Tag Archives: mikey garcia

Posted on 03/11/2022

By: Hans Themistode

Through 24 hard-fought rounds between Canelo Alvarez and Gennadiy Golovkin, most of the boxing world is still split on who was the better fighter.

Although on paper Alvarez has the edge, having picked up a split decision draw and majority decision win in their two-part sequel, the Mexican star is preparing to put the final nail in Golovkin’s coffin.

Just a few short weeks ago, Alvarez inked his name as part of a three-fight agreement with promoter Eddie Hearn. On May 7th, Alvarez will leave his undisputed super-middleweight throne, in an attempt to grab championship glory when he takes on WBA light heavyweight champion, Dmitry Bivol. At the tail end of the year, most likely in December, Alvarez will either face off against WBC cruiserweight belt holder Ilunga Makabu, or super middleweight contender, John Ryder.

Sandwiched in-between those previously mentioned contests will be a third showdown against Golovkin. First things first, however, both men must win their upcoming bouts. Alvarez, of course, will have his hands full against Bivol, while Golovkin, on the other side of the spectrum, will have to deal with fellow middleweight titlist, Ryota Murata.

Since suffering the one and only defeat of his career at the hands of Alvarez, Golovkin has gone on to pick up three consecutive victories. But, despite adding to his win column, Golovkin hasn’t looked quite like his old explosive self.

In the case of Alvarez, his name often protrudes to the top of most pound-for-pound lists as boxing’s leading man. Since Golovkin, the 31-year-old has collected world titles at 160, 168, and 175 pounds.

With both Alvarez and Golovkin engaging in back and forth wars over the years, Mikey Garcia has watched from the sidelines with enjoyment. Ultimately, while Garcia has always revered Golovkin, as a third showdown between them draws near, he’ll be disingenuous in stating that Golovkin has a chance at pulling off the victory. With the future Hall of Famer and current IBF middleweight titlist now 39 years of age, Garcia believes that Golovkin will fall at the hands of Alvarez in the most brutal of ways.

“I think Canelo stops GGG at this point now,” said Garcia to K.O. Artist Sports. “It’ll be a good matchup but I think Canelo stops him.”

Posted on 12/28/2021

By: Hans Themistode

It was a jaw-dropping moment for both Mikey Garcia and his extremely large fanbase.

As the former four-division titlist began gearing up for a showdown against Regis Prograis, the California native first decided to take on the unheralded Sandor Martin. Although Garcia walked into their showdown as an enormous favorite, he was taken aback at the overall skills of Martin.

Though Garcia had his moments, he was thoroughly outboxed and handed only the second defeat of his pro career. Regardless of the shocking end result, Garcia is still on the hunt to face the best names in the sport of boxing.

Just a few weeks ago, Garcia nodded in approval while he took in the sights as Devin Haney scored a unanimous decision win over Joseph Diaz to defend his WBC lightweight crown. Needless to say, Garcia was impressed with what he witnessed.

“I thought it was a very good fight,” said Garcia during an interview with FightHype.com. “Haney fought a great fight. He used his jab to measure the distance. Keep a certain distance that fitted him. Used the height and reach advantage and fought a very good type of fight.”

In addition to Haney impressing Garcia with his overall performance, the former multiple division star went into details as he gave Haney credit for his complete maturity and expansion of his game.

“He’s developed more. He’s more mature. Few fights back he was still making a few mistakes here and there. Just the way he was fighting, he might be looking for the power a little too much or trying to load up on something too much. Now he’s being more patient and letting that come. He’s working off the jab a lot more, he’s managing the distance very well. He’s improving every fight. I’m pretty impressed with how he’s developing.”

Currently, the biggest obstacle standing in the way of a Haney vs. Garcia showdown is their weight discrepancy. At the moment, Haney campaigns at 135, although he has mentioned a move to the 140-pound division. Garcia, on the other hand, hasn’t fought in the lightweight division since nabbing a one-sided victory against Robert Easter Jr. in 2018.

Since then, Garcia has campaigned as a full-fledged welterweight. However, his last contest against Martin took place at a catchweight of 145 pounds. While Garcia acknowledges that squeezing his 34-year-old frame down to the 135-pound limit will be an arduous task, if he can successfully lure Haney into the ring, he’s willing to make the sacrifice.

“Coming down to 135 would probably be difficult for me,” continued Garcia. “If I was able to secure that fight then yea, I would do it. But I would need plenty of time to prepare and be in fight-ready shape. I would like that fight. That would be an interesting fight for me.”

Posted on 10/17/2021

By: Hans Themistode

On paper, it appeared to be a massive mismatch.

As Sandor Martin sauntered his way to the ring at Chukchansi Park in Fresno, California, late last night, he was viewed as a sacrificial lamb. Although the Spanish native had amassed an incredible record of 38-2, Mikey Garcia, his opponent in the main event, was considered a cut above.

