There’s a difference between the Ryan Garcia that talks to Oscar De La Hoya and the person who Garcia’s promoter sees posting on social media.
That’s what De La Hoya told Hall of Fame football player Shannon Sharpe in a recent episode of Club Shay Shay, which covered several other items — both about Garcia and other topics.
“Every time I’ve spoken to Ryan, every time I talk to him on the phone in person, he’s always nice, he’s always talking to me, ‘Yeah, we have big plans. I’m motivated. I want to make a lot of money.’” said De La Hoya, the namesake head of Golden Boy Promotions.
“Ryan’s Ryan, right? Everytime we talk, it’s great, and then I pick up the phone, I see Twitter, I see Instagram. I’m like, ‘Oh my gosh, what are you doing?’ A lot of money. Good looking kid, just like me. And I’ve given them advice. I’ve told them, hey, look out for this, look out for that. Ryan’s Ryan. I have no idea what he’s thinking or what he’s doing.”
Garcia has drawn a lot of negative attention for his actions on social media and in real life. He also is currently serving a suspension after testing positive for banned substances for his fight with Devin Haney earlier this year. Garcia came in overweight for that fight, something the fighter has said was intentional.
De La Hoya doesn’t feel that Garcia can make junior welterweight anymore.
“Ryan’s a big kid now,” De La Hoya said. “He’s not making 140. It’s got to be 147, 145.”
De La Hoya mentioned potential foes such as current lineal junior welterweight champ Teofimo Lopez and welterweight titleholder Jaron “Boots” Ennis. He also named three fighters who are competing at 154 these days: Vergil Ortiz (whom De La Hoya also promotes), Errol Spence and Terence Crawford.
Sharpe asked De La Hoya about the possibility of Garcia facing Gervonta “Tank” Davis and Haney in rematches.
Davis dropped Garcia with a body shot for the full 10 count in April 2023 in a lightweight bout.
“I didn’t negotiate that fight. Ryan’s lawyer and advisers negotiated that rehydration clause [which limited how much weight Garcia could gain before the fight] and the purse split,” De La Hoya said. “I was like, ‘Let me stand back. Let me watch them make mistakes.’ I felt so bad for Ryan because he was sucked up [drained]. He reminded me of me when I fought Pacquiao. And then when the next [day] you can’t weigh a certain amount, there’s no chance he’s going to win against Tank, who’s a beast.”
Would the fight be any different without a rehydration clause?
“I don’t know, because Tank is very skillful. He’s a beast. He knows how to figure you out,” De La Hoya said. “I would love to see it at 147. It’s too much [weight] for Tank, but it still would be an incredible, competitive fight because Tank, he has the dog in him. He turns it up. It’s beautiful.”
As for Haney, Garcia was initially awarded a majority decision in April 2024, though that result has since been overturned by the New York State Athletic Commission.
“When we landed fight week in New York, Monday I believe it was, the first call I received, ‘Hey, please help us. Ryan Garcia’s drunk in his room and he’s with women.’ I was like, ‘What, is this what I have to deal with the whole week?’ Imagine if Ryan Garcia was 100 per cent, what he would do to Devin Haney. Do I want to see a rematch? No, it doesn’t call for it. Ryan, he just mopped, it was crazy. He just made him [Haney] look like an amateur. I don’t care if they say he was on steroids or this and that. He was 30 per cent up in that ring. 30 per cent. Imagine if he was 100 per cent.”
Garcia’s return is still well off in the distance, however. De La Hoya, who’s had his own struggles with mental illness and addiction, is hopeful that Garcia will get better.
“I believe he will. I really do,” De La Hoya said. “In order to lift yourself back up, you have to touch the floor. I know he has the strength to do it. I think he will come back better, stronger than ever.”
Follow David Greisman on Twitter @FightingWords2. His book, “Fighting Words: The Heart and Heartbreak of Boxing,” is available on Amazon.
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