Ryan Garcia is ready to reveal a better version of himself following his first professional loss via knockout to Gervonta Davis in April.
Garcia (23-1, 19 KOs) will get to showcase his skills when he takes on the hard-hitting Oscar Duarte (26-1-1, 21 KOs) on Dec. 2.
The 25-year-old Garcia has tasked reigning trainer of the year Derrick James to revive his career, ending a three-fight stint with coach Joe Goossen.
Garcia said that he’s ready to give it all he’s got as he embarks on a new stage of his career fighting at 140 pounds.
“[I'm] tired of disrespect. I'm fed up and I've been at 50% for so long. It's going to be different. I promise that to myself,” Garcia wrote on Instagram to his 10.2 million followers.
“I don't care about anything but becoming a world champion. My eyes used to care about social media and what that did for my career. Now I don't care. I'm ready to win.”
Garcia’s stretch at 135 pounds ended without a world title, and his best win came against 2012 Olympics gold medalist Luke Campbell, recovering from a knockdown to score a seventh-round stoppage victory in January 2021.
The fight also marked Garcia’s last bout training under the auspices of Canelo Alvarez’s lifelong coach and confidant Eddy Reynoso. Months later, Garcia cited mental health issues and took a year-long break from boxing.
While Garcia was on the sidelines, then-stablemate Alvarez indicated that Garcia was wasting his time and talent, and that he was not 100% dedicated, and that it all amounted to a bad sign.
Garcia-Duarte will headline a Golden Boy Promotions card from the Toyota Center in Houston on DAZN.
Manouk Akopyan is a sports journalist, writer, and broadcast reporter. He’s also a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and the MMA Journalists Association. He can be reached on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube at @ManoukAkopyan, through email at manouk[dot]akopyan[at]gmail.com, or via www.ManoukAkopyan.com.