Legendary might be an overused word but there is simply no other way to describe the career of Andre Ward.

An Olympic gold medal? Check.
A world title? Check.
Becoming a unified champion? Check.
How about a two-division world titlist? Check.
Hall of Fame? Also, check.

Yet, despite establishing himself as an all-time great, Robert Garcia isn’t sure that if he were still an active fighter, his undefeated record would have held up.

“I think (David) Benavidez would have got him but it wouldn’t have been easy,” said Garcia to ESNEWS.

Benavidez, the current WBC super middleweight interim tag holder, has recently garnered the sort of fame and adulation that he’s been craving. On March 25th, at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada, the 26-year-old used a second-half rally to eke out a win against Caleb Plant.

Over the years, Garcia has spewed profuse praise on the shoulders of the hard-hitting star. His ubiquitous offense and perpetual engine are traits that Garcia marvels at. Considering his style of attack, Garcia explains in depth why he can’t help but back him in his hypothetical matchup against Ward.

“I like Benavidez because of his style. He puts on too much pressure, he’s got tremendous heart, he takes a punch, he keeps coming and Ward, I don’t think he would have held him back.”

Ward, just a few short years ago, reigned atop the very division that Benavidez (27-0, 23 KOs) currently occupies. Yet, after an elongated stint on the sidelines, the former Olympic gold medalist returned as a full-fledged light heavyweight. And, in short order, Ward wasted no time in proving that he was the man to beat.

Ultimately, after reeling off consecutive victories against former divisional kingpin, Sergey Kovalev, Ward (32-0, 16 KOs) seemed to have a plethora of options at his fingertips. However, in the blink of an eye, the Oakland native opted against moving forward and would instead hang his gloves up for good.

Though it could be a case of out of sight out of mind, Garcia acknowledges that Ward was a unique fighter in his prime with a one-of-a-kind style. Nevertheless, while the outcome of Ward’s imaginary showdown vs. Benavidez would have been a closely contested one, Garcia doubles down on his initial pick.

“He was such a good boxer, he could have just outsmarted him and win a decision. It could have gone either way but I would have picked Benavidez.”