Martin, on the other hand, ignored the noise and went on to have a career-best performance. A lethargic Garcia struggled with the boxing ability and movement of Sandor. As a result, Garcia found himself on the wrong end of a majority decision defeat. While judges Carla Caiz, Fernando Villarreal, and Zachary Young applauded Sandor for his box-first approach, Garcia is under the belief that the three scoring from ringside got it completely wrong.

“He was running and surviving,” said Garcia during an interview with ESNEWS. “I don’t even think he was being very effective but the three judges thought that he was in control. I thought I was in control for most of the fight but whatever.”

Although Garcia has made routine appearances on several credible pound-for-pound lists, he’s struggled with activity as of late. In each of the past three years, Garcia has stepped inside the ring just once.

After picking up the first defeat of his career against Errol Spence Jr. in 2019, Garcia pulled himself up by his bootstraps. He would immediately follow his wide decision defeat with a fairly one-sided victory against former multiple division titlist Jessie Vargas in February of 2020.

Garcia may have been hoping to piggyback off his victory to land bigger fights and pocket larger wins, he sat on the sidelines. His inactivity was a combination of a worldwide pandemic and his pursuit of a showdown against Manny Pacquiao.

Originally, Garcia was hoping that a victory over Candor could serve as a springboard to matchups against former 140-pound titlist Regis Prograis and undisputed champion, Josh Taylor. However, with his unexpected defeat, Garcia’s path to massive fights will now take an unforeseen detour.

Still, while Garcia was incredulous with the end result, he doesn’t want to take anything away from the performance of Sandor.

“Congratulations to him,” continued Garcia. “He took advantage of his opportunity and he won.”

Posted on 10/15/2021

By: Hector Franco

Four-division world champion Mikey Garcia (40-1, 30 KOs) will make his return to the ring this weekend at Chukchansi Park baseball stadium in downtown Fresno, CA, live on streaming app DAZN.

He will be taking on the relatively unknown Spanish southpaw Sandor Martin (38-2, 13 KOs) in a ten-round welterweight contest.

Garcia was last seen in the squared circle in February 2020, when he took on former junior welterweight titleholder and WBO welterweight champion Jessie Vargas. The fight with Vargas took place right before the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic and is arguably one of Garcia’s most notable victories.

Less than a year earlier, in March 2019, Garcia was in the most important fight of his career from a financial and competitive standpoint when he took on unified welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr.

The fight with Spence was his first at welterweight, and Spence would prove to be not only too big for Garcia, but also too skilled. Spence won all 12 rounds on the three judge’s scorecards.

Since then, Garcia’s career has been at somewhat of a standstill.

After numerous attempts to make a colossal box-office fight with eight-division champion Manny Pacquiao, the fight never came to fruition. A match with former junior welterweight champion Regis Prograis was talked about taking place as well, but went by the wayside.

Before the fight with Spence, Garcia was seen as one of the best fighters in the world, pound-for-pound. He, along with Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez, is the only fighter to become a four-division champion to hold titles at featherweight, super featherweight, lightweight, and super lightweight.

The lack of activity and time out of the ring has caused Garcia to lose momentum as one of the premier fighters in the sport. He fought once in 2019, 2020 and will fight just once in 2021. He is not the only fighter to suffer from inactivity and loss of momentum. Well-known fighters like Keith Thurman and Gennadiy Golovkin have also fallen victim to their careers plateauing.

However, for the 33-year old Garcia, this isn’t the first time his boxing career has come to a halt.

From January 2014 to July 2016, Garcia was kept on the boxing sidelines due to a contract dispute with then promoter Top Rank. In April 2014, Garcia sued the promoter in an attempt to get out of his contract. The dispute wasn’t settled until two years later, in April 2016, allowing Garcia to pursue alternative promotional avenues.

This was one of the most challenging portions of Garcia’s boxing career in and out of the ring.

“There were times where it was very tough,” Garcia said to Mark Kriegel in an interview with Showtime Sports in 2016. “Moments where I was pretty stressed out. I didn’t know what was going to happen. You didn’t have a sight of when this was going to be over.

“A lot of money. It cost me a lot of money.”

In 2014, Garcia was seen as one of the next potential upcoming stars in the sport, having won titles at featherweight and super featherweight. A fight with then-undefeated Yuriorkis Gamboa was set to take place, and talks of a potential match with Manny Pacquiao were even discussed.

Fortunately, Garcia’s firm stance on not folding to Top Rank worked out for him when he returned under the Premier Boxing Champions platform as a free agent.

While Garcia made his return in the summer of 2016, scoring a fifth-round stoppage against Elio Rojas, it wasn’t until 2017 where he began to get his career back on track.

