Tony Bellew suspects Ryan Garcia, who he believes is the sport’s “pound-for-pound quickest fighter”, could be involved in a “nasty” encounter with Floyd Mayweather.

The two Americans may end up colliding in a bizarre showdown early next year, with Garcia having named February 6 as a potential date.

Alternatively, the 28-year-old could face WBA welterweight champion Teofimo Lopez in a unification clash, which most would consider an infinitely more competitive matchup than the one with Mayweather.

It has, after all, been nearly a decade since the Hall of Famer boxed professionally and, even then, his 10th-round stoppage of Conor McGregor was seen as more of a glorified exhibition.

At the age of 49, too, Mayweather is unlikely to possess the reflexes that contributed to him becoming a five-division world champion and retiring with a 50-0 record.

Some might argue that, defensively, he could still make for an intriguing contest with Garcia, given his superior boxing IQ and overall technical prowess.

While considering Garcia’s vastly superior speed and power, though, former world champion Bellew has told Fight Your Corner that Mayweather would suffer an emphatic defeat.

“[I’m picking] Garcia, all day. And I think it could be nasty. The first thing a fighter loses at that level is reflexes, and you need your reflexes against Garcia because he is, pound-for-pound right now, the quickest fighter in the world.”

Most would agree that Garcia has entered his prime, or at least appears to have made considerable improvements since his unanimous decision defeat to Rolando ‘Rolly’ Romero in May 2025.

Back then, ‘King Ry’ was coming off a year-long doping ban, whereas now he seems to be at the peak of his powers.