A Cautionary Tale For New Champ Garcia

Published

12 years ago

March 26, 2012

MoralesGarciaPC Eilts13 HOUSTON – There is a fine line that separates understandable caution from foolish risk-taking, and fighters who appear well on their way to winning a bout sometimes find themselves straddling it.

Is that living legend in the other corner, the crafty veteran who appears to be in deep trouble, really as hurt as he seems? Or is he just playing possum, hoping to lure a reckless opponent into the danger zone?

In the ring, where data has to be processed in a fraction of a second and strategies accordingly selected, hesitation is almost always the worst way to go. But taking a blind leap of faith and choosing an unwise course of action can be just as hazardous to one’s health and chances for victory.

Saturday night here in Reliant Arena, a familiar rite of passage was observed when young, strong, quick Danny “Swift” Garcia, 24, took the WBC super lightweight championship from old, slow and weakened Erik Morales, 35. The scores were 118-109, 117-110 and 116-112.

Well … technically the title was no longer Morales’ to defend, the Mexican icon having relinquished it on the scale the day before when he came in 2 pounds over the super lightweight limit of 140. Morales did not even attempt to use his hour’s grace period to sweat off those 32 excessive ounces, an apparent admission that his body had given all it had to give and could give no more.

Given Morales’ recent failure to approach the splendiferous form he had so frequently exhibited prior to his taking 31 months off from the ring (he is now 3-2 on the comeback trail), the smart money was on Swift to blow the remnants of the legacy of “El Terrible” to smithereens. And, to read the respective scorecards submitted by judges Samuel Conde, Oren Shellenberger and Mark Green, that’s exactly what happened.

Or maybe it wasn’t. No, this was not your standard-issue, Texas-sized boxing controversy – that more appropriately applied to the other HBO-televised bout on this night, in which a seemingly outclassed James Kirkland was presented with a gift-wrapped disqualification victory over Carlos Molina by referee Jon Schorle and the Texas commission. Still, you have to wonder if the main event might have turned out at least somewhat differently if certain realities been slightly altered.

“I’m not sad. I’m happy,” Morales (52-8, 36 KOs) said of his own performance, which might not have recalled his glory days but probably was better than many expected. “I fought with dignity, with pride.

“It wasn’t like he was beating me by a lot. It was pretty competitive.”

Garcia (23-0 14 KOs) also was pleased with what he had shown because, well, it was a victory and a world-title-winning one at that. Hard to complain when you’ve only just turned 24 years of age and have joined the world championship club.

“I’m still kind of in a daze right now,” Garcia said when asked if he felt, well, different since his status had changed. “I can’t believe I’m the world champion. I just went 12 rounds with a legend.”

Morales-Garcia had been on hold since January, when the original date for the fight was postponed when Morales underwent gallbladder surgery in December.

Although Morales had annexed his fourth world title in separate weight classes when he outpointed 22-year-old Mexican Pablo Cesar Cano on Sept. 17. It was not nearly the best Morales ever has looked in the ring. But then he didn’t need to be in top form against someone whose skill-set didn’t approach that of Garcia’s.

“I respect everyone I fight, and I respect Morales,” Garcia, a Phiadelphian of Puerto Rican descent, noted. “But I have to think he’s looking at me like he looked at that kid he just beat. (Cano) was young and undefeated, like me. But I’m not him. I’m better than he is.”

And so it was apparent almost from the opening bell in the Reliant Center. A possibly drained, used-up Morales couldn’t match Garcia’s youth and energy, and with each passing round the younger man added to his point total. The cleaner, harder shots all seemingly were landed by Garcia, and an especially telling one, an overhand right that landed flush, came in the third round when Morales was sent reeling backward.

But Morales, or the memory of him as the future Hall of Famer who had gone to war and given as good as he received against the storied likes of Manny Pacquiao, Marco Antonio Barrera and Daniel Zaragoza, seemed to keep Garcia from just turning it loose. It was as if he believed Morales was laying a trap for another overconfident kid to stumble into.