Garcia started the year by scoring a brutal third-round knockout over Dejan Zlaticanin to win the WBC lightweight championship. He then headed into a junior welterweight fight with the loquacious and controversial Adrien Broner in July 2017, headlining a card at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

The California fighter scored a dominant unanimous decision over Broner. After Broner, Garcia continued to fight in the junior welterweight division, winning the IBF title in the weight class, scoring a unanimous decision over Sergey Lipinets in March 2018.

Following his foray at 140-pounds, there was a call from fans and media for Garcia to return to the lightweight division. Many fans were looking forward to a fight with Jorge Linares or a summit meeting between two pound-for-pound fighters against Vasiliy Lomachenko.

The fight with Lomachenko was always a long shot as the Ukrainian was and still is promoted by Top Rank. Recognizing the history between Garcia and Top Rank, it’s clear that unless one of the two parties were willing to compromise, a fight with Lomachenko would never take place.

Instead of facing Linares or Lomachenko, Garcia took on Robert Easter Jr. in July 2018 in a WBC and IBF lightweight unification match. Garcia scored a knocked down in the third round and outclassed the Ohio native to win a wide unanimous decision.

Following the fight with Easter, Garcia was at the pinnacle of his career thus far. He was recognized as one of the best in the world with multiple options and fights that fans were clamoring for and a legitimate draw in the sport.

However, with the move up to welterweight, the loss to Spence, and his overall inactivity, Garcia finds himself starting back over.

“It’s been a year and a half since my last fight, so I am excited to get back in there,” Garcia stated. “ I am looking forward to giving my fans a chance to see me again, especially here in Cali, it’s my home state, but I haven’t fought much here.

“I want to pursue big fights, title fights, and be recognized as one of the best fighters in the world once again. This is another step in that direction.”

As a four-division champion, Garcia may have already stamped himself as a potential Hall-of-Famer. Still, examining his career, he lacks the credentials and intangibles of being considered great. As of now, he has been good, but not remarkable.

At featherweight in his first title defense, he lost the title on the scales in a defense against Puerto Rico’s Juan Manuel Lopez. He then moved up to junior lightweight and won the WBO title against Puerto Rico’s Roman Martinez by eighth-round stoppage.

After one title defense against Juan Carlos Burgos in January 2014, he went on his two-year plus hiatus. At lightweight, Garcia did become the unified champion; however, at junior welterweight, he never made any defense of his IBF title.

Between four weight classes, Garcia has made two title defenses if you include the unification bout at lightweight against Robert Easter. Garcia’s skill level with the proverbial eye test trumps his resume.

This upcoming portion is the most crucial of Garcia’s career. Going over his relatively less than stellar resume, he now has the chance in what may be the final part of his career to truly establish himself as a great fighter.

There are opportunities presently for Garcia that will give him the chance to be seen as more than just someone who was really good to great. On Saturday night against Sandor Martin, he will take the first step in gaining back his momentum.

“I don’t see myself at Lightweight ever again, but I can see 140,” said Garcia. “There are some very good names at the weight, Josh Taylor is a great champion, and if some of the guys at 135 look to move up, so there are big fights at 140.

“I just have to keep winning. Victory on Saturday and then getting another win against someone like Regis, I think that should create enough attention to land a fight with Taylor. He’s the undisputed champion, and that’s the biggest fight that I could engage in at the weight, of course.”

Posted on 08/09/2021

By: Hans Themistode

For much of Terence Crawford’s career, the former three-division world champion has been praised for his ability in the ring and castigated for his lack of star power outside of it.

With two pay-per-view appearances to his name, Crawford has failed to draw big-time crowds and in terms of PPV buys, they’ve been lackluster as well. In July of 2016, Crawford made his PPV debut against Viktor Postol. Despite the two unifying titles at 140 pounds, only 7,027 customers walked through the turnstile at MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada to pay their hard-earned money to witness Crawford pick up the unanimous decision victory. As for PPV buys, approximately 50,000-60,000 bought the event.

In his second trip to the PPV scene, Crawford did slightly better. In April of 2019, the current WBO welterweight titlist defended his 147-pound crown against Amir Khan at Madison Square Garden in New York City. A crowd of 14,091 attended the event in person and roughly 150,000 purchased their contest as Crawford went on to stop Khan in the sixth round.

When juxtaposed to his long-time rival and unified welterweight champion, Errol Spence Jr., the Dallas native has brought in huge numbers. But while Crawford admits that Spence Jr. has done extremely well, such as the 47,500 who filled up AT&T Stadium in Dallas Texas, to watch the hard-hitting southpaw take on Mikey Garcia in March of 2019, Crawford is adamant that if given the same level of opposition, his numbers would be virtually identical.

“I think if I was fighting the same caliber of fighters he was fighting like a Mikey Garcia, I would fill up the stadium too,” said Crawford during an interview on the Bart & Hahn show on ESPN radio. “Mikey Garcia is a very big draw in Texas.”

