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Ryan Garcia has spent many of the previous yr studying from his errors.
How far he’ll advance underneath the tutelage of head coach Derrick James stays to be seen, although their relationship jumped off to a constructive begin. Garcia gained his first battle with the 2022 Coach of the Yr in his nook when he knocked out Mexico’s Oscar Duarte within the eighth spherical of their December 2 DAZN headliner from the Toyota Middle in Houston, Texas.
It marked the primary battle for Garcia since his seventh-round knockout defeat to Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis (29-0, 27KOs). Their April 22 blockbuster conflict in Las Vegas was his first ring look in 9 months—largely by selection—together with one other seven-plus months earlier than he entered the ring this previous weekend. That’s one thing he plans to dramatically change within the yr forward.
“I need to get again by March or April,” Garcia insisted. “Inactivity actually crushed me.”
It has turn into far too commonplace for the 25-year-old Victorville, California native.
Garcia (24-1, 20KOs) has spent a lot of 2023 feuding with Golden Boy Promotions, with whom he signed to a promotional deal in 2016 and prolonged in September 2019 for a reported extra 5 years. The 2 sides stay locked in two-way lawsuit, although that matter was briefly put aside for the sake of resuming his profession.
The contract extension got here solely after Garcia referred to as Golden Boy to tasked for his or her try and drive him right into a last-minute battle versus Romero Duno. The determined effort to salvage his place on a September 2019 present when authentic opponent Avery Sparrow was apprehended on an impressive warrant the morning of their weigh-in.
Garcia dropped off the cardboard however signed a profitable multi-year extension which started with a November 2019 knockout of Duno. He was out of the ring for greater than seven months by that time, on the time a career-longest inactive stretch. Garcia scored a first-round knockout, and one other in his February 2020 fast hit of Francisco Fonseca.
That bout got here simply previous to the pandemic, adopted by eleven months earlier than his January 2020 knockout win over 2012 Olympic Gold medalist and former title challenger Luke Campbell. Accidents left him sidelined for a career-longest 14 months earlier than his triumphant return in a twelve-round win over Emmanuel Tagoe final April in San Antonio, adopted by a sixth-round knockout of Javier Fortuna simply three months later in Los Angeles.
The chance arose for Garcia to take a keep busy battle versus Mercito Gesta on January 28 previous his superfight versus Baltimore’s Davis. He opted towards it, regardless of Davis’ smart determination to first face Hector Garcia on January 7 since he hadn’t fought since final Might. Garcia in the end went into the largest battle of his profession armed with the second longest layoff of his nonetheless promising profession.
Seven-plus months between that night time and the one on December 2nd was a slight enchancment however the yr forward plans to be extra productive on that entrance, if Garcia will get his approach.
“I’ve been boxing [as a pro] since I used to be 17,” famous Garcia, who turned professional in June 2016, two months shy of his 18th birthday. “I’ve had my breaks, a yr, a year-and-a-half… you’re not going to turn into a greater boxer that approach.”
On Tuesday, Garcia revealed that he instructed his handlers to start negotiations for a possible showdown with newly topped WBC junior welterweight champion Devin Haney.
Jake Donovan is a senior author for BoxingScene.com. X (previously Twitter): @JakeNDaBox
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