A fight is a fight. However, when the lights shine a bit brighter, the crowd gets slightly louder, and the stakes are a tad higher, that’s when Ryan Garcia’s motivation is through the roof.
This Friday night, Garcia (24-1, 20 KOs) will be exactly where he wants to be as he takes on Rolando “Rolly” Romero in the main event slot of
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Garcia, 26, doesn’t need to mention it anymore. He knows it, his promoter knows it, and the rest of the boxing world is well aware of what’s waiting for him if he grabs the win. With a rematch against Haney looming, Garcia is as focused as ever. But even when he has a pair of big fights already on his calendar, the former interim champ is attempting to line up a few more.
Conor Benn made a name for himself last weekend. He moved up two weights from welter to face Chris Eubank Jr. at 160 pounds in a losing but valiant effort.
Benn (23-1, 14 KOs) was already a star. Now? His fanbase might’ve doubled. Considering his popularity and his fighting ability, Garcia likes the thought of facing him.
“That’s a huge fight,” said Garcia to Seconds Out recently. “I’m down for him to come over here and we can throw down.”
Benn’s performance protrudes towards the top of
Garcia’s mind. The heart he showed, the power, speed, everything was clicking, despite coming up just short.
Still, fighting someone coming off a loss doesn’t bother Garcia. The loquacious star has never been myopic and couldn't care less about how many defeats a potential opponent has picked up along their boxing journey.
Just take away the end result and simply focus on the actual fight that took place. When you do, you might come to the same realization that Garcia did.
“He had a great performance even though he lost,” continued Garcia. “I see a lot of holes in his game that Chris didn’t take advantage of but that was one of the best fights I’ve seen of all time. That was crazy.”