Promoter Oscar De La Hoya apparently has enormous qualms about his star charge’s decision to go straight into a spring showdown with Gervonta “Tank” Davis.
Lightweight attraction Ryan Garcia was originally slated to take on Filipino southpaw Mercito Gesta on Jan. 21, in what was supposed to be a tune-up ahead of his highly anticipated fight with Baltimore’s Davis in April. But the native of Victorville, California tweeted on Friday that he had decided to decline a stay-busy fight with Gesta, saying it was essentially unnecessary, especially for the fans.
“Been thinking about it during the time they were figuring out this fight and I feel the fans and everyone who supports boxing have seen these tune-ups,” Garcia wrote. “It’s time that we give the fans what they want. Also, [Davis] requested the tune-up not me so let him handle business. LETS GO.”
Davis (27-0, 25 KOs), indeed, is already scheduled for an interim bout against junior lightweight contender Hector Luis Garcia (16-0, 10 KOs) of the Dominican Republic on Jan. 7 at Capitol One Arena in Washington D.C. Garcia will move up in weight to face Davis.
One prominent person who apparently was not on board with Garcia’s sudden decision is Garcia’s own promoter, De La Hoya, the founder of Golden Boy. In a recent interview, De La Hoya expressed concern that Garcia could be making a “big mistake” by forgoing an interim fight, saying that a tune-up would have been the prudent thing to do from a preparation standpoint ahead of the Davis fight.
“Look, Tank Davis is gonna have a tune-up fight,” De La Hoya told FightHype.com. “His tools are going to be very sharp for when he faces Ryan Garcia in April. Ryan decided to bypass the tuneup and go straight to Tank.
“I strongly feel it’s a big mistake, but [what] we all have to do is wish him the very best and [tell him to] stay in shape, stay in the gym, continue training, sparring, stay focused, and wait for that big day.”
Garcia (23-0, 19 KOs), admittedly, has not had a busy schedule for the past couple of years. The last time he entered the ring was on July 16, in which he delivered a sixth-round stoppage of Javier Fortuna at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. Three months earlier, he defeated Emmanuel Tagoe over 12 rounds. Up until that point, Garcia had not fought for 15 months, due to a combination of mental health issues and an injury.