Might Garcia have gone for the putaway then? Or in the sixth round, when he pinned Morales against the ropes and was whaling away with both hands? And if not then, what about the 11^th round, when Garcia, bleeding from the nose, floored Morales with a left hook flush on the jaw?

“I tried to finish him (in the 11^th), but he’s a veteran,” Garcia explained. “He was rolling his shoulders, making me miss. I didn’t want to get … what’s the word? … too greedy. He’s been in big fights before, and he knows how to get in people’s heads.”

It is hardly unusual for a young fighter like Garcia to possibly give too much respect to a living legend like Morales, but Golden Boy president Oscar De La Hoya has been in both positions – rising superstar and faded icon, striving to hang on – and he was quick to realize that Garcia’s performance might be described as the glass being half-full.

“He won the fight and obviously is going to grow from the experience,” De La Hoya said of Garcia. “We’re looking forward to matching him up with other champions so he can unify the titles.”

But yet …

“I went into Danny’s locker room and I was criticizing him left and right,” De La Hoya continued. “I told him, `OK, you went up against a legend, and you beat a legend. That’s great. But you have to put your punches together. It was like every time you hit Erik, you stopped to pose for a picture. You can’t do that.’”

De La Hoya paused, as if he thought too much constructive criticism might detract from Garcia’s opportunity to enjoy the moment before going back to work to improve upon it.

“Danny can learn from this,” the Golden Boy himself said. “There were a lot of good things Danny did, but he also showed a lot of flaws.”

CompuBox statistics appeared to support the decision of the judges. Regardless of whether he failed to put his punches together to his promoter’s satisfaction, Garcia landed 238 of 779, 31 percent, to just 164 of 547, or 30 percent, for Morales. The gap was especially evident in power punches, where Garcia found the range on 170 of 445, 38 percent, to 71 of 240, 30 percent, for Morales.

But Morales’ jab was sharper and more effective as he landed 93 of 307 to 68 of 334 for Garcia, and it was the jab that bloodied Garcia’s nose and opened a cut over his right eye in the 11^th round.

Morales, who earned $1 million, minus the $50,000 penalty he was assessed for failing to make weight, said he was considering retirement, but would probably hold off on making that decision until he had a chance to schedule a possible farewell bout in Mexico, where his popularity remains unabated.

“I don’t want to keep fighting to lose,” he said. “If I’m going to keep fighting, I want to win. But I have to evaluate if I want to keep doing this.”

Garcia, whose purse was $225,000, figures he’s due for a lengthy residence in or near boxing’s ritziest neighborhood, and he’ll take what he learned against Morales and apply that knowledge to future fights.

“Get used to this face,” Garcia said at the postfight press conference. “I’m going to be around for a long time.”

In the co-featured bout, Kirkland (31-1, 27 KOs), the knockout artist from Austin, Texas, was having all sorts of problems with the flurry-and-grab tactics employed by Chicago’s Carlos Molina (19-5-2, 6 KOs), who built a substantial lead through nine rounds of the scheduled 12-rounder. But Kirkand knocked down Molina in the closing seconds of Round 10, setting into motion a bizarre chain of events.

Schorle was giving a count to Molina, who did not appear to be discombobulated at all, when the bell sounded and Molina’s corner team entered the ring. Schorle then disqualified Molina, a draconian response for an infraction that was literally a heartbeat from being no infration at all.

Kirkland, who retained his WBC Continental Americas super welterweight title, maintained that he was just finding his rhythm and that Molina would never have survived two more rounds of what he was about to dish out. Molina, who was 11-0-1 in his previous 12 outings, disputed that. The shame of it is that neither one was afforded the opportunity to state his case over those two unfought rounds.

