Lightweight contender Ryan Garcia appears to be a star in the making. The Los Angeles fighter has the looks, the charisma, the backing of Golden Boy Promotions, the work ethic and, most important, the ability. He can box and he can bang. That was …
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Lightweight contender Ryan Garcia appears to be a star in the making.
The Los Angeles fighter has the looks, the charisma, the backing of Golden Boy Promotions, the work ethic and, most important, the ability. He can box and he can bang.
That was plainly evident in his last fight, a first-round knockout of Francisco Fonseca on Feb. 14 at Honda Center in Anaheim, California.
The end came in a breathtaking instant, a left hook that knocked the veteran Nicaraguan fighter onto his back and out. It took Garcia only 1 minute, 20 seconds to get the job done.
In this new series of videos, courtesy of DAZN, you are able to join the fighters and their teams behind the scenes.
In Episode 2, Garcia and Co. react to his knockout of Fonseca.
In this new series of videos entitled “Off the Canvas,” courtesy of DAZN, you are able to join the fighters behind the scenes.
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Lightweight contender Ryan Garcia appears to be a star in the making.
The Los Angeles fighter has the looks, the charisma, the backing of Golden Boy Promotions, the work ethic and, most important, the ability. He can box and he can bang.
That was plainly evident in his last fight, a first-round knockout of Francisco Fonseca on Feb. 14 at Honda Center in Anaheim, California.
The end came in a breathtaking instant, a left hook that knocked the veteran Nicaraguan fighter onto his back and out. It took Garcia only 1 minute, 20 seconds into the fight.
In this new series of videos, courtesy of DAZN, you are able to join the fighters and their teams behind the scenes.
In Episode 1, Garcia and Co. react to his knockout of Fonseca.
Ryan Garcia still has a lot to prove but first-round knockouts — like the one he turned in Saturday — generate excitement.
GOOD
Ryan Garcia’s one-punch knockout of Francisco Fonseca only 1 minute, 20 seconds into their lightweight fight Friday doesn’t prove much because Fonseca is nothing special.
The excitement Garcia created with his second consecutive first-round stoppage is genuine, though. He’s blossoming into a potential star. That’s what happens when your results in the ring start to catch up to the hype.
Indeed, almost any fighter would love to be in Garcia’s position.
Of course, he still has a long way to go. Only 21, he still hasn’t faced a legitimate threat. Only a true test can give us an idea of how good Garcia truly is and can be.
It could come soon. Oscar De La Hoya, Garcia’s promoter, is eyeing a matchup between Garcia and former three-division titleholder Jorge Linares in July. If Garcia can win that fight – a big if, in my opinion – he will have made a strong statement.
I wonder whether Garcia’s handlers would live to regret the decision to fight the gifted Linares, who demonstrated in his fourth-round knockout of Carlos Morales on the Garcia-Fonseca card that he has more to give, but I would applaud the bold move.
Garcia, bubbling with confidence, definitely thinks big. He reeled off immediately after his stoppage of Fonseca a gauntlet of opponents he’d like to face in the near future – Linares, Luke Campbell, Gervonta Davis and Devin Haney.
That’s quite a gauntlet he’s laid out for himself. We’ll see how many of them – if any – he fights and how he performs once he does.
In the meantime, Garcia has our attention. That’s more than all but a few professional boxers can say.
BAD
Referee Jack Reiss watches closely as a wild ending to the Abel Ramos-Bryant Perrella fight unfolds. Stephanie Trapp / TGB Promotions
The last-second stoppage of the Abel Ramos-Bryant Perrella fight on the Caleb Plant-Vincent Feigenbutz card Saturday in Nashville might’ve seemed cruel to Perrella, who was winning on all cards when he lost in an instant.
The fact is referee Jack Reiss was following the rules.
According to the Unified Rules of Boxing, under which that bout was fought, “A fighter cannot be saved by the bell in any round, including the final round.” That means, if I understand it correctly, an injured boxer must be in condition to fight even if the three minutes of the last round has expired.
Reiss judged that Perrella, who had gone down twice in the final seconds, was in no condition to continue and waved off the fight.
The frustration expressed by Perrella’s cornerman Michael Nowling in the ring immediately after the stoppage was understandable: “We won every round and they took it from us with 1 second left.”
The rules took it from Perrella, not “they.” And not Reiss. The referee, as trainer and TV analyst Joe Goossen said, isn’t a timekeeper. His job is to look after the welfare of the combatants in the ring with him and follow the rules.
That’s what Reiss did. Good stoppage.
WORSE
Vincent Feigenbutz (left) didn’t have the tools to compete with Caleb Plant on Saturday night. Stephanie Trapp / TGB Promotions
It seems to me that sanctioning bodies are supposed to have a champion and then rank the next 10 best contenders in each division.
The reality? The alphabet organizations rank their contenders based less on merit than on how much money they can make. The result of that is a matchup like Caleb Plant vs. Vincent Feigenbutz for Plant’s IBF super middleweight title.
Feigenbutz, ranked No. 1 by the IBF, is a strong, sturdy young man but he had no business in the ring with a fighter of Plant’s ability. The fact he was the mandatory challenger is yet another red flag that the system is a mess.
