As the first (and subsequently only) big-name welterweight signed to Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Sport after the promoter inked a historic $1 billion deal with DAZN in 2018, it was somewhat apropos Jessie Vargas would be taking part in the streaming service’s first significant 147-pound bout two years later.
Vargas (29-2-2, 11 KOs), a former two-division champion, was on the verge of taking his career north to junior middleweight in search of a third world title when Hearn recently signed Mikey Garcia (39-1, 30 KOs) to a one-fight deal with options.
The pair of exciting Mexican-American fighters will square off Saturday (DAZN, 8 p.m. ET) in a welterweight duel inside The Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas, that has both fighters hoping a victory lifts them to a summer showdown with WBA champion Manny Pacquiao.
With DAZN noticeably thin at welterweight and junior middleweight, Vargas’ hope of challenging Jaime Munguia for his 154-pound title went up in smoke when the exciting Mexican slugger moved up to middleweight.
Instead, the 30-year-old Vargas will hold advantages of five inches in height and three inches in reach against Garcia, who hasn’t fought in 11 months since a one-sided loss to unified champion Errol Spence Jr.
“I was looking forward to the 154-pound division and becoming a world champion but this opportunity came and I’m in this position where I can still make welterweight with plenty of sacrifice but I feel comfortable at 154 as well,” Vargas told CBS Sports’ “State of Combat” podcast in December. “It’s well worth it when it comes to giving the fight fans what they want.”
The narrative that Garcia could be entering a trap fight against the aggressive Vargas, who has evolved into an elite body puncher, has become the main storyline entering the fight. Garcia, 32, could’ve sought lucrative fights at 140 or 135 pounds, not to mention an easy tuneup.
Instead, the four-division champion lived up to his recent reputation as a dare-to-be-great fighter who seeks legacy above financial reward.
“I wanted to get a fight that made sense and could get the people excited,” Garcia told CBS Sports. “Being that Jessie Vargas is a two-division world champion and one of the best to get in the ring, and his only defeats came to Manny Pacquiao and Timothy Bradley, that tells you the kind of fighter that Jessie really is. I know he’s going to be hungry and motivated. That’s going to bring out the best of me.
“[The size difference] is part of the challenge and why I took this fight. It is a challenge and I get to show everybody what I can do. This fight is going to answer all those questions.”
Vargas was originally known as a slick boxer during his days as a junior welterweight titleholder. He began to step on the gas pedal more at 147 pounds following a decision loss to Bradley in which he scored a knockdown late in Round 12 and briefly thought he had won the fight due to referee indecision.
A knockout of unbeaten Sadam Ali followed as Vargas captured the vacant WBO title he would lose to Pacquiao eight months later. From there, Vargas has almost rebuilt himself exclusively as a come-forward fighter who settled for draws in competitive shootouts with Adrien Broner and Thomas Dulorme in 2018.
“I want to give my fans excitement and if it needs to be in the clinch sometimes and let my hands go, I need to do that,” Vargas said. “I don’t want to give my fans any boredom, as cliche as it sounds. If it that means taking a punch or two, I’m willing to do that and it has become my style. I think it’s a characteristic that fans have come to expect from me.”