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Bernard Fernandez

Avila Perspective, Chap. 281: The Devin Haney and Ryan Garcia Show

Published

24 hours ago

April 18, 2024

David A. Avila

Avila-Perspective-Chap-281-The-Devin-and-Ryan-Show

Over the years bouts between old foes such as Devin Haney and Ryan Garcia tend to be surprising.

Yes, both are only 25 but have known each other for many years.

When undisputed super lightweight champion Haney (31-0, 15 KOs) steps into the prize ring at Barclays Center to meet challenger Garcia (24-1, 20 KOs) on Saturday, April 20, fans will be witnessing the continuation of a feud that began more than a decade ago.

And though the champion is a heavy favorite, familiarity is Garcia’s best weapon heading into their fight on the Golden Boy Promotions card that will be shown on PPV.COM with Jim Lampley and friends. DAZN pay-per-view is also streaming the card.

In many ways Haney and Garcia have ventured down the same path. From amateur sensations to fighting in Mexico while teens to asking for the biggest challenges available.

“Whichever version of Ryan shows up on April 20, I will be ready for him. Ryan Garcia is just another opponent to me,” said Haney who holds the WBC super lightweight title after his win over Regis Prograis.

The first time I saw Haney as a pro he battled the dangerous Mexican contender Juan Carlos Burgos at Pechanga Resort and Casino in Temecula. It was an impressive performance against a fighter who fought three times for a world title.

Haney was 19 at the time.

My first look at Garcia as a pro was in his first bout in the U.S. when he met Puerto Rico’s Jonathan Cruz at the Exchange in downtown Los Angeles. The Boricua looked at Garcia and tried intimidating him with stares, taunts and the usual patter. During the fight both swung and missed until the second round when Garcia zeroed in and took him out.

Garcia had just turned 18, the legal age to fight in California.

Both fighters did not have the Olympics credentials that lead to fame. But their talent has allowed them to fight through the dense smoke that is professional boxing.

Haney has defeated numerous world champions such as Prograis, Vasyl Lomachenko and George Kambosos Jr., while Garcia has stopped champions Javier Fortuna and Luke Campbell.

As amateurs, Garcia and Haney battled six times with each winning three.

“They know each other very well,” said Oscar De La Hoya of Golden Boy Promotions. “Ryan is going to beat Devin Haney.”

Haney has a buttery-smooth style with one of the best jabs in boxing. He’s very adept at keeping distance and not allowing anyone to fight him inside. His reflexes are outstanding, yet he seldom fights inside. That’s his weakness.

Garcia fights tall and has superb hand speed and a lightning quick left hook. Though his defense lacks tightness his ability to rip off three-punch combinations in a blink of an eye pauses opponents from bullying their way inside.

“These guys always just look at me and look at me like I don’t know how to box,” said Garcia on social media. “Why was I one of the best fighters in the amateurs. Why was I a 15-time National champion…why did I beat everyone I came across.”

Haney is a strong favorite by oddsmakers to defeat Garcia. But you can never tell when it comes to fighters that know each other well and are athletically gifted.

When Sergio Mora challenged Vernon Forrest he was a big underdog. When Tim Bradley fought Manny Pacquiao the first time, he was also the underdog. And when Andy Ruiz met Anthony Joshua few gave him a chance.

Haney and Garcia have history in the ring. It should be an interesting battle.

PPV.COM

Jim Lampley will be leading the broadcast on PPV.COM for the Haney-Garcia card at Barclays and texting with fans on the card live. He will be accompanied by journalists Lance Pugmire, Dan Conobbio and former champion Chris Algieri.

The PPV.COM broadcast begins at 5 p.m. PT. and is available in Canada and the USA.

Other News

MMA stars Nate Diaz and Jorge Masvidal will be holding a media day event on Friday, April 19, at NOVO at L.A. Doors open at 5:30 p.m.

Diaz and Masvidal will be boxing against each other in a grudge match on June 1 at the KIA Forum in Inglewood, Calif. The two MMA stars met five years at UFC 244 with Masvidal winning by TKO over Diaz due to cuts.