Spence Jr., 31, would ultimately go on to dominate Garcia, winning every single round on all three judges’ scorecards. In the aftermath, not only did Spence Jr. vs. Garcia draw a crowd of 47,500 but in total, they raked in an excess of 360,000 PPV buys.

Any mention of Spence Jr. being a bigger draw than Crawford will receive an immediate incredulous gaze from the Omaha Nebraska native. While Crawford may not have the numbers to back his claim, he simply wants everyone to take a closer look at Spence Jr.’s contest against Garcia.

Although the unified titlist is from the Texas area, Crawford places most of their PPV and attendance success on the shoulders of Garcia.

“Not to take away from Errol Spence but I believe Mikey Garcia pulled in more supporters than he did.”

Posted on 06/18/2021

By: Hans Themistode

Regis Prograis thoroughly enjoyed his most recent trip to the squared circle. The former 140 pound world champion picked up an easy win against Ivan Redkach at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta Georgia on April 17th.

Although his ring appearance was just a few months ago, the New Orleans native is already on the hunt for his next opponent. After calling out former four-division world champion Adrien Broner on multiple occasions, Prograis (26-1, 22 KOs) is coming to the realization that their showdown isn’t in the cards just yet. With that said, Prograis did reveal that he has another former four-division champion currently in his sights.

“Me and Mikey Garcia, there’s been conversation,” said Prograis during an interview with FightHype.com. “I spoke to Robert Garcia, I spoke to my manager Sam (Katkovski). They said it’s a big possibility, not a little possibility, that fight might be next.”

Garcia, 33, has recently mentioned that he’s in need of a new dance partner. At one point, Garcia was supremely confident that he was on the verge of landing a showdown against Manny Pacquiao. However, he was ultimately left disappointed when it was revealed that Pacquiao finalized an agreement to take on Errol Spence Jr. instead.

Now, after sitting on the sidelines ever since his unanimous decision victory against Jessie Vargas in February of 2020, Garcia (40-1, 30 KOs) is anxious to get back in the ring.

Before talks progress too far, both Garcia and Prograis will have to hash out the weight difference for their possible showdown. Currently, Prograis campaigns at 140 pounds, while Garcia has gotten comfortable at 147.

Regardless of whether their showdown takes place at 140, 147, or possibly a catchweight, Prograis isn’t entirely worried. Before everyone gets excited about their clash, Prograis made sure to reel back in the reins a bit. Nothing is set in stone just yet but make no mistake about, the former 140 pound titlist is fully onboard.

“I like it, Mikey likes it, Robert likes it, Eddie (Hearn) likes it. There’s nothing yet, just a possibility. It’s a possibility that me and Mikey might be next.”

Posted on 05/24/2021

By: Hans Themistode

Mikey Garcia had a vested interest in this past weekend’s super lightweight showdown between Jose Ramirez and Josh Taylor. The two battled it out at Virgins Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada with every world title at 140 pounds on the line.

From the very beginning, a highly motivated Ramirez seemingly jumped out to an early lead due to his pressure and volume punching. His first-half success, however, was short-lived as Taylor scored a knockdown in both the sixth and seventh rounds. Pair that with his overall impressive boxing skills, and Taylor ultimately closed the show. With a ringside seat to watch everything up close, Garcia shared his thoughts on how everything played out.

“It was a great fight,” said Garcia during an interview with Boxing Social. “Both had success at different stages of the fight. Taylor had the edge with the knockdowns and that’s what got him the victory.”

Taylor, 30, was ecstatic once all five 140 pound world titles were wrapped around his waist. Now, the Scotland native has several options for his next fight. To name a few at the top of his list, Taylor explained that he would love a showdown with WBO welterweight champion Terence Crawford. Also, current unified 135 pound champion, Teofimo Lopez, has expressed a desire to move up in weight to face Taylor as well.

Although Garcia hasn’t been formally mentioned as a target of Taylor’s, the former four-division champion revealed that he would love the opportunity to step into the ring with him.

Recently, Garcia’s dream fight between himself and Manny Pacquiao fell by the wayside. After months of negotiations, Garcia was stunned when he found out that Pacquiao opted to face unified welterweight champion, Errol Spence Jr., instead.

Now, the search for Garcia’s new opponent has begun. While no one has emerged as the leader in the clubhouse, if he could pick anyone, it would be Taylor.

“I would love the opportunity to get in the ring with Josh. We actually asked about that fight over a year and a half ago. He had other plans but if the fight was offered right now I would definitely take that chance.”

Posted on 05/10/2021

By: Hans Themistode

An epiphany of sorts hit Mikey Garcia. The former four-division world champion sat ringside this past weekend at AT&T Stadium in Dallas, Texas as unified super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez dominated Billy Joe Saunders, causing the British native to retire on his stool at the end of round eight. After their showdown, it was revealed that Saunders suffered a quadripod fracture and is now facing an uncertain future.

