Ryan Garcia is set to undergo wrist surgery prior to facing Rukiya Anpo in a postponed exhibition boxing match. The Victorville, California native was expected to takes on the Japanese kickboxer on NYE in Tokyo, but the fight was canceled due to an injury he had suffered in training.
Rizin, which co-promotes the matchup alongside Fanmio, aired Garcia’s message during Tuesday’s RIZIN Decade broadcast.
“I’m coming on here to say I’m sorry, sorry that I had to postpone this fight,” Garcia said. “I suffered a hand injury in training camp to my right wrist right here, where after talking to doctors, I’m going to need surgery. And I had to take some time off to heal. I want to thank Fanmio and RIZIN for the opportunity, and I’m still excited to fight in Japan soon. And this will all resume right after I heal up in 2025.”
“So make no mistake, I am coming back to finish what we started with Anpo and he will eat his words, I guarantee it. Just need to take some time off, but when I come back, there will be a bang in Japan.”
Ryan Garcia (24-1, 1 NC) hasn’t fought since April 2024, when he faced Devin Haney in a bout that ended in his victory on the night, but was later overturned to a No Contest due to a failed drug test. In late 2023, the Los Angeles-based 26-year-old stopped Oscar Duarte in the eighth round, after suffering his first career loss by knockout in the seventh round against Gervonta Davis in April the same year.
Anpo, meanwhile, stepped through the ropes facing Sina Karimian. The six-round boxing match saw a brawl after the latter threw a spinning back fist that was not allowed. The referee gave him a warning, but as the fight resumed, the representative of the country-host paid him back with the same move.
After Karimian performed another spinning back fist, the referee jumped in attempting to separate the fighters but was repeatedly hit in the head. The promotion shared the video in a post on X. In the end, Anpo took the victory by decision.
The new date for Ryan Garcia vs Rukiya Anpo is expected to be determined in the coming weeks.