NEW YORK: Big boxing in New York for long meant Madison Square Garden, in recent years Barclays Center as well.

Fight night in Times Square promises to be a whole different scene.

“I think we’re expecting half a million people, for free,” said Hall of Fame boxer Oscar De La Hoya, whose Golden Boy Promotions has three fighters on the May 2 tripleheader.

The fighters on the card are known: Ryan Garcia against Rolando “Rolly” Romero in the main event; Devin Haney against Jose Ramirez in the co-main; and Teofimo Lopez against Arnold Barboza Jr. in a title fight as the opener.

Not disclosed yet is what the setup will look like, how fans can access it, and just how exactly organizers got permission to close down one of the busiest attractions in the heart of one of the busiest cities in the world.

“It took a lot of money,” De La Hoya said with a laugh.

The card itself would be intriguing to boxing fans no matter where it was held. It’s headlined by Garcia returning from the one-year suspension he was given by the New York State Athletic Commission after testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs when he fought Haney last April in Brooklyn.

Garcia knocked Haney down three times and won a majority decision that was eventually overturned and ruled a no-contest. Garcia wasn’t eligible to win Haney’s 140-pound title anyway, because he weighed in more than 3 pounds above the limit.

He has acknowledged problems with drinking and smoking and said he has put that behind him as he returns.

“I want to just show everybody that you could come back from anything and I want to show my dedication to the sport and just be a true professional,” Garcia said. “I admit my wrongs and I don’t want anybody to take my actions of drinking and smoking before the fight and try to think that’s a way to handle yourself as a professional.”

Neither Garcia nor Haney has fought since, and both are moving up to contest their fights at the welterweight limit of 147 pounds. Should both win, the plan is for a rematch between the two.

It’s the first card in the US for Ring Magazine, now owned by Turki Alalshikh, the head of Riyadh Season and the General Entertainment Authority of Saudi Arabia.

“We could have staged this event anywhere. We could have put it in any venue in New York, any venue in LA, any venue in Las Vegas and it would have sold out,” Ring Magazine chief operating officer Rick Reeno said. “We wanted to do something special, something iconic, because if we put this in any other venue, any other location, it just would have been a really big event with three great fights. We wanted something that like 25 years from now, people will look back and say, ‘Oh my God, can you believe they staged that crazy event in the heart of Times Square?’”

It could present challenges. De La Hoya said there is always concern about doing outdoor events because of the weather, which isn’t guaranteed to be ideal in the Northeast in early May.

“I don’t know if you guys have been in New York in May but it’s a little cold, don’t you think?” Romero said. “So they might have some heaters walking through.”

But De La Hoya isn’t concerned about the ability to pull off an event that other organizers said contains plans unlike they have ever seen.

“No, I think New York has handled big events. I mean, look, Times Square, New Year’s Eve, millions of people,” De La Hoya said. “It’s going to be an epic event, man. I’m happy to be part of it.”

MADRID: Real Madrid claimed a small edge on city rivals Atletico Madrid with a tight 2-1 Champions League last 16 first-leg win on Tuesday.
Julian Alvarez levelled for Atletico after Rodrygo Goes sent the hosts ahead, but Brahim Diaz stroked home the winner for the record 15-time winners to delight the Santiago Bernabeu stadium.
Diego Simeone’s Atletico, who lost in the 2014 and 2016 finals against their bitter rivals, kept stars Vinicius Junior and Kylian Mbappe quiet but still came up short.
The Rojiblancos played it safe in the final stages, seeming to accept their one-goal disadvantage for the second leg derby clash at home next week.
Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti opted for Morocco international Diaz in midfield to replace the suspended Jude Bellingham and selected Fede Valverde at right-back after he was passed fit to play.
The Italian had demanded his side show a better attitude and more commitment than during their La Liga defeat by Real Betis on Saturday and his charges delivered.
Rodrygo pounced after just four minutes, slipping inside Javi Galan to collect Valverde’s teasing pass before firing home with his left foot across Jan Oblak and inside the far post.
It was the Brazilian winger’s fifth strike of the tournament, habitually shining on the European stage for Madrid, where he boasts 25 goals in 61 appearances.
Rodrygo wanted a penalty when Galan appeared to hold him back in the area but his appeals were waved away.
His compatriot Vinicius came close to netting Madrid’s second as he surged into the box but Jose Gimenez blocked his shot well.
Atletico began to create danger of their own and Valverde hacked away Giuliano Simeone’s whipped ball from under his own crossbar under pressure from Samuel Lino.
Alvarez levelled with a brilliant individual goal, dancing away from Eduardo Camavinga on the left of the box and curling his shot past Thibaut Courtois into the top corner.
The former Manchester City striker has been in sublime form in the past few weeks, notching 10 goals in 14 matches and proving why Atletico made him their second most expensive signing of all-time last summer.
Antoine Griezmann and Rodrigo De Paul helped Atletico keep control for long periods, with Madrid finding it hard to take the ball back from their rivals.
That made it all the more surprising when Diaz restored Los Blancos’ lead in the 55th minute.
The midfielder left Gimenez on the floor with some quick footwork and carved out the space for a tidy low finish, before leaping into the crowd to celebrate.
Griezmann fired wide and Gimenez over as Atletico looked for a response and Ancelotti brought on 39-year-old midfielder Luka Modric in search of more control.
The Croatian delivered just that and neither side threatened in the final half hour of the match until stoppage time, when Madrid might have secured a third.
Mbappe’s cut-back from the right was behind Vinicius who was waiting for a tap-in, and Oblak saved from Modric in the aftermath.
Atletico host Real Madrid next week at the Metropolitano stadium, with the winner facing Arsenal or PSV Eindhoven in the quarter-finals.