With the super middleweight division filled with several top-level fighters, the weight class is commonly regarded as one of the deepest in all of boxing. Still, despite that, Garcia believes everyone else is fighting for second place as he doesn’t see anyone handing Alvarez a defeat anytime soon.

“I don’t think anybody can beat him,” said Garcia during an interview with Fight Hub TV. “I think he’s the best one.”

Alvarez, 30, adjusted quickly to the box first approach of Saunders as he quietly stalked his man in the opening round. After successfully evading most of the Mexican star’s deleterious shots during the first half, Alvarez found what he was looking for as he landed a huge right uppercut that effectively ended the night.

Regardless of the one-sided nature of their contest, Garcia tips his cap in the direction of Saunders. Although Alvarez ultimately won, the slick southpaw made things a bit more interesting than most were expecting.

“Great performance,” said Garcia of Alvarez. “He had an answer for everything. Saunders had a little bit of success in the middle rounds but not enough to complicate things too much. I think Canelo did great.”

With Alvarez adding the WBO super middleweight belt previously held by Saunders to his WBC, WBA and Ring Magazine titles – the pound-for-pound star is only one title short of becoming the first undisputed super middleweight champion of all time. To do so, Alvarez will look to now take on IBF titlist, Caleb Plant.

The Nashville Tennessee native hasn’t backed down from his belief that no matter how great Alvarez is, the Mexican product will ultimately fall at his hands. In the opinion of Garcia, however, he simply doesn’t agree with that statement. While he acknowledges that Plant is a terrific fighter, he merely views Alvarez as someone on another level.

“Caleb needs to box tremendously all night, which he can, I’m not saying he can’t but I just think Canelo will have an answer for it.”

Posted on 04/30/2021

By: Hans Themistode

It was about as improbable a win as you’ll find.

Andy Ruiz Jr. made his way to the ring on June 1st, 2019, seemingly, without a prayer in the world. Waiting on him, was unified heavyweight champion, Anthony Joshua. As most of the betting public waited patiently to see what round Ruiz Jr. would get knocked out in, the Mexican star had other ideas.

Ruiz Jr. (33-2, 22 KOs) would dust himself off following a third round knockdown, only to drop Joshua four times before ultimately stopping him in the seventh. With the win, Ruiz Jr. became the first fighter of Mexican descent to win a heavyweight title. But while he was proud of the achievement, his moment in the sun proved to be transient as Joshua easily took care of business in their rematch six months later to reclaim his world titles.

With many now under the impression that his win was nothing more than a lucky punch, Ruiz Jr. appears determined to prove his doubters wrong.

“Andy wants to prove to everybody that it wasn’t just coincidence or luck or a fluke,” said former four-division champion Mikey Garcia during an interview with Fight Hub TV. “He wants to make sure that he gets that title shot again.”

The road to that aforementioned title shot begins this Saturday night as Ruiz Jr. steps into the ring for the first time in roughly a year and a half against fringe contender, Chris Arreola. The two are set to bang it out in the center of the ring with a chance to move up the heavyweight ladder on FOX pay-per-view.

In an effort to prove that he is no longer the same fighter that walked into his rematch against Joshua as both overweight and unenthused, Ruiz Jr. has hooked up with world-renowned trainer, Eddy Reynoso. With the pair working with each other for well over a year, the former heavyweight belt holder has made drastic physical improvements. Regardless of his outward appearance, Garcia has always stood firmly in his corner. He rose to his feet and cheered loudly as Ruiz Jr. took care of business the first time around against Joshua. Garcia also criticized Ruiz Jr. for his lack of discipline as he came into their rematch grotesquely overweight.

Now, with his close friend getting into the best shape of his life, Garcia believes there’s no doubt that he’ll once again drape gold around his shoulders sooner rather than later.

“Definitely, I think he can. If he stays dedicated I definitely think he can. He has to get past Chris but I definitely think he can. Look, he’s got fast hands, he has the power to do it just like the first time. He’s got a great trainer with Eddy and he seems to be very disciplined. He slimmed down, losing 30 pounds is a lot of f*cking weight.”

Posted on 03/09/2021

By: Hans Themistode

Manny Pacquiao hasn’t officially named his next opponent but the eight-division world champion has a strong idea as to who he will be facing next.

“We’re leaning towards Mikey Garcia,” Pacquiao told Dyan Castillejo of ABS-CBN.

Like most fighters at 147 pounds, Garcia has spent several years in an attempt to get Pacquiao (62-7-2, 39 KOs) to face him. The former four-division titlist has always pushed forward with the notion that a showdown with Pacquiao is just within his grasp. However, watching his dream bout fail to materialize time and time again, Garcia was adamant that this time around, the fight he had long been craving for was actually going to happen.