Plant’s title defense, which ended by 10th-round knockout, couldn’t even be described as a competitive fight. Feigenbutz, an eight-year pro, has rudimentary skills and courage but not the tools to give the titleholder a legitimate challenge. Aren’t title fights supposed to be competitive at least on paper?
Anyone watching that fight who didn’t feel sorry for the German in the latter rounds has no heart. And anyone not disgusted with the IBF has no sense.
Sadly, there is no solution is sight. Some sort of oversight body – ideally an international one – might help but that isn’t going to happen any time soon. I personally try to minimize the sanctioning bodies by mentioning them infrequently but that’s only a small gesture.
We’re stuck with the murky alphabet soup and mismatches like Plant-Feigenbutz. I just hope fans can see through their self-serving game.
True stars don’t just win. They make statements. And that’s what Ryan Garcia did on Friday night at Honda Center in Anaheim, California on DAZN. The popular lightweight contender needed only one punch to end his fight against Francisco Fonseca, a …
True stars don’t just win. They make statements. And that’s what Ryan Garcia did on Friday night at Honda Center in Anaheim, California on DAZN.
The popular lightweight contender needed only one punch to end his fight against Francisco Fonseca, a left hook that knocked Fonseca flat on his back and out only 1 minute, 20 seconds into the scheduled 12-round fight.
It was Garcia’s second consecutive first-round knockout. He stopped Romero Duno 1:38 into their fight in November.
“I saw the left hook. I was there,” Garcia said. I just needed to let him commit to a shot, let him get comfortable. I caught him right between the shot. It was a perfect left hook. That’s what they call it.”
By comparison, in two junior lightweight title fights, Fonseca (25-3-2, 19 KOs) was stopped in eight rounds by Gervonta Davis and lost a 12-round decision to Tevin Farmer.
What’s next for Garcia (20-0, 17 KOs?
The rising star’s promoter, Oscar De La Hoya, apparently has arranged for Garcia to fight Jorge Linares in July at Staples Center in Los Angeles. Linares looked sharp en route to stopping Carlos Morales on the Garcia-Fonseca undercard.
“I said if he had a good performance, I’d fight him,” Garcia said of Linares.
That’s a dangerous fight for Garcia. Linares, a three-division titleholder, is a proven commodity. But Garcia is bursting with confidence. He has a blueprint for this year that should, if he’s successful, make him a true star.
“I had a plan for 2020 and that was to shock the world,” he said. “So to shock the world I’ll beat Linares, beat Luke Campbell, beat Gervonta Davis and then go after Devin [Haney].”
Jorge Linares looked like the Jorge Linares of old on Friday night. The former three-division titleholder stopped Carlos Morales at 2:09 of Round 4 in a scheduled 10-round lightweight bout on the Ryan Garcia-Francisco Fonseca on Friday night at …
Jorge Linares looked like the Jorge Linares of old on Friday night.
The former three-division titleholder stopped Carlos Morales at 2:09 of Round 4 in a scheduled 10-round lightweight bout on the Ryan Garcia-Francisco Fonseca on Friday night at Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif.
Linares (46-5, 28 KOs) has now won two in a row since he was stopped by Pablo Cesar Cano in an ill-fated attempt to eventually win a title in a fourth division, junior welterweight.
Linares, prone to being cut, suffered a gash above his left eye as a result of an accidental head butt in the first round. In the second, Morales (19-5-4, 8 KOs) landed a number of eye-catching punches and might’ve won the round.
However, in the third, a short right from Linares put Morales down and hurt him. He said on his way to his corner, “What hit me?”
He never really figured that out because the same punch, a short right, put him down on his behind and into the ropes. He was unable to continue.
Morales had never been stopped in his career.
Linares looked sharp, but apparently he believes he can do more.
“I’m surprised at myself because I know I can demonstrate even more than that,” the Japan-based Venezuelan said through a translator.
We’ll probably see. Linares, 34, now seems to be on his way to challenging for a 135-pound title. One possibility: Ryan Garcia.
Welterweight contender Alexis Rocha had to work hard but overcame a spirited effort from Brad Solomon. Rocha put Solomon down in the 10th and final round en route to a unanimous-decision victory on the Ryan Garcia-Francisco Fonseca card Friday night …
Welterweight contender Alexis Rocha had to work hard but overcame a spirited effort from Brad Solomon.
Rocha put Solomon down in the 10th and final round en route to a unanimous-decision victory on the Ryan Garcia-Francisco Fonseca card Friday night at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California.
Rocha (16-0, 10 KOs) put Solomon (28-3, 9 KOs) down with a right hook followed by two rights to the body.
The scores were 100-89, 99-90 and 97-92, although the fight might’ve been closer than that.
Roacha grew up in Santa Ana, a few miles from the Honda Center.
Solomon has now lost back to back fights to Golden Boy Promotions prospects. He was stopped by Vergil Ortiz Jr. in the fifth round in December.
Oscar De La Hoya has challenged fellow promoter Floyd Mayweather to make a Ryan Garcia vs. Gervonta Davis fight happen.
