Ryan Garcia feels he has the kind of crippling punching power that no human being can take for too long.
The hard hitting lightweight attraction from Victorville, California, has not been shy about playing up his strengths ever since it was announced last month that he had reached an agreement to face rival Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis next spring. Davis has scheduled a fight in the interim, but should he come out victorious, they will meet sometime in April.
In a recent interview through his social media, Garcia said that he simply believes that Davis, no pillow puncher himself, will suffer the same fate as many of Garcia’s previous opponents: lying on the canvas.
“There are so many options that could happen, especially with us both being power punchers, that we can catch somebody clean at any moment,” Garcia said of his fight with Davis in an Instagram Live session. “I just expect to win. Just trying to find every way to win and stop everything he tries to do in the ring.
“And I know that, myself, when I hit people with certain punches, a lot of the times they get hurt. I don’t expect Tank to be any different. A human can only take so much pressure to the head. So if he gets caught, there he goes. I expect to knock him out.”
The announcement of a Davis-Garcia showdown, set at a contracted weight of 136 pounds, sent shockwaves through an industry that had been deprived of the welterweight undisputed championship after Terence Crawford and Errol Spence Jr. could not reach terms. Garcia and Davis have traded words for the past few years but a deal seemed unrealistic, given how the two are backed by rival entities. Garcia is promoted by Golden Boy, while Davis is backed by Premier Boxing Champions.
The significance of the fight has not been lost on Garcia, who pushed for both parties to reach a deal for the sake of the sport.
“It’s important because we haven’t had two young, in-their-prime, undefeated fighters go at it in a while,” Garcia said. “So this is my heart, this is what I’m made about. I’ve always wanted to do these things, these big events, these big sights since I was a young, young fighter and finally I get the opportunity and we’re going to put on a show.”
Davis (27-0, 25 KOs) has a 12-round fight with Hector Garcia on Jan. 7 at Capitol One Arena in Washington, D.C. Garcia (23-0, 19 KOs) has decided to sit out until his fight with Davis.