“It’s been in the works for a few years,” said Garcia during a recent self-recorded video. “In the last few weeks, we’ve been getting very close to finalizing this. I’m pretty excited. Hopefully, we can get the exact date within the next few days. Were trying to get everything done for May. So far, it seems like all the parties are on board so I’m excited.”

While Garcia is seemingly happy as can be that things are finally going his way, many fighters, including WBO belt holder Terence Crawford, have momentarily been cast aside as he was also hoping to land a mega showdown with Pacquiao.

According to both Crawford and promoter Bob Arum, Pacquiao was razor close to agreeing to a bout with the aforementioned Crawford and were simply awaiting funding from an overseas partner where the contest would take place.

Despite the news that Garcia has jumped to the front of the line, Pacquiao isn’t entirely ready to walk away from the negotiating table with Crawford.

“We’re also talking to Crawford. It depends on who I get to face, what’s important is I’m ready.”

With Garcia (40-1, 30 KOs) pegged to be the likely opponent, Pacquiao will return to the ring later on this year after spending nearly two years sequestered on the sidelines.

In his last ring appearance, which took place against former WBA belt holder Keith Thurman, Pacquiao dropped and mostly outmuscled his man to go on and win a close split decision. The now 42-year-old could have returned to the ring much earlier but elected to wait until COVID-19 ran its course. While the deadly disease is still out in full force, there is plenty of reason to be optimistic as vaccines are rapidly being administered to the public.

In addition to his refusal to fight during the pandemic, Pacquiao’s normally lofty purse was set to be reduced significantly due to the absence of fans inside of arenas. Furthermore, Pacquiao used the time away to recover from the war wounds he suffered at the hands of Thurman.

Immediately following his win, Pacquiao credited Thurman for being a heavy-handed fighter, even going as far as to say that he hit him as hard previous foe, Antonio Margarito.

Still, regardless of the back and forth brawl, Pacquiao claims that he was just fine the following day. In fact, the future first-ballot Hall of Famer claims that he spent most of his time playing his second favorite sport.

“We never really got complacent, we’ve always continuously worked out. We keep on playing basketball aside from boxing. Actually, right after my fight the last time with [Keith] Thurman, I didn’t work out boxing, but I kept playing basketball.”

As for Garcia, with Pacquiao coming out and admitting that he’s in the driver’s seat in terms of his next opponent, it was music to his ears. The California resident seemingly punched his Pacquiao sweepstake ticket with a dominant performance over former two-division belt holder Jessie Vargas roughly one year ago.

Garcia would go on to drop and thoroughly outbox his man on the night. Much like Pacquiao, he has remained on the sidelines but has been recently seen back in the gym preparing for his return to the ring.

Posted on 03/06/2021

By: Hans Themistode

Nothing is official just yet, but according to former four-division world champion Mikey Garcia, his contest against Manny Pacquiao is reaching the home stretch.

Earlier this week, Garcia announced that after spending years chasing the future Hall of Famer, their showdown is just about complete. In the eyes of many, Pacquiao will be a conformable favorite going in. Yet, in the opinion of welterweight contender Vergil Ortiz Jr., he believes Garcia is going to outclass him.

“Mikey smokes him,” said Ortiz Jr. during an interview with ESNews.

Despite being only 22-years-old, Ortiz Jr. knows his boxing history. So much so, that he’s rewatched Pacquiao’s four contests with Juan Manuel Marquez.

All in all, the two all-time greats faced each other on four occasions. More times than not, Pacquiao picked up the win going 2-1-1 in their four meetings. Regardless of his success though, every single one of their showdowns was razor close.

With Pacquiao’s tendency to struggle with his long-time rival, Ortiz Jr. is under the impression that he won’t stand a chance against someone who is essentially twice as good as Marquez.

“Mikey is a better version of Marquez. I think he’s smarter, more explosive and I think he’s stronger than him.”

For Garcia, the praise he’s receiving from Ortiz Jr. might be flattering but he’ll need much more than that to convince the majority of boxing fans of his chances against Pacquiao.

Most of the dubious voices surrounding Garcia stem from his awful showing against unified welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr. in early 2019.

After pushing forward with the narrative that he could move up two weight divisions and not only compete with Spence Jr. but flat out beat him, Garcia was made to look like a fool as he was dominated for every second of every round.

The Mexican native has since demonstrated that he can at the very least, hang with the best at 147 pounds as he thoroughly dominated former two-division champion, Jessie Vargas, in February of 2020. As for Pacquiao, he was last seen in the ring roughly a year and a half ago in 2019.

The future first-ballot Hall of Famer proved that he still has plenty left in his 42-year-old tank as he dropped and out mostly outclassed former WBA belt holder Keith Thurman.

While it was a great performance, Ortiz Jr. is still standing firmly in the corner of Garcia. In the welterweight contender’s opinion, he’s shared the ring on too many occasions with Garcia to start doubting him now.

