The big-punching Argentine southpaw added to his fearsome reputation by icing the usually-durable Miguel Madueno in three rounds on April 25.

"Without a doubt, the fight against Madueno was one of the most memorable moments of my career," Chaves (22-0, 19 KOs) told The Ring. "It was my first fight outside Argentina, on a huge stage, in front of the biggest promotional company in the world. There was a lot of pressure and a lot of expectations, and I knew I had to deliver.

"Thankfully, everything went the way I had imagined. The stage, the opponent and the moment never overwhelmed me. I felt comfortable from the opening bell, almost like I was fighting at home. Finishing the fight with a knockout like that made it even more special. It's a moment my team and I will never forget, and I believe it's one of the best knockouts — if not the very best — of my career so far."

The manner of the victory meant it became difficult to secure his next opponent before Eridson Garcia accepted the opportunity to fight Friday on the Andy Ruiz-Damian Knyba undercard at Prudential Center, New Jersey, live on DAZN and TNT.

"A few fighters, like Justin Pauldo and René Téllez Girón, initially agreed but then decided not to move forward. I think that says a lot," he said. "Even at the highest level, some fighters prefer to avoid certain risks. That said, I respect anyone who's willing to step into the ring and test themselves.

"I'm glad Garcia accepted the fight, and I appreciate him doing so. He's coming off a very competitive fight with Andres Cortes, where I think he probably deserved a little more. That makes me expect an even more motivated version of him."

The Buenos Aires native comes from a boxing family. His grandfather, father, uncles and cousins all boxed professionally but it is his brother Diego who is best remembered for contending at welterweight over decade ago, facing the likes of Keith Thurman, Brandon Rios and Tim Bradley.

His sibling's career helped inspire "Veneno," initially as an amateur, where he represented his country overseas in the United States, Montenegro and Bulgaria, before switching to the professional ranks.

He's hoping to bring all of that know-how together when he takes on the tricky Garcia.

"He brings experience, and I'm sure he's highly motivated to stop my momentum and work his way back to the top of the division," he said. "But that's exactly the kind of challenge I've been preparing for. I'm ready for him, and I'm ready for the best fighters at lightweight."

Victory will place Chaves, who is ranked in the top 10 with all four sanctioning bodies (No. 5 IBF, No. 9 WBA, No. 6 WBC, No. 2 WBO), one step closer to a world title shot.

"I feel ready for whoever they put in front of me," he stated. "My job is to stay prepared, keep improving and be ready when the big opportunity comes. Everything I'm doing is focused on one goal: becoming a world champion.

"I don't have just one name in mind. I want to fight the best, whoever they are. It doesn't matter who's standing across the ring. I'll be ready when that moment comes, and I won't give anything away."

Garcia (23-2, 14 KOs) turned professional in his homeland of the Dominican Republic in 2017. After notching 17 consecutive wins, he got knocked out in one round by Jordan White in August 2023.

Since then, the 32-year-old southpaw has beaten William Foster III (UD 10) and upset Taiga Imanaga (SD 10) in Riyadh on the undercard of Naoya Inoue-David Picasso before losing to Cortes (UD 10) on April 5.