This is a grudge match, but under boxing rules.

Fight card in Commerce, Calif.

360 Promotions returns to Commerce Casino on Saturday April 20 with undefeated super lightweight Cain Sandoval leading the charge.

Sandoval (12-0) faces Angel Rebollar (8-3) in the main event that will be shown live on UFC Fight Pass. Also on the card are two female events including hot prospect Lupe Medina (5-0) versus Sabrina Persona (3-1) in a minimumweight clash.

Doors open at 4 p.m.

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Boxing Odds and Ends: The Heavyweight Merry-Go-Round

Published

3 days ago

April 16, 2024

Arne K. Lang

Boxing Odds and Ends: The Heavyweight Merry-Go-Round

There were few surprises when co-promoters Eddie Hearn and Frank Warren and their benefactor HE Turki Alalshikh held a press conference in London this past Monday to unveil the undercard for the Beterbiev-Bivol show at Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on June 1. Most of the match-ups had already been leaked.

For die-hard boxing fans, Beterbiev-Bivol is such an enticing fight that it really doesn’t need an attractive undercard. Two undefeated light heavyweights will meet with all four relevant belts on the line in a contest where the oddsmakers straddled the fence. It’s a genuine “pick-‘em” fight based on the only barometer that matters, the prevailing odds.

But Beterbiev-Bivol has been noosed to a splendid undercard, a striking contrast to Saturday’s Haney-Garcia $69.99 (U.S.) pay-per-view in Brooklyn, an event where the undercard, in the words of pseudonymous boxing writer Chris Williams, is an absolute dumpster fire.

The two heavyweight fights that will bleed into Beterbiev-Bivol, Hrgovic vs. Dubois and Wilder vs. Zhang, would have been stand-alone main events before the incursion of Saudi money.

Hrgovic-Dubois

Filip Hrgovic (17-0, 13 KOs) and Daniel Dubois (20-2, 19 KOs) fought on the same card in Riyadh this past December. Hrgovic, the Croatian, was fed a softie in the form of Australia’s Mark De Mori who he dismissed in the opening round. Dubois, a Londoner, rebounded from his loss to Oleksandr Usyk with a 10^th-round stoppage of corpulent Jarrell “Big Baby” Miller.

There’s an outside chance that Hrgovic vs. Dubois may be sanctioned by the IBF for the world heavyweight title.

The May 18 showdown between Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury has a rematch clause. The IBF is next in line in the rotation system for a unified heavyweight champion and the organization has made it plain that the winner of Usyk-Fury must fulfill his IBF mandatory before an intervening bout.

The best guess is that the Usyk-Fury winner will relinquish the IBF belt. If so, Hrgovic and Dubois may fight for the vacant title although a more likely scenario is that the organization will keep the title vacant so that the winner can fight Anthony Joshua.

Wilder-Zhang

The match between Deontay Wilder (43-3-1, 42 KOs) and Zhilei Zhang (26-2-1, 21 KOs) is a true crossroads fight as both Wilder, 38, and Zhang, who turns 41 in May, are nearing the end of the road and the loser (unless it’s a close and entertaining fight) will be relegated to the rank of a has-been. In fact, Wilder has hinted that this may be his final rodeo.

Both are coming off a loss to Joseph Parker.

Wilder last fought on the card that included Hrgovic and Dubois and was roundly out-pointed by a man he was expected to beat. It’s a quick turnaround for Zhang who opposed Parker on March 8 and lost a majority decision.

Other Fights

Either of two other fights may steal the show on the June 1 event.

Raymond Ford (15-0-1, 8 KOs) meets Nick Ball (19-0-1, 11 KOs) in a 12-round featherweight contest. New Jersey’s Ford will be defending the WBA world title he won with a come-from-behind, 12th-round stoppage of Otabek Kholmatov in an early contender for Fight of the Year. Liverpool’s “Wrecking” Ball, a relentless five-foot-two sparkplug, had to settle for a draw in his title fight with Rey Vargas despite winning the late rounds and scoring two knockdowns.

