cruz, Lamont Roach Jr., Adam Azim and Emiliano Vargas. The division is incredibly luxurious in youth, strength and skill, as well as proven champions, exhilarating up-and-comers and fighters who are not yet in their prime. There are no simple fights at 140 pounds, and the prospect of Davis returning to a loaded division always looms over us.

Barboza (32-1, 11 KO) wants to erase the memory of the defeat against Teofimo Lopez. Tonight, Barboza seemed to be stuck in neutral, finding no answer as Lopez controlled the distance and pace. The ease with which Lopez handled the fight raised uncomfortable questions about Barboza’s ability to adapt when his original plan stopped working.

Sims (22-2-1, 8 KO) is in a similar situation. His defeat against Oscar Duarte caused him to abandon his technical strengths and trade in his natural striking. Fighting Duarte, Sims looked vulnerable, losing a decision in a grueling battle that suggested he may not have been cut out for switchboards.

The reality for Saturday is brutal. Both fighters are now labeled as solvable problems. Another needy performance or tactical breakdown would likely confirm that a ceiling has been reached and either fighter would fall outside the welterweight elite.

The 12-round main event will culminate in the streaming of the Golden Boy Promotions card on DAZN. During Thursday’s news conference, Sims made it clear that he sees Barboza as the guardian of the life he wants.

“Arnold has been in the top 10 rankings for years and that’s where I want to be,” Sims said. “I’ve been chasing this fight for a long time. It’s happening now.”

Barboza, unfazed by the pressure, noted that he expected a complex night.

“As far as Kenneth Sims is concerned, he is a great fighter,” Barboza said. “I’m excited about this fight and I can’t wait for Saturday.”

Golden Boy president Oscar De La Hoya said both fighters chose the complex route back rather than rebuild their strength against a softer opponent.

Anaheim’s career is supported by several title fights, including minimumweight champion Oscar Collazo defending against Jesus Haro, Alexis Rocha fighting JoJo Diaz Jr. and Gabriela Fundora defending her undisputed flyweight championship against Viviana Ruiz Corredor.

For the main event, the equation is straightforward. A convincing victory keeps the winner in the conversation for a title shot. Another defeat leaves both players with complex questions about how far they can go.

Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury and Martin Bakole are all targeted by the world-class heavyweight, and Bakole represents a particularly “personal” option.

The 34-year-old has not fought since a controversial draw with Efe Ajagba in May, when many felt he should have been handed a points defeat.

before, Bakole suffered a second round defeat to Joseph Parkerwhom he had faced just two days earlier, following his stunning fifth-round victory over Jared Anderson.

However, back in 2022, the Congolese giant scored an arguably more surprising victory, winning a majority decision against Tony Yoka.

At the time, it was considered more than just a developmental fight for Yoka, who set an undefeated record after winning gold at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

However, after losing to Bakole, the Frenchman later suffered split decision defeats to Carlos Takam and Ryad Merhy before resuming his career with four bounce-back wins.

As he now prepares to face former cruiserweight world champion Lawrence Okolie on April 25 at the Adidas Arena in Paris, the 33-year-old hopes to finally get his revenge on Bakole.

I’m talking to Boxing bookYoka – who is of Congolese descent – named Bakole, Joshua and Fury as three potential opponents after the clash with Okolie.

“I have to beat Bakole – it’s personal. This is the first fight I lost, we are both from the same country [The Democratic Republic of the Congo] and we must make it happen there in Kinshasa.

“So I have to beat Bakole first and then I would love to fight Anthony. It would be a great fight, just because it would be so massive – especially in my country [France]. It would be two Olympic gold medalists fighting in the stadium.

“Why not Tyson Fury? Tyson Fury is one of the greatest [heavyweight] boxers ever. It’s so weird, but also just too good.

It is not yet clear who Joshua will face in his comeback fight, which has been scheduled for July by Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn.

Meanwhile, Fury will face Arslanbek Makhmudov at London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on April 11, after ending his one-year retirement in January.