Ryan Garcia Is A World Class Self Promoter. Will he prove that he really is a world-class fighter?
By: Sean Crose
The young man in the video stood in the sun to sign autographs, a crowd gathered in front of him. He’s polite, a well-mannered young man, handsome and quite amiable, never losing patience with his fans. Finally, a woman, likely a PR officer, stepped forward and definitively stopped the proceedings. The young man allowed himself to be led away but had no feeling that he had been rescued from a nasty mob. Indeed, he seemed to enjoy the praise. He is nothing if not a considerate man. Yet he also has a mouth. Oh, and he’s one of the toughest rising stars in boxing.
The young man is named – if you haven’t guessed – Ryan Garcia. Company spokesman. Celebrities on social networks. A boxer has 22 wins and no losses. 18 of those impressive knockouts. At first glance, the 23-year-old has it all. However, there are pitfalls in the famed armor that have been discovered that have nothing to do with the decline in mental health that Garcia had some time ago. First and foremost, the California native doesn’t have a prominent name on his resume. His best win was against the very talented Luke Campbell – a legitimately brilliant boxer, yes, but not one to live in the sport’s race.
However, Garcia has no problem voicing her views publicly about who are considered to be at or near the boxing summit. “Congrats Haney,” he tweeted after Devin Haney’s impressive title win over George Kambosos in Kambosos’ native Australia, “but it was definitely a bland fight, Anyway, I’ll just say , you know who I want after Fortuna !! ! Let them have a rematch lol. Purely a “nyquil” type of representation. “Although Haney’s win over Kambosos wasn’t the most exciting in the world, it was one-sided and impressive. It’s also the world title, something Garcia has yet to fight. Instead, Garcia next will face the aforementioned Javier Fortuna in the round of 16order of this month.
However, as Garcia pointed out in his Haney tweet, he will chase the big fish after the Fortuna match – as long as he beats Fortuna 37-3-1; a man who is unmistakably one of boxing’s biggest names, but nonetheless a former world prodigy. Garcia, however, was favored to win and with good reason. In addition to his rocket-like strength, he’s also grown as a warrior. Will he be able to beat the likes of Gervonta “The Tank” Davis, the multi-division celebrity he clearly wants to face? The answer may come. Give Garcia this – his ambition could be as big as his mouth… or his friendly smile.