“Mikey is the only boxer who’s broken me down in the ring. I’ve gotten ten times better just sparring Mikey than I ever did sparring anyone else.”

Posted on 03/02/2021

By: Hans Themistode

Mikey Garcia figured it would make more sense if he just kept his mouth shut.

For years the former four-division world champion would openly express his desire to face Manny Pacquiao and claimed that their showdown was just about ready to get over the finish line.

Time and time again however, Garcia was made to look like a fool as Pacquiao continually went in another direction. Now though, after staying mum on the subject, Garcia revealed that both his team and team Pacquiao, have been behind the scenes hammering out a deal. So far, everything has moved along smoothly.

Although Pacquiao hasn’t announced anything just yet, Garcia, unlike in years past, feels so confident then their contest will happen, that he has decided to let the cat out of the bag a bit early.

“It’s been in the works for a few years,” said Garcia during a recent self-recorded video. “In the last few weeks, we’ve been getting very close to finalizing this. I’m pretty excited. Hopefully, we can get the exact date within the next few days. Were trying to get everything done for May. So far, it seems like all the parties are on board so I’m excited.”

Pacquiao, 42, hasn’t been seen in the ring for almost two years. When he did make an appearance though, he was showing the younger fighters of the welterweight division a thing or two as he dropped and outboxed former unified champion, Keith Thurman.

Unlike most fighters who have made their peace with fighting inside of an empty arena amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, Pacquiao (62-7-2, 39 KOs) appeared uninterested and instead, opted to stay on the sidelines.

But just because there were no fights on his schedule, that doesn’t mean he wasn’t firmly in the mix. Top names at 147 pounds such as WBO titlist Terence Crawford, unified champion Errol Spence Jr., and most recently, 135-pound contender Ryan Garcia, have all claimed that a showdown with Pacquiao was on their radar.

None of those aforementioned names however, could say with any confidence that they were on the brink of facing the long-time legend. That is, until now.

For Garcia (40-1, 30 KOs), he’s done all that he can to put distance between himself and the worst performance of his career. In March of 2019, Garcia moved up two weight divisions to challenge Spence Jr. in what many believed was career suicide.

Despite the warnings, Garcia claimed that he “saw something,” in Spence Jr. that would allow him to pick up the win. His assumptions, of course, were proven to be wrong as Spence Jr. dominated every single round against him.

Roughly one year later, Garcia returned to the ring against former two-division champion Jessie Vargas, dropping and mostly dominating him. He hasn’t boxed since then as he elected to sit out due to COVID-19.

Now, after kicking up his feet to watch the landscape, Garcia has stated on numerous occasions that he’s ready to drop the extra pounds he picked up during the pandemic and get back into fighting shape to return to the ring.

If anyone has been given the pleasure of looking around the household of Garcia, they’ll notice several world titles spanning across numerous weight classes.

Still, regardless of his high placement in the boxing world, Garcia knows that his career would go to a whole other level if he were able to officially stand across the ring from Pacquiao.

“Just to share the ring with a living legend like Manny does amazing things for my career. It’s a great fight, great for my career and for the fans. It’s very exciting for boxing in general to get this kind of fight.”

Posted on 02/17/2021

By: Hans Themistode

There was simply nothing Mikey Garcia could do against Errol Spence Jr. Roughly two years ago, the California native jumped up two weight divisions in an attempt to win a world title in his fifth weight class.

His dreams, of course, proved to be an impossible one as Spence Jr. dominated him by winning every single round. In a nutshell, Garcia was flat-out embarrassed. Since then, many have called for him to drop back down in weight and pick on people his own size.

Not only does Garcia (40-1, 30 KOs) intend on ignoring that advice but he has already outlined who he wants to take on in his next two fights.

“I would go after Ugas,” said Garcia on the PBC podcast. “Win that title and pursue a rematch with Errol Spence.”

Ironically enough, Spence Jr. is also eyeing a showdown with Ugas. The Cuban-born native was recently elevated from WBA welterweight “Regular” champion to full belt holder due to former titlist Manny Pacquiao sitting on the sidelines for nearly two years.

The elevation of Ugas (26-4, 12 KOs) has now placed a target on his back as many of the top names in the division, including Garcia, are attempting to strip him of his world title.

While it once seemed impossible for Garcia to push his name back into the mix for a possible Spence Jr. showdown, he has appeared to finally settle into his much bigger weight class.

Eleven months after receiving his one-sided beating, Garcia bounced back by dropping and mostly dominating former champion Jessie Vargas. Garcia however, has been unable to keep his momentum going as he has been inactive since the win.

Recently, he’s been spotted back in the gym as he works to shed a few pounds and make his way back to the ring.

In spite of Garcia making it clear that Ugas is number one on his Hitlist, the former multiple division belt holder knows he has options. If, for whatever reason, a deal between Ugas and himself does not materialize, Garcia rattles off several other names that he would be more than willing to step into the ring with next.

