Despite being nine years into retirement, it appears that Floyd Mayweather could have a busy year in the ring if the latest claims are to be believed.

The American boxing icon hung up the gloves after a straightforward victory over Conor McGregor took his professional record to 50-0.

He has since fought exclusively in exhibitions, facing social media stars and combat athletes from other disciplines. That looked set to change this year when, in February, it was announced by Netflix that Mayweather would face Manny Pacquiao for a second time. The September fight was billed as a pro contest.

Mayweather then announced exhibitions with both Mike Tyson and Mike Zambidis, leading to legal issues which postponed the Pacquiao event indefinitely.

The 49-year-old recently said that he plans for both the Tyson and ‘PacMan’ fights to take place in December and then 2027 respectively, but Ryan Garcia has now announced on social media that he has agreed to face Mayweather.

“Trust me at first I thought this was bull***.

“But it’s real Floyd and I agree to a fight.

“147 for the WBC welterweight championship of the world.

“50-0 vs The current champ.”

Trust me at first I thought this was bull***

But it’s real Floyd and I agree to a fight

147 for the WBC welterweight championship of the world

50-0 vs The current champ

— RYAN GARCIA (@RyanGarcia) October 21, 2026

Garcia also posted an image that appears to show a video call between him and Mayweather.

Talking about 🥊 pic.twitter.com/x10bCca14Z

— RYAN GARCIA (@RyanGarcia) October 21, 2026

Garcia won the WBC welterweight world title at the beginning of the year by beating Mario Barriosand his stock is as high as ever following a two-round blowout of Conor Benn in his first defence.

He has reportedly now entered talks for a unification against Teofimo Lopez, who is appealing to the WBA to postpone a mandatory fight against Jack Catterall.

Though the WBC would undoubtedly approve Mayweather’s title challenge – as they did for a returning Pacquiao last year – fans will be dubious of Garcia’s claims, particularly given the fact that Mayweather mentioned no such fight in his most recent interview.

David Benavidez has proven that he is not afraid of any challenge in boxing, but one rumoured opponent is hoping that he ‘hasn’t scared Benavidez’ off from a potential cruiserweight battle.

‘The Mexican Monster’ reigned as the WBC light-heavyweight champion, but made the 25lb jump from 175lbs to 200lbs earlier this year to challenge for Gilberto Ramirez’s unified WBA and WBO titles – and scored an emphatic knockout to claim both belts.

Now, should he come through Michal Cieslak unscathed in December, Benavidez has revealed a three-fight plan that includes a potential undisputed title showdown with Jai Opetaia, a clash with Artur Beterbiev, and a possible move up to heavyweight.

When discussing the proposed battle with former undisputed light heavyweight champion Beterbiev, Benavidez joked to The Ring that he respects Beterbiev for pursuing a fight with him despite being ’45 years old’.

“Beterbiev has definitely reached out to our team. He’s actively been trying to make that fight. We want to give him what he wants. You know, I respect Beterbiev. He’s about 45 years old, and the fact he’s calling me out, I have great respect for him.”

In response, Beterbiev – who is actually 41 years old – has posted a training clip onto his Instagramhinting at a future fight with Benavidez in the caption.

“I hope nobody was scared off by my ’45-year-old’ physique!”

Beterbiev, who has a 90% knockout ratio from his 22 fights, is also being touted for a light-heavyweight trilogy with fierce foe, Dmitry Bivol, where a victory could tee up a mammoth meeting between he and Benavidez for mid-to-late 2027.

Dan Rafael suspects Paramount’s tight-lipped stance on the audience numbers for Ryan Garcia against Conor Benn signals a weak return on Zuffa Boxing’s massive financial commitment.

When Rafael reached out to network publicists for viewership data, he was met with complete radio silence. That lack of transparency led him to conclude the numbers missed internal targets, even though he lacks official data or direct confirmation from network executives.

“I didn’t even get a response. I mean, that to me was the biggest tell of all,” Rafael said to Total Boxing. “They were embarrassed by the numbers, I’m sure, for that fight.”

Putting Garcia in with Benn was designed to prove Zuffa’s ability to pull serious traffic by utilizing bankable headliners. Rafael acknowledges that fresh promotional outfits require runway to grow a following, yet he contends this specific headliner carried far loftier expectations. Benn had secured what Rafael termed astronomical pay for a prior Netflix undercard slot before stepping into the Paramount ring against Garcia.

“They had expectations to get some big bang for their buck,” Rafael noted.

With Paramount keeping the data sealed, the actual viewership remains anyone’s guess. Rafael’s view relies strictly on the hefty fighter purses, the brand value of the headliners, and the total lack of feedback to his media inquiries.

Still, Rafael praised Paramount for offering Garcia versus Benn to base subscribers without tacking on a pay-per-view fee.

His deeper critique targets the overall calendar. Rafael sees quality in-ring action on Zuffa’s preliminary bills, yet he likens the lower-profile lineups to the vintage ESPN2 Friday Night Fights broadcasts. A dedicated subscription platform must deliver steady marquee attractions to keep accounts active between developmental shows.

Rafael also pointed to Zuffa’s schedule leaning heavily toward UK venues and upcoming Saudi cards through the back half of the year, contending the promotion practically vacated the American territory throughout that run.

Paramount faces a steep climb that requires more than sporadic name-brand attractions. The platform must supply subscribers with consistent reasons to maintain memberships, while its costliest main events must generate figures the network can proudly broadcast.