Hamzah Sheeraz (19-0, 15 KOs) meets fellow unbeaten Austin “Ammo” Williams (16-0, 11 KOs) in a 12-round middleweight match. East London’s Sheeraz, the son of a former professional cricket player, is unknown in the U.S. although he trained for his recent fights at the Ten Goose Boxing Gym in California. Riding a skein of 13 straight knockouts, he has a date with WBO title-holder Janibek Alimkhanuly if he can get over this hurdle.

The Forgotten Heavyweight

“Unbeaten for seven years, the man nobody wants to fight,” intoned ring announcer Michael Buffer by way of introduction. Buffer was referencing Michael Hunter who stood across the ring from his opponent Artem Suslenkov.

This scene played out this past Saturday in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. It was Hunter’s second fight in three weeks. On March 23, he scored a fifth-round stoppage of a 46-year-old meatball at a show in Zapopan, Mexico.

The second-generation “Bounty Hunter,” whose only defeat prior to last weekend came in a 12-rounder with Oleksandr Usyk, has been spinning his wheels since TKOing the otherwise undefeated Martin Bakole on the road in London in 2018. Two fights against hapless opponents on low-budget cards in Mexico and a couple of one-round bouts for the Las Vegas Hustle, an entry in the fledgling and largely invisible Professional Combat League, are the sum total of his activity, aside from sparring, in the last two-and-a-half years.

Hunter’s chances of getting another big-money fight took a tumble in Tashkent where he lost a unanimous decision in a dull affair to the unexceptional Suslenkov who was appearing in his first 10-round fight. The scores of the judges were not announced.

You won’t find this fight listed on boxrec. As Jake Donovan notes, the popular website will not recognize a fight conducted under the auspices of a rogue commission. (Another fight you won’t find on boxrec for the same reason is Nico Ali Walsh’s 6-round split decision over the 9-2-1 Frenchman, Noel Lafargue, in the African nation of Guinea on Dec. 16, 2023. You can find it on YouTube, but according to boxrec, boxing’s official record-keeper, it never happened.)

Anderson-Merhy Redux

The only thing missing from this past Saturday’s match in Corpus Christi, Texas, between Jared Anderson and Ryad Merhy was the ghost of Robert Valsberg.

Valsberg, aka Roger Vaisburg, was the French referee who disqualified Ingemar Johansson for not trying in his match with LA’s Ed Sanders in the finals of the heavyweight competition at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics. Valsberg tossed Johansson out of the ring after two rounds and Johansson was denied the silver medal. The Swede redeemed himself after turning pro, needless to say, when he demolished Floyd Patterson in the first of their three meetings.

Merhy was credited with throwing only 144 punches, landing 34, over the course of the 10 rounds. Those dismal figures yet struck many onlookers as too high. (This reporter has always insisted that the widely-quoted CompuBox numbers should be considered approximations.)

Whatever the true number, it was a disgraceful performance by Merhy who actually showed himself to have very fast hands on the few occasions when he did throw a punch. With apologies to Delfine Persoon, a spunky lightweight, U.S. boxing promoters should think twice before inviting another Belgian boxer to our shores.

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Anderson Cruises by Vapid Merhy and Ajagba edges Vianello in Texas

Published

6 days ago

April 14, 2024

Arne K. Lang

Anderson-Cruises-by-Vapid-Merhy-and-Ajagba-Edges-Vianello-in-Texas

Jared Anderson returned to the ring tonight on a Top Rank card in Corpus Christi, Texas. Touted as the next big thing in the heavyweight division, Anderson (17-0, 15 KOs) hardly broke a sweat while cruising past Ryad Merhy in a bout with very little action, much to the disgruntlement of the crowd which started booing as early as the second round. The fault was all Merhy as he was reluctant to let his hands go. Somehow, he won a round on the scorecard of judge David Sutherland who likely fell asleep for a round for which he could be forgiven.

