Fast-rising prospect Elijah Garcia is ready to continue a resounding 2023 campaign when he fights Armando Reséndiz to kick off the Canelo Alvarez vs. Jermell Charlo pay per view card Saturday night on Showtime. 

Garcia (15-0, 12 KOs) will be matched tough yet again in the 10-round middleweight matchup against the equally-ascending Reséndiz (14-1, 10 KOs), a 24-year-old who is coming off a stoppage win against former super welterweight unified champion Jarret Hurd.

“Fight night is going to be a real tough fight,” Garcia told BoxingScene.com in an interview. “[Reséndiz] comes to fight and bang. I expect nothing but a high-action fight. I'm a banger as well. The winner gets to take it to the next level. I'm prepared. I like to keep my distance, break them down. I'm a pressure fighter and I like to bang in the inside.” 

Garcia is a contender already ranked in the top 15 (WBC #6, IBF #7, WBA #8, and WBO #13) by the four major sanctioning bodies at 160 pounds and he says that he’s ready for a world title run in 2024.

Should he beat Reséndiz, an unofficial title that the 21-year-old Garcia will likely be shortlisted for once the calendar year comes to a close is prospect of the year. 

The Arizona-based, 6-foot tall southpaw Garcia has already beaten Amilcar Vidal Jr. and Kevin Salgado this year. At the time, the pair of fighters brought a combined record of 31-1-1 into the ring. 

During his grand arrival ceremony Tuesday at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Garcia admitted that he had a "pretty rough performance" against Salgado and that he was "trying to make up for it in this fight.”

“I'm taking it one step at a time. Taking fights like this against Reséndiz is going to take me to the next level and get that experience when the time comes to fight for that belt … Hard work pays off. I'm blessed.” 

Manouk Akopyan is a sports journalist, writer, and broadcast reporter. He’s also a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and the MMA Journalists Association. He can be reached on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube at @ManoukAkopyan, through email at manouk[dot]akopyan[at]gmail.com, or via www.ManoukAkopyan.com.