Ryan Garcia recently said that his beef with Conor Benn turned personal long before any contracts were signed.
Appearing on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Garcia claimed Benn confronted him at an awards show and physically grabbed him in front of his wife.
He actually confronted me at an awards show, and my wife was there, and he just pressed up on me, grabbed me, so it’s a little personal,” Garcia said. “I’m really gonna put a whooping on this man, and we will send him back to the UK, sipping on some tea.
The revelation adds heat to a matchup that has been rumored for much of 2026. Garcia confirmed the fight is set for September 12 in Las Vegas, framing it as a transatlantic grudge match.
Garcia confirms September 12 date in Las Vegas
Garcia (25-2, 20 KOs) used the late-night platform to formalize the date, an upgrade from his earlier live-stream callout of Benn for a September fight.
We are fighting on September 12. It’ll be in Vegas, and the opponent, let’s just say, he’s from the other side,” the 27-year-old Victorville native said. “He’s across the pond, I’m sorry. His name is Conor Benn. He’s talking a lot. He’s talking crazy.
Garcia captured the WBC welterweight title in his most recent outing. Benn (25-1, 14 KOs) arrives off a win over Regis Prograis on the Tyson Fury vs. Arslanbek Makhmudov card, a result that fueled Benn’s stated pursuit of Garcia and the WBC strap.
Garcia issues knockout warning to Benn
Setting the scene for the bout, Garcia left no doubt about how he sees it ending.
Conor getting knocked out for sure,” Garcia said. “We’re gonna make sure he never tries us again. We’re gonna really put a number on him, pretty bad. But it should be fun while it lasts.
One potential roadblock remains the friction between Dana White and Oscar De La Hoya. Whether the two can put their differences aside to deliver the fight could shape how cleanly the September 12 date holds, a tension tied to De La Hoya and Golden Boy’s role in Garcia’s matchmaking.