Danny Garcia was rumored to have been a candidate to face Manny Pacquiao in the Filipino icon’s next fight and likes the idea of challenging Terence Crawford. For now, Garcia will have to settle for a fight against Ivan Redkach on Jan. 25 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn on Showtime.
And he seems to be OK with his immediate fate. His job, he says, is to be prepared when a bigger opportunity arises.
“If the top welterweights want to fight me, I’ll be ready whenever,” Garcia (35-2, 21 KOs) said. “Redkach makes a lot of sense because he’s a southpaw and that would have me ready for Errol Spence Jr. or Manny Pacquiao. We picked Redkach because he’s dangerous and we knew he’d be tough. I’m definitely not overlooking him. I’m training hard for this fight. For me, this is a big fight.
“If I overlook him, it could ruin everything. I want to show everyone I’m still one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world.
Garcia (35-2, 21 KOs) has narrowly lost his last two big fights, a split decision against Keith Thurman in 2017 that cost him his welterweight title and a close unanimous decision against Shawn Porter for the same vacant title in September of last year.
The Philadelphian is hungry to get another major belt wrapped around is waist, although he’s playing it cool.
“I always feel like I’m the best,” he said. “They need me, I don’t need them. I’m one of the best fighters in the world, and I’m going to be here for a while.”
Garcia is pleased to fight again at Barclays, which is near his stomping grounds and has become a second home.
“This is my eighth fight at Barclays Center and I’m excited to be back,” he said. “I’ve fought in a quarter of the events here at Barclays Center, so you could say this is my house. I’ve had some historic fights in here. I love walking in the tunnels and seeing my pictures next to Jay-Z, DMX and Rihanna.
“Come January 25, this is going to be another great night of boxing. I know Ivan is coming to fight. We’ve followed each other’s careers. I know he’s hungry and he wants to show the fans that he belongs on this level.”
Indeed, he does. Redkach (23-4-1, 18 KOs) has had mixed results since 2015, compiling a record of 5-4-1 in 10 fights during that period. However, the Los Angeles-based Ukrainian is coming off arguably his biggest victory – a sixth-round knockout of former two-division titleholder Devon Alexander in June.
The Alexander who Redkach defeated was in decline. Still, he caught the attention of boxing fans with the victory.
“The victory over Devon Alexander was important because he was a well-known opponent,” Redkach said. “Winning in the fashion that I did catapulted me to where I am right now.”