Errol Spence speaks on Mikey Garcia calling him out, and potential fights against current champions at welterweight.

Errol Spence sat ringside when Mikey Garcia defeated Robert Easter by unanimous decision in a lightweight title unification bout on July 2018. Immediately after his victory, Garcia called out Spence.

“I’m here for the biggest challenges,” Garcia said, following the fight. “I don’t know if there’s anybody else with a bigger challenge than Errol Spence. I would like that fight at welterweight, I wanna challenge myself to the fullest.”

Eight months later, and Spence (24-0, 21KOs) will put his IBF welterweight title on the line against Garcia (39-0, 30KOs) at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington on Mar. 16. For Spence, it can only motivate him more to have been on Garcia’s radar.

“Somebody that’s trying to take something that you work hard for,” said Spence, on Garcia calling him out. “Blood, sweat, and tears, literally. And he trying to take it, so that right there just, you know, motivated me and pumped me up. I’ma show him, not only the world, but show him that I’m the better fighter period.”

Spence, 29, of Dallas, Texas, had his sights set on fellow welterweight champions Keith Thurman, and Shawn Porter; along with former welterweight champion Danny Garcia. But Thurman chose to defend his WBA title against Josesito Lopez on January 26, following a nearly two-year layoff due to an elbow and wrist injury. He successfully retained his title by majority decision over a tough and non-stop pressuring Lopez.

Porter opted to make his first WBC title defense against Yordenis Ugas on Mar. 9, while Danny will look to rebound against Adrian Granados on Apr. 20; after a unanimous decision loss against Porter for the vacant WBC title in September 2018. That left Spence with a challenger in (Mikey) Garcia, and an opportunity to fight near his hometown of Dallas.

“I doubt any of those three fights could have been made at the Cowboys Stadium,” said Spence. “Them fights would have probably been at the Barclays, or in L.A., or (Las) Vegas; or something like that. It wouldn’t have been, you know, in the AT&T Stadium. So Mikey Garcia be the perfect (fit) just to have the fight at this moment, this time.”

Manny Pacquiao holds the WBA (Regular) welterweight title, and is coming off a unanimous decision victory over Adrian Broner in January 19. Spence would also like a shot at the eight-division champion and future Hall of Famer.

“That’s a no-brainer,” said Spence, of a potential fight with Pacquiao. “He’s a future Hall of Famer, he’s broke all these records. He’s getting older, he has a few fights left in him. No telling who he might fight, he might retire.”

Although Spence hasn’t been able to land a unification bout, he believes that he will get in the ring with some of the other current welterweight title holders soon enough.

“It’s great that everybody’s been noticing,” said Spence. “Everybody’s fighting around the same time. Me, Shawn, Keith fought about a month ago, Pacquiao fought in January. So I mean, basically everybody’s fresh for the summer time.”