“A fighter like Danny Garcia is interesting. Shawn Porter, Keith Thurman – these are all big names and fights that interest me a lot.”

Posted on 01/09/2021

By: Hans Themistode

Former four-division world champion Mikey Garcia knows good and well just how skilled Errol Spence Jr. is. After all, the 33-year-old was handed his first defeat at the hands of Spence Jr. in March of 2019.

Still, even with Garcia losing every single round of their contest, the California native believes it would be a grave mistake should he decide to move up in weight to face Canelo Alvarez. 

“Canelo beats Spence,” said Garcia during an interview with Fight Hype. “He probably would even stop him.” 

Recently, Spence Jr. has floated around the idea of jumping up two weight classes in order to face the pound-for-pound star. Ironically enough, Garcia (40-1, 30 KOs) was told a similar fate would be awaiting him when his showdown with Spence Jr. was finalized. 

While Garcia was officially a belt holder at 140 pounds, he made his name and spent several years campaigning at 135 pounds. That, however, didn’t change his ambitions of chasing a bigger man in Spence Jr. On what was a forgettable night for Garcia, the multiple-time belt holder had difficulty dealing with the power, reach and overall boxing ability of Spence Jr.

With the unified welterweight titlist currently mulling the idea of moving up two weight divisions himself, Garcia doesn’t view it as a sagacious move. In fact, he believes Spence Jr. will succumb to a brutal ending. 

“Canelo is too big and too strong. Spence is a big dude but he’s still a welterweight. Canelo is a huge dude and I think he stops him.”

As for Garcia, he’s closing in on a year outside of the ring. The California resident was last seen in February of 2020 dismantling former two-division belt holder Jessie Vargas. 

Recent photos of the former champion have shown him to be a bit on the plump side as if late. Regardless of the few extra pounds though, he not only believes that he’s ready to return to the ring but he knows exactly who he wants next. 

“I took too much time off. It’s time to get back. I got too fat so I gotta lose some weight. I want Manny Pacquiao then a rematch with Errol Spence.”

Posted on 11/06/2020

By: Hans Themistode

Teofimo Lopez and Gervonta Davis proved their star power and boxing ability recently.

Just last weekend, the 25 year old Davis headlined his first Pay-Per-View event when he took on Leo Santa Cruz. The Baltimore native found himself on an endless highlight reel loop when he scored a sixth round uppercut that ended the night. Just a few weeks prior, Lopez pulled in just short of three million views in the headline spot of an ESPN telecast against Vasiliy Lomachenko. Lopez walked into that contest as a prohibited underdog but outboxed and outslugged his man as he became the youngest undisputed champion of all time.

While both fighters may campaign at 135 pounds, if they were willing to move up to 140, then former four division champion Mikey Garcia says he would be more than willing to meet them there.

“I’m not coming down to 135 anytime soon, probably never,” said Garcia during a recent interview with Fight Hype. “Maybe 140, maybe I can do that. I can come down to 140 and meet some of the lightweights at 140. Lopez if he decides to move up to 140 or Davis, those would be good fights. Titles or no titles I think those would be good.”

Although Davis hasn’t expressed a desire to move up to the super lightweight division, Lopez on the other hand, has struggled to make 135 pounds. The recently crowned undisputed lightweight titlist has been vocal in wanting to move five pounds north to take on the winner of unified champions Jose Ramirez vs Josh Taylor which is set to take place sometime in early 2021.

With both titleholders currently promoted by Bob Arum and Top Rank however, Garcia (40-1, 30 KOs) doesn’t see a path to hoisting another world title. The feud between Garcia and Arum has impeded the California resident from facing many of his fighters.

For Garcia, matchups against Davis and Lopez would draw huge ratings, but with no world titles on the line against either of them, he believes it might be a better idea to stay in the welterweight division.

“If I want a title fight then 140 ain’t the division for me right now.”

Garcia has spent his entire career dominating weight classes and winning world titles. Yet, with a one sided loss at the hands of unified welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr. in March of 2019, Garcia has found his transition to a bigger weight class much more difficult.

With that being said, the soon to be 33 year old dreams of becoming a five division world champion. In his last contest against Jessie Vargas, Garcia kept his dreams alive as he dropped his man before cruising to a unanimous decision victory.

Since then, Garcia has targeted a showdown with WBA welterweight belt holder Manny Pacquiao. Despite his interest in facing off against either Davis or Lopez, if it was up to Garcia, he would sign on the dotted line in an instant if a contract with Pacquiao’s name on it just so happened to come across his desk.

“That’s still the plan,” explained Garcia. “The idea is still to land a fight with Manny. I think in boxing terms that’s my best fight and I would be Manny’s best fight. Financially I think it makes the most sense for him also. It would be a great fight.”