Ryan Garcia had a great opportunity to become one of the biggest names in boxing when he faced Gervonta Davis last April. The fight was popular among fans and had a lot of commercial success.
However, Garcia was dropped in Round 2 and knocked out in Round 7. The fight was fought at a catchweight with a rehydration clause, which may have impacted Garcia’s performance.
After that fight, Garcia moved up to 140 pounds. He made his debut against Oscar Duarte in December and knocked him out.
Almost a year later, Garcia(24-1, 20 KOs) has another opportunity to make a name for himself when he battles WBC 140-pound champion Devin Haney (31-0, 15 KOs) on Saturday, April 20 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn(DAZN PPV).
Photos: Golden Boy / Cris Esqueda
Garcia has been very busy on social media throughout this promotion, and most of it was not about boxing. Some have questioned whether he’s training at a high level for this fight, but according to Garcia, he’s handling his business.
“The interpretations of other people – that’s on them,” he said at a media workout in Dallas on Tuesday. “I know I am training hard. I am feeling great, looking good in the gym, people just need to look at the facts. I don’t regret anything I said or did in the lead up to this fight. I’m just ready to kick a** on April 20. I know I can say a lot, but I know I need to show it.”
“You won’t hear from any trainer out there that I don’t train hard. To me, it’s very disrespectful to dismiss all the hard work I have done since I was a young boy coming up. I have been training since I was seven-years-old. It’s a slap in the face to all the work me and my family did.”
When it’s all said and done, Garcia believes he will have an easy night against Haney.
“It’s going to be light work for me,” he said. “I am going to cook Devin Haney. Just another day in the office. Devin is not on my level and he will never be on my level.”
The concerns around Garcia’s mental health are legitimate. It’s possible that he could be going through something right now, or he could be just trying to sell the fight.
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