The lightweight rivals have been on collision course for a long time, and it appears their lengthy war of words will finally be settled in the first half of 2023 in what should be one of the year’s biggest fights. 

Both fighters are likely to have warm-up contests in January in anticipation of their huge clash, and if both emerge unscathed, an April meeting looks likely.  

Ward, a former two weight world champion, and now one of boxing’s shrewdest analysts, has had his say on how the potential battle plays out. 

“You got to favour Tank in that,” said Ward when speaking to Fight Hype. “It’s not a gimme fight for either guy, but you got to favour Tank based on the experience and the better opposition and the punching power of Tank and his boxing ability.”  

“Ryan is explosive, extremely fast, and Tank is going to have to contend with that. That’s going to give Tank trouble early until he catches up. The question for Ryan Garcia is can he take a punch?"