Mario Barrios vs Ryan Garcia Preview Feb. 21st 2026
Former WBA Junior Welterweight and current WBC Welterweight Champion Mario Barrios of San Antonio, Texas hooks up with Ryan Garcia of Victorville, California this Saturday, February 21st. The 12-round fight from Las Vegas, Nevada can be seen live in most nations on DAZN pay-per-view. Garcia last fought in May when he dropped a unanimous decision to Rolando Romero in a shot at the regular WBA Welterweight Belt and was also decked in the second round. Garcia fought Devin Haney in a shot at the WBC Junior Welterweight Belt in his previous outing and dropped him in the 7th, 10th and 11th rounds to earn a majority decision. However Garcia failed his drug tests and the fight was called a no-contest with Garcia also receiving a year-long suspension. Barrios defended the title with a controversial draw against Manny Pacquiao in his last contest in July after battling to a draw with Abel Ramos in a slugfest eight months earlier. Barrios also defended the interim belt with a unanimous decision over Fabian Andres Maidana of Argentina after winning it in September, 2023 via a wide unanimous decision over former world champion Yordenis Ugas.
Barrios vs Garcia Betting Odds
Here are the betting odds from online sportsbook BetOnline.ag (full review here).
- Mario Barrios +190
- Ryan Garcia -250
My Pick
The 30-year-old Barrios enters the ring with a mark of 29-2-2 with 18 Ko’s. He turned pro in 2013 following his amateur career and has 210 rounds of experience under his belt. He won the vacant WBA Junior Welterweight Crown in September, 2019 when he beat Batyr Akhmedov by unanimous decision after dropping him in the fourth and 12th rounds. He then stopped Ryan Karl in the sixth round in his first title defence but lost his belt to Gervonta Davis when he was stopped in the 11th round of a competitive bout in June, 2021.
Then just eight months later he suffered his second defeat when he dropped a 12-round unanimous decision to former world champion Keith Thurman. Barrios captured the vacant WBA Inter-Continental Welterweight Title in July, 2018 by stopping Jose Roman after eight rounds and in February, 2023 he halted Jovane Santiago in the eighth round to take the WBC Continental Americas Welterweight Crown. He’s listed as six-feet-tall with a 71-inch reach and carries good power in his hands as 62.1 per cent of his wins have come by stoppage but he’s halted just one of his last seven opponents.
He hadn’t really taken on many legitimate top contenders until meeting Gervonta Davis when he took a step up in class but he handled himself pretty well in that fight. He took a bit of a risk by moving up to welterweight to take on Thurman but did okay in that contest too. Barrios has also beaten Yardley Cruz, Jose Luis Rodriguez, Richard Zamora and Juan Jose Velasco. He possesses good speed and will need to use his effective jab to have any success against the fast hands of Garcia.
The 27-year-old Garcia owns mark of 24-2 with a no-contest against Haney and has 20 Ko’s under his belt. He has plenty of power as 83.3 per cent of his wins have come by stoppage, including seven of his last eight. He measures just under 5-feet-9-inches tall with a 70-inch reach so gives up 3.5-inches in height and an inch in reach to Barrios. He made his pro debut in 2016 and has boxed 124 rounds since. Along the way, he’s captured the vacant NABF Junior Super Featherweight Title, the NABF, and WBO NABO Super Featherweight Crowns as well as the WBO NABO and WBC Silver Lightweight Titles.
He also rose from the canvas in the second round against Luke Campbell in 2021 to stop him in the seventh round for the Interim WBC Lightweight Belt. Garcia’s first defeat was a seventh-round KO at the hands of Gervonta Davis in April, 2023. He also has wins over Jayson Velez, Javier Fortuna, Carlos Morales, Jose Lopez, Braulio Rodriguez, Fernando Vargas Parra and Noe Martinez Raygoza. Garcia’s still being groomed to be a world champion by promoter Oscar De La Hoya and was named the 2017 prospect of the year by ESPN.
However, a world title has eluded him so far due to his unbalanced antics inside and outside of the ring. Garcia also enjoyed a fine amateur career by reportedly going 215-15. He won a silver medal at the USA Junior National (Under-17) Championships in 2014 when he lost to Devin Haney in the final. He also reached the quarterfinals at the USA Youth National (Under-19) Championships in 2015 and lost to Haney once again. However, he did beat Vergil Ortiz in his opening bout. He then won gold at the USA Youth National (Under-19) Championships in 2016.
Prediction…
Barrios has the edge in height and reach but Garcia has faster hands and more power. Barrio held onto his title with a pair of draws in his last two fights and many fans felt he was gifted the decision against Pacquiao. Garcia didn’t look very good in his last fight either when he didn’t seem to have any answers against Rolly Romero. Barrios’ 2024 fight against Abel Ramos was a war as Ramos was down in the second round and Barrios was dropped in the sixth. It’s hard to say what that brutal fight took out of Barrios but it also proved he’s a warrior. This could be a hard-fought, close fight but Garcia’s hand speed and power may be the difference. This tilt is up for grabs and whoever takes the initiative and goes for it should emerge victorious. Garcia is running out of chances so I have a feeling he’ll be at his best this weekend.
Garcia has superior speed and power.
Play Garcia -250 @ BetOnline.ag
Check out my recent boxing betting picks to see my current form.
Mario Barrios betting • Ryan Garcia betting