Before we got into my writing - a huge milestone happened for me. I was allowed to join the BWAA. It is a tremendous honor - and something I never thought I’d be able to achieve. I want to thank you - the reader - for helping me on dark days do better.
Welcome To The Ryan Garcia Show
Photo: Cris Esqueda / Golden Boy Promotions
How To Watch: Saturday, April 20th, PPV Start Time 5 PM PST - Prelims 1:30 PM PST (on YouTube)
It is as top-heavy of an event as possible. Ryan Garcia’s bizarre social media antics have overtaken the event. What I view as immature is being excused as ‘selling a fight’ - something that is a troubling trend.
Garcia has been a trainwreck on social media - the big question is; is it on purpose or is he out of control? Not unlike Brian Pillman, the pro wrestler, the lines are blurred. It is interesting to some - but rather tragic to me. Haney has been a professional, has an undefeated record, and is doing everything right - yet Garcia who is doing odd things at every turn is getting all the stories.
The bad behavior of Garcia is being rewarded - and will probably be duplicated. If Garcia wins - which I don’t see happening - he will be the biggest star in boxing. If Garcia loses, which seems imminent - it will define how he is perceived as a boxer. If he loses fighting back, he will earn some people’s respect - if he looks for a way out the antics will have backfired.
The fight is interesting - but the reality TV drama isn’t. I am a boxing guy - and this isn’t a boxing guy fight. The closer we get to the fight - the more you feel the interesting. People want to see what Ryan Garcia will do - but the WBC junior welterweight fight is becoming more of an event - and not so much a sporting event.
undercard.
The co-main event will see the criminally underrated Arnold Barboza Jr. facing lesser-known Sean McComb in a ten-round fight. The bout isn’t just a fight it appears to be a backup plan. If Garcia or Haney have something happen to them in which they can’t fight Barboza is waiting in the wings to fill in.
Super middleweight Bektemir “Bek The Bully” Melikuziev will face Pierre Dibombe. Melikuziev’s excitement has dimmed since being knocked out by Gabriel Rosado. Despite avenging the loss, his aggressive style and brutal KO loss seem to paint a vivid picture of the direction his career is going.
The best undercard fight will see John “Scrappy” Ramirez in a tough fight with David Jimenez. The bout is for the WBA interim junior bantamweights title. Ramirez has been inconsistent - sometimes he looks like a contender and sometimes he doesn’t. Jimenez is a top talent in the lowerweights. This will show the potential of Ramirez - if he can win a world title or if he is a tier below. I see this as a very close fight.
Junior middleweight Charles Conwell taking on Nathaniel Gallimore. The bout will see Conwell shaking off rust after a long layoff.
On the prelims, Sergiy Derevyanchenko will fight veteran Vaughn Alexander, Amari Jones of Oakland, Calif. will fight and Darius Fulghum will be featured.
Watch OTX Boxing
OTX Boxing is doing a great job making fights for boxing nerds. The card they have on DAZN this Friday is no different. The main event will see top prospect at the junior welterweight division Kurt Scoby facing tough gatekeeper Dakota Linger.
The big selling point of this event is the junior middleweight tournament they are holding. The first round will see Brandon Adams take on Ismael Villarreal and Francisco Vernon vs. Angel Ruiz battle with each other. The eight-man tournament makes for an easy rubric for a fight fan to follow.
Notable prospects on the undercard are welterweight David Lopez of Oakland, Calif., and super middleweight Nathan Lugo, who looks like a star in the making.
Other Notable Fights
Tonight DiBella has a good heavyweight fight between George Arias and Skylar Lacy in Philly. Lacy fought Antonio Mireles to a draw in November on a Top Rank undercard.
One of my favorite European fighters, Sam Noakes fights Yvan Mendy for the vacant European lightweight title
Sacramento’s Cain Sandoval will take on veteran Angel Rebollar - also on this card are Brook Sibrian and Daniel Barrera.
"The bad behavior of Garcia is being rewarded - and will probably be duplicated."
"People want to see what Ryan Garcia will do - but the WBC junior welterweight fight is becoming more of an event - and not so much a sporting event"
"I am a boxing guy - and this isn’t a boxing guy fight"
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What this fight does is devalue the merit of being a champion.
Garcia missed weight. He doesn't have the chance to win the belt. But that doesn't matter. By his own admission, Garcia missed weight specifically to gain an advantage in the fight.
This fight reminded me of the Fiodor CZERKASZYN fight on the Usyk Dubois Card.
Czerkascyn is a ranked middleweight fighting an African French fighter coming down from light heavyweight. They fought at a catchweight of around 163 lbs.
The bigger fighter knocked Czerkascyn down twice, and it was all Czerkascyn could do to hold and avoid getting knocked out.
The judges tried robbery in that fight too. If I remember correctly, one judge had it a draw.
Like Czerkascyn, Haney was overpowered and had no answers. Like Czerkascyn, Haney had little power himself to keep Garcia off him. And like Czerkascyn, Haney was able to survive thanks to the referee allowing him to hold.
The other fighter I'm reminded of is Jessica MacCaskill. McCaskill will flail wildly and basically take a 90 degree "bow" as her "defense". That bow is effectively the same as Garcia fully turning his back.
Going back to the weights, this fight brings the Youtube spectacle beyond Jake Paul to boxing's upper echelon. Haney was an undisputed champion at 135 lbs. And he was champion at 140 lbs. A pound for pound fighter. By all accounts, Haney was a professional and was doing all the right training. Losing to a spectacle devalues the merit of being a champion and challenges the perception of whether boxing is a "sport".
Taking into account the spectacle, a lot of boxing fans speculated that Garcia might lose by DQ. Or that his antics were done to give himself an excuse if he lost.
I felt an air of Wrestling spectacle prior to the fight and in round 2.
Dibombe just didn't develop as a boxer.
He basically fought club level fighters in his hometown in France. Plus two more club level fighters in USA and Canada.
That's the difference between him and Gabe Rosado.
Rosado fought Charlo, Golovkin, Jacobs, Quillin, Lemieux prior to sparking Melikuziev out.
Is this the fight that pseudo exposes Melikuziev? Or is Melikuziev going to improve?