Robert Garcia showed compassion when coming to the aid of Erickson Lubin, seconds after he was stopped by Vergil Ortiz in November.
Ortiz recorded a second-round knockout over Lubin in November in the main event of a Golden Boy Promotions telecast. Garcia trains Ortiz alongside Vergil Ortiz Snr, the fighter’s father.
The dramatic ending came when Ortiz, 24-0 (22 KOs), trapped Lubin on the ropes. Ortiz, a 27-year-old from Grand Prairie, Texas, systematically landed bone-crushing hooks with lots of leverage. A combination of overhand rights and left hooks left Lubin in a daze. He was unresponsive on the ropes. Garcia rushed into the ring with a stool so that Lubin could sit down seconds after a brutal display of power shots from Ortiz, his fighter.
“I am a former fighter and also got knocked out a couple of times,” Garcia told BoxingScene. “I am not saving anybody. I am just helping.
“If sitting him down was the best thing for him to do instead of standing up, I think I helped. Putting water on his head was something I felt he needed.”
Notable was how quickly Garcia acted when going to Lubin, a 30-year-old from Kissimmee, Florida. Garcia didn’t go to his own fighter first. He went to check on Lubin, 27-3 (19 KOs), who had suffered a knockout loss.
“I saw him pretty hurt, and my first instinct was help him before we celebrate,” Garcia said. “I have done it many times before, but I have also experienced tragedies.”
One of the sad moments Garcia saw first-hand was when his nephew, Javier “Pelos” Garcia, fought to a six-round draw with Jackson Bussell. Bussell collapsed in the ring and died days later.
“This is a sport,” Garcia said. “I am not going to be anyone’s enemy.”
