The best punch trackers on the market
19th June 2020
By: Max Taylor
At the ripe age of 21, Ryan Garcia already finds himself perceived by the public in different ways. Firstly, there are his 6.4 million Instagram followers and a team that believe him to be one of the most promising, dangerous, and exciting fighters of the lightweight division. On the other hand, are the fans who believe him to be a protected and overrated youngster whose talent is yet to be tested.
This scepticism is a regular attitude expressed by fans to the young, high profile stars and is sometimes justified. What certainly doesn’t help the boxers escape judgement is the way some governing bodies implement titles in the division. You only need to look as far as the eyebrow-raising WBC ‘franchise’ concept that allows a golden opportunity for others to win the legitimate WBC belt prematurely in their career. Although Garcia is not involved in this conundrum, it builds a stigma for his demographic as young fighters like Devin Haney have taken this opportunity yet been critiqued for holding a title and not fighting noticeable opponents.
With the combination of patience, credible opponents, and a level of modesty though, it should only be a matter of time before ‘King Ry’ proves himself as a legitimate threat to the elite tier of the 135 division.
The Californian turned professional in June of 2016, only to be snapped up by Golden Boy Promotions five months after his debut where he finished fellow debutant Edgar Meza in the first round.
The public eye had sights on him long before that though, as his amateur fights and impressive training footage would surface on many social media boxing pages.
READ – Ryan Garcia & De La Hoya beef escalates
In similar fashion to his promoter Oscar De La Hoya, Garcia boasts an outrageous amateur record of 215-15. Those wins entailing 15 national championship gold medals, it seemed to have been his favourite number.
It’s a small world and the boxing one is even smaller which is clear as Garcia fought aforementioned WBC champion Haney who often trains with the retired Floyd Mayweather, who won a world title in the same lightweight division as well as four others. Both 21-year-olds couldn’t find an overall edge over one another when they battled as young amateurs (watch here), winning three apiece over the course of six fights.
When Garcia entered the pro ranks as a teen, many who weren’t familiar with his extensive amateur pedigree made the mistake that he was inexperienced. However, he showed this is where he belonged with his first three fights being finished inside the first-round, courtesy of his blistering hand speed and commendable accuracy.
Another common misconception is that he is a one-dimensional fighter who is reliant on his powerful lead hook. Although that is a thunderous punch Garcia has in his arsenal which can sway the momentum of a fight in his favour whenever it lands, it is not the only aspect to his game.
What I noticed when writing about Deontay Wilder and his destructive right hand was that no boxer is a one-trick pony, there is an array of skills they need and other tricks they must possess to pull said one-off. With Garcia’s left hook, he lands it so frequently by restricting body movement so his opponents cannot tell when it’s coming yet still follows through with enough power to buckle their knees.
His timing and reach management is also exceptional as his advantageous height allows him to find a pocket of space where he can land straight shots and still be out of harm’s way. Not many lightweights have this luxury as most aren’t 5’10.
The Californian uses his privilege to find a home for a straight right hand that has pierced the guards of many and regularly follows from the left hook if that hasn’t already dropped his adversary.
These well-oiled weapons have executed 17 out of the 20 that have been in the firing line before the final bell has rung.
This could give the impression that handling business early on, results in the fighter lacking in preparation for bouts that venture into later rounds. Whoever said this about ‘The Flash’ would have to eat their words as he has gone the distance twice in ten-rounders.
The Golden Boy fighter has made a fantastic start to his professional career and has brought the quality of fight activity with him, featuring in more than five bouts in his first year as a paid athlete.
Although he is referred to as ‘King Ry’ he is yet to be King of his weight class. The fighter who holds that throne is none other than Vasyl Lomachenko. The unified world Champion can teach this highly public up-and-comer a few things.
The main lesson that Garcia can take away from the Ukrainian is that a successful amateur background can take you very far in the sport. Lomachenko is the perfect example of this as he has one of the best records in the history of the sport in the unpaid ranks. The 32-year-old won 396 out of 397 fights which included gold medals at two Olympic games as well as gold in two national championships, almost unfathomable.
Because of this, the three-weight division champ was gifted with opportunities early on in his career, for example, a world title fight in his third professional bout.
This could mean that Garcia will be fighting for world honours soon enough too.
As far as his team goes, he is in safe hands as Eddie Reynoso was confirmed to be his head coach in late 2018. Reynoso is renowned for building team Canelo and cornering the middleweight world champion throughout his career.
The Mexican trainer will already be used to training famous fighters as he has seen his prodigy in Alvarez skyrocket in publicity as he entered the mainstream. Garcia’s fame is a different case altogether though as Alvarez became well-known for his accomplishments in the sport, ‘King Ry’ almost shares the same social media following as him, however, generated his fanbase without yet achieving a great deal in the sport.
READ – Ryan Garcia & De La Hoya beef escalates
It does not seem like Garcia has put a foot wrong so far, however, he walks a fine line at the expense of his age. He risks fighting unworthy opponents and being overprotected excused by his youth but also chances being exposed by an elite lightweight due to being thrown in the deep end too soon.
This fine line will be walked with caution. For the hardcore cynics who do not believe in the young man, he will soon make them second guess their opinion of him if he defeats a highly regarded opponent. With his World Class promotor and trainer, he seems well equipped to face top-level adversity though and dominate the division when the Lomachenko era is over.
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Max Taylor articles
Photography – Amanda Wescott