Merhy, born in the Ivory Coast but a resident of Brussels, Belgium, was 32-2 (26 KOs) heading in after fighting most of his career as a cruiserweight. He gave up six inches in height to Anderson who was content to peck away when it became obvious to him that little would be coming back his way.

Anderson may face a more daunting adversary on Monday when he has a court date in Romulus, Michigan, to answer charges related to an incident in February where he drove his Dodge Challenger at a high rate speed, baiting the police into a merry chase. (Weirdly, Anderson entered the ring tonight wearing the sort of helmet that one associates with a race car driver.)

Co-Feature

In the co-feature, a battle between six-foot-six former Olympians, Italy’s Guido Vianello started and finished strong, but Efe Ajagba had the best of it in the middle rounds and prevailed on a split decision. Two of the judges favored Ajagba by 96-94 scores with the dissenter favoring the Italian from Rome by the same margin.

Vianello had the best round of the fight. He staggered Ajagba with a combination in round two. At the end of the round, a befuddled Ajagba returned to the wrong corner and it appeared that an upset was brewing. But the Nigerian, who trains in Las Vegas under Kay Koroma, got back into the fight with a more varied offensive attack and better head movement. In winning, he improved his ledger to 20-1 (14). Vianello, who sparred extensively with Daniel Dubois in London in preparation for this fight, declined to 12-2-1 in what was likely his final outing under the Top Rank banner.

Other Bouts of Note

In the opening bout on the main ESPN platform, 35-year-old super featherweight Robson Conceicao, a gold medalist for Brazil in the 2016 Rio Olympics, stepped down in class after fighting Emanuel Navarrete tooth-and-nail to a draw in his previous bout and scored a seventh-round stoppage of Jose Ivan Guardado who was a cooked goose after slumping to the canvas after taking a wicked shot to the liver. Guardado made it to his feet, but the end was imminent and the referee waived it off at the 2:27 mark.

Conceicao improved to 18-1 (9 KOs). It was the U.S. debut for Guardado (15-2-1), a boxer from Ensenada, Mexico who had done most of his fighting up the road in Tijuana.

Ruben Villa, the pride of Salinas, California, improved to 22-1 (7) and moved one step closer to a match with WBC featherweight champion Rey Vargas with a unanimous 10-round decision over Tijuana’s Cristian Cruz (22-7-1). The judges had it 97-93 and 98-92 twice.

Cruz, the son of former IBF world featherweight title-holder Cristobal Cruz, was better than his record. He entered the bout on a 21-1-1 run after losing five of his first seven pro fights.

Cleveland southpaw Abdullah Mason, who turned 20 earlier this month, continued his fast ascent up the lightweight ladder with a fourth-round stoppage of Ronal Ron.

Mason (13-0, 11 KOs) put Ron on the canvas in the opening round with a short left hook. He scored a second knockdown with a shot to the liver. A flurry of punches, a diverse array, forced the stoppage at the 1:02 mark of round four. A 25-year-old SoCal-based Venezuelan, the spunky but out-gunned Ron declined to 14-6.

Charly Suarez, a 35-year-old former Olympian from the Philippines, ranked #5 at junior lightweight by the IBF, advanced to 17-0 (9) with a unanimous 8-round decision over SoCal’s Louie Coria (5-7).

This was a tactical fight. In the final round, Coria, subbing for 19-0 Henry Lebron, caught the Filipino off-balance and knocked him into the ropes which held him up. It was scored a knockdown, but came too little, too late for Coria who lost by scores of 76-75 and 77-74 twice.

Suarez, whose signature win was a 12^th-round stoppage of the previously undefeated Aussie Paul Fleming in Sydney, may be headed to a rematch with Robson Conceicao. They fought as amateurs in 2016 in Kazakhstan and Suarez lost a narrow 6-round decision.

Photo credit: Mikey Willams / Top Rank via Getty Images

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