Danny Garcia introduced a fascinating scenario to entice superstar Terence Crawford to face him as Crawford moves up in weight and considers a potential matchup with Saul "Canelo" Alvarez in a generational superfight.
If Garcia dethrones WBA middleweight titleholder Erislandy Lara on Sept. 14 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Garcia proposed the idea that Crawford should face him at 160 pounds as a way to prepare for the gradual move up to 168 pounds to face Canelo.
“You never know. That makes perfect sense,” Garcia told BoxingScene on Monday of the matchup with Crawford. “If we fought, he’d be going for his fifth title in a weight division and I’d be going for my fourth title in a different weight class. I gotta get through Lara first. But it would be a great matchup and it makes sense for both of us.”
Garcia, a two-division champion, faced Crawford twice in the amateurs, going 1-1 against the pound-for-pound great. Crawford won a title in a fourth weight division on Saturday by dethroning junior middleweight titleholder Israil Madimov in a methodical, patient performance in his debut at 154 pounds. Crawford has discussed the possibility of moving up in weight to challenge Canelo, and Garcia laid out a scenario to make that happen as he sat in his dressing room in Midtown Manhattan, waiting for his press conference with Lara to start.
Their bout is the co-feature to Canelo defending his three super middleweight titles against Edgar Berlanga on Sept. 14 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas in a PBC Pay-Per-View on Prime Video on Mexican Independence Day Weekend.
Garcia didn’t think the scoring in Crawford’s win against Madrimov was controversial on Saturday.
“Definitely a competitive fight but I had Crawford winning because the other guy wasn’t busy,” Garcia said. “He wasn’t throwing a lot of punches. He was the champion but Crawford was the name. The other guy did good, but he wasn’t active enough.”
Despite his comments on facing Crawford, Garcia said his bout with Lara could be the crowning achievement of his career as he bids the sport farewell.
“This may be my last fight unless they call me with something that makes sense,” Garcia told BoxingScene. “Winning a title in a third weight division would be legendary. But I'm a fighter, so I’m not thinking about that right now.”
Philly’s Garcia (37-3, 21 KOs) last fought in July of 2022 when he captured a majority decision against Jose Benavidez Jr. Garcia made headlines following the fight when he broke down in the ring discussing his struggles with mental health. Garcia was amazed by the public’s reaction to his interview with Jim Gray on Showtime that night.
“I never thought that interview would touch that many people,” Garcia said. “I learned that everyone can’t be a world champion but everyone can have a mental illness. So that’s why I connected with so many people because everyone goes through that type of stuff. I was just speaking with how I felt my whole life. Those tears were how I felt about my entire career, all the pressure and the mental stuff going on. So it was good to get it out.”
