Garcia blasted Conor Benn out in the second round at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, successfully defending his WBC welterweight championship and delivering the type of performance that immediately changes the conversation surrounding a fighter.

Garcia dropped Benn with a powerful right hand before unloading during the follow-up attack, forcing referee Thomas Taylor to stop the contest.

Earlier this year, Garcia captured the WBC title with a dominant decision over Mario Barrios. Against Benn, there was no need for 12 rounds, no uncertainty and very little resistance once Garcia found his opening.

Benn came forward looking to make the fight physical, but Garcia's speed and timing quickly became a problem.

Once he hurt Benn in the second round, the fight was essentially over. Garcia improved to 26-2 with 21 knockouts and, at 28 years old, suddenly finds himself in perhaps the strongest position of his career.

The loss to Rolando "Rolly" Romero in May 2025 now feels increasingly distant.

Garcia has responded by winning a world title and then destroying a high-profile challenger in his first defense. More importantly, he has something almost every fighter wants and very few actually possess — major options, so let's have a look at them.

Based on what's happened over the last few weeks, this feels like the obvious next fight. Lopez outpointed Garcia's conqueror Romero to capture the WBA title on his 147-pound debut last month..

Here lies two champions, two major personalities and two fighters who have never needed much encouragement to promote themselves.

Garcia made his intentions clear immediately after defeating Benn, calling out Lopez from the ring while the newly minted WBA beltholder watched from ringside. Security ultimately prevented the three-division champion from entering for a faceoff, but the message had already been delivered.

From a boxing standpoint, the matchup makes perfect sense.

Garcia can begin unifying the division while facing another recognizable name. Lopez gets the opportunity to become a unified welterweight champion while potentially scoring the biggest victory of his career.

There is also an obvious storyline involving Romero.

Lopez will undoubtedly use their results against Romero to argue he is the superior fighter. Garcia will counter that styles make fights and that Lopez is exactly the type of opponent he can hurt. It wouldn't require much selling.

The only sticking point would be the respective networks coming together to hash out a deal. Lopez has an exclusive contract with DAZN, and Garcia’s next fight could be tied to Zuffa Boxing, which has an exclusive contract with Paramount.

The two sides were able to work together for Garcia-Benn. Paramount had the streaming rights to the United States, and DAZN had locked down the UK and Ireland. However, unlike the USA vs. UK scenario with Garcia-Benn, this matchup would pit two American fighters against each other.

If Garcia-Lopez is the most logical fight, Garcia-Haney II might be the biggest as their rivalry remains unfinished.

Garcia dropped Haney three times and walked away with a majority decision when they met in April 2024, though the result was later changed to a no-contest after Garcia tested positive for ostarine.

That alone guarantees there will always be an argument surrounding what happened that night. A rematch was agreed upon for 2025 but ultimately scrapped when Romero upset Garcia at New York's Times Square event.

Haney, another fighter aligned with DAZN, holds the WBO welterweight championship after defeating Brian Norman last November.

The rematch would therefore no longer simply be about settling an old rivalry; it could be a major unification fight.

Garcia mentioned Haney after defeating Benn, although he indicated the matchup may need more time before it becomes realistic. There is nothing wrong with waiting because if Garcia defeats Lopez first and adds another title to the mix, it makes the Haney rematch even bigger.

This is the fight for boxing purists.

Stevenson is unbeaten, owns the Ring and WBO junior welterweight titles and has already won championships across four weight divisions. He captured his latest belt with a dominant victory over Lopez earlier this year.

Stylistically, this might be Garcia's toughest option.

Garcia has the size, speed and explosive power, while Stevenson is also fast and has some of boxing's best defense and distance control. The biggest issue is weight.

Garcia has made it clear that he considers himself a full-fledged welterweight and has no intention of dropping significantly below 147 pounds to accommodate Stevenson. Garcia's camp has essentially taken the position that anyone who wants him needs to come to his division.

Stevenson has already moved through numerous divisions, so another jump certainly isn't impossible. If he wants one of boxing's biggest fights, Garcia is now waiting at 147.

There will always be unfinished business here. Davis handed Garcia his first professional defeat in April 2023, a seventh-round stoppage in one of the biggest commercial fights boxing had produced in years.

The circumstances would be completely different in a rematch, given Garcia's elevated status as welterweight champion. He would no longer be the younger fighter accepting a 136-pound catchweight and rehydration restriction simply to get the opportunity.

Garcia's camp has already made clear that any second fight would have to take place much closer to Garcia's terms. Whether Davis returns to consistent activity remains another question.

But commercially? Garcia-Davis II would still be enormous. And unlike the first meeting, Garcia could enter the negotiations believing he has just as much leverage as the man who defeated him.

This one sounds crazy — which is exactly why it shouldn't be completely dismissed.

Crawford retired after defeating Canelo Alvarez last September, but his name continues to surface whenever boxing's biggest possible fights are discussed.

There has already been plenty of verbal back-and-forth between the pair, and Turki Alalshikh has publicly expressed interest in Garcia-Crawford as part of his list of major fights he would like to see.

The weight difference would need to be resolved, and Crawford would have to make a decision on fighting again.

But boxing has repeatedly shown us that money can turn unlikely fights into very real conversations. Garcia's profile makes almost anything possible.

Garcia spent much of the last several years being discussed as a celebrity who happened to box. That narrative is becoming increasingly difficult to maintain.

He is now the WBC welterweight champion, has put together two impressive performances in 2026 and just became the first fighter to stop Benn. Now comes the difficult part — choosing correctly.

Lopez appears to be the perfect next opponent because the fight offers everything Garcia should be looking for: another championship, a recognizable name, an opponent willing to promote the fight and a matchup that should produce action.

Beat Lopez and Garcia potentially walks into a Haney rematch carrying two of the four 147-pound crowns. After that? Stevenson, Davis or perhaps something even bigger could be waiting.

Garcia has always had the name. Now he has the belt, momentum and leverage to go with it. For once, Garcia doesn't have to chase the biggest fight available. He can sit back and see who comes chasing him.