By Keith Idec
Danny Garcia and Shawn Porter both want a rematch with Keith Thurman.
He is the natural next opponent for the winner of their September 8 bout for the WBC welterweight title Thurman gave up late in April. Garcia isn’t sure, however, if Thurman still possesses the desire that made him an elite fighter.
The 29-year-old Thurman (28-0, 22 KOs, 1 NC) hasn’t fought since defeating Garcia by split decision in their 12-round, 147-pound title unification fight 17 months ago at Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
Thurman has returned to trainer Dan Birmingham’s gym in St. Petersburg, Florida, but his comeback bout from elbow surgery and a subsequent hand injury still hasn’t been scheduled.
“I just feel like in the first place he’s out because of me,” Garcia said during a conference call Tuesday. “I was the one who hurt his arm. I was the one who broke his elbow. But I just feel like he’s not hungry no more. A win over Danny Garcia is probably one of the biggest wins you could get in boxing. You know, he got that, he unified the division. I think he reached heights in his career that he always wanted to reach.
“And I think he’s married now, he’s traveling the world, so his mind is not in the game. So I don’t think he’s hungry anymore. I think he passed what he wanted to accomplish. I may be wrong, but from what I see, that’s how it seems to me.”
Garcia still doesn’t discount the possibility of facing Thurman again.
“I don’t know,” Garcia said. “I don’t know. At the end of the day, this sport is about money. Everyone wants to get paid. His fight with me was his biggest career payday, so money talks in this sport. So I can’t put words in no one’s mouth.”
Philadelphia’s Garcia (34-1, 20 KOs) and Porter (28-2-1, 17 KOs), of Akron, Ohio, will headline Showtime’s tripleheader September 8 from Barclays Center (9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT).
The three-bout broadcast also will include Cuba’s Yordenis Ugas (23-3, 11 KOs) and Argentina’s Cesar Barrionuevo (34-3-2, 24 KOs) in a 12-round WBC welterweight elimination match. Brooklyn’s Adam Kownacki (17-0, 14 KOs) and Charles Martin (25-1-1, 23 KOs), of Carson, California, will square off in a 10-round heavyweight bout as well.
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.