Oscar De La Hoya would’ve liked a rematch with Floyd Mayweather after losing a competitive fight in 2007 but it never happened.
The next best thing?
De La Hoya, speaking on the Petros and Money Show, challenged now-fellow promoter Mayweather to pit his fighter Gervonta “Tank” Davis against Golden Boy’s rising young star Ryan Garcia.
Garcia (19-0, 16 KOs) fights Francisco Fonseca (25-2-2, 19 KOs) in a scheduled 12-round lightweight bout Friday at Honda Center in Anaheim, California, on DAZN.
“Ryan, I believe, is ready for a world title,” De La Hoya said on the radio program. “And I have something to say. … You have a fighter, Tank. I have my fighter, Ryan Garcia. Let’s make this fight happen.
“If Ryan wins … this Friday, if he wins, then let’s stage a fight, man. Look, promoter vs. promoter, fighter vs. fighter, Mayweather Promotions vs. Golden Boy Promotions. It’ll be a huge fight.”
Davis seems to like the idea. Garcia retweeted a clip of the De La Hoya interview. Davis then tweeted “Let’s do this! I’m gonna be Supa rich this year” with a link to the clip. To which Garcia responded, “It’s on course now.”
We’ll see.
Davis has also expressed interest in fighting Leo Santa Cruz, with whom he shares a manager. And Davis also is dealing with legal issues after he was arrested for allegedly assaulting the mother of his child.
And, of course, Fonseca might have something to say about it.
Ryan Garcia is scheduled to face Francisco Fonseca on Feb. 14 in Anaheim, California, but has bigger plans for 2020.
Ryan Garcia needs no introduction. His social media following is evidence of that. Yet his promoter, Oscar De La Hoya, foresees 2020 as a time to prove that Garcia is more than just another virtual celebrity.
Proof is in a word “title”.
De La Hoya hopes to add that complementary piece to Garcia’s resume this year.
“I think he’ll be a world champion by the end of the year,’’ De La Hoya said Monday during a media tour promoting Garcia’s fight against Francisco Fonseca on Feb. 14 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California on DAZN. “He’s getting stronger, faster and wiser. For Ryan, we want the best for him.’’
The bout against Fonseca (21-2-2, 19 KOs), of Nicaragua, is seen as step toward a shot at a lightweight title for Garcia (19-0, 16 KOs), who set the stage for a promising New Year with a sensational first-round stoppage of Filipino Romero Duno on Nov. 2 in Las Vegas.
“I feel like this is the first step towards things to come,” said Garcia, who will fight for the fourth time with Canelo Alvarez trainer Eddy Reynoso in his corner. “Now that it’s here, I’m ready to shine at the brightest moment.”
Jorge Linares will try to fight his way back into the 135-pound title mix on a card featuring Ryan Garcia vs. Francisco Fonseca on Feb. 14.
Former lightweight champion Jorge Linares will try to fight his way back into the title mix on a card featuring Ryan Garcia vs. Francisco Fonseca on Feb. 14 at Honda Center in Anaheim, California.
Golden Boy Promotions announced Monday that Linares (46-5, 28 KOs) will face Carlos Morales (19-4, 8 KOs) on the DAZN-streamed card.
“2019 was a difficult year, but I’ve been through ups and downs in my career before, and I’ve always come back,’’ Linares said. “On Feb. 14, I’m going to show why I became a four-time world champion by scoring a dominant win. After that, I hope to fight for a world title very soon.”
Linares, who has won belts at featherweight, junior lightweight and lightweight, moved up to 140-pounds last Jan. 18 and suffered a first-round knockout against Pablo Cesar Cano in New York. The 34-year-old Venezuelan came back on Sept. 7, winning a decision over Filipino Al Toyogon in Japan.
A Linares victory could put him in line to fight Ryan Garcia, if Garcia beats Fonseca.
Morales, a 29-year-old Mexican, is a former junior lightweight who will be fighting at 135 pounds for the third time. He lost a majority decision to Garcia on Sept. 1, 2018 in Indio, California.
Ryan Garcia will make his first appearance in the New Year on Feb. 14 against Francisco Fonseca at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California.
Emerging lightweight Ryan Garcia will make his first appearance in the New Year on Feb. 14, Valentine’s Day, against Francisco Fonseca at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California, Golden Boy Promotions and DAZN announced this week.
Garcia (19-0, 16 KOs) set the stage for a promising 2020 with a stunning first-round stoppage of Filipino Romero Duno on Nov. 2 on a card that featured Canelo Alvarez’s 10th-round knockout of Sergey Kovalev at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand.
“I’m very excited to be in the ring once again,” Garcia said in a release announcing the bout. “I’m looking to shock the world this year. I’m going to show the boxing world that I’m here forever.”
Fonseca (25-2-2, 19 KOs) is coming off a draw with Alex Dilmaghani on Nov. 16 in London.
“When I face Ryan Garcia, I will expose him on his own territory,’’ said Fonseca, a Nicaraguan.
Former lightweight champion Jorge Linares (46-5, 28 KO) also is expected to be on the card, setting up a possible Linares-Garcia bout if both win. An opponent for Linares has yet to be announced.
