Danny ‘Swift’ Garcia: “It’s About Legacy”

Danny “Swift” Garcia has no illusions that a victory on Saturday night over rugged veteran Jose Benavidez Jr. would solidify his legacy. What he is aware of is that with a victory he will once again put his name back in the forefront of the boxing public’s mind. On the flipside, a fourth career loss would all but nail the coffin shut on the plans of the 34-year-old Philadelphian to remain at the elite level. While opinions vary regarding Garcia’s 14-year career, one thing is undebatable when it comes to the three-time, two division former champion: He is always in entertaining fights, regardless of the outcome.

At times fighters can remain big draws despite not fighting at the elite level (think Arturo Gatti post his loss to Mayweather). However, in the case of Garcia it seems that after losing to Errol Spence 19 months ago and choosing to take the longest lay-off from fighting in his career, any future commercial or critical success rests on a victory on Saturday.

It was just about a decade ago in October of 2012 that Garcia destroyed the faded legend Erik Morales in a fight that headlined the first boxing card at the brand-new Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Since that night Garcia has fought at the venue six more times, each time to huge crowds and good ratings on television. With box-office numbers like the ones he’s produced, it’s no secret why this fight landed back in Brooklyn. Everything points to the DSG business (or the “Danny Garcia Show,” as he calls it) still being a profitable one.

This is what’s intriguing about where Garcia currently is in his life and fighting career. Outside business ventures coupled with his ring earnings have placed him in an enviable financial position. He’s accumulated enough wealth that he never has to take another punch for profit again. Unlike many fighters that make poor financial choices and wind up having to lace up a pair of gloves for economic reasons, Garcia claims to be making this final push towards glory purely based on his passion for the sport.

With this fight on Saturday taking place in the 154-pound division, Garcia knows that a win means that due to his box-office allure, any big-name fighter or champion would relish a chance at the payday that facing him offers. It’s the reason why 160-pound belt holder Erislandy Lara already mentioned Garcia’s name as a potential opponent for him at a catchweight.

Again, all of this is not lost on Garcia, and he recently admitted as much. “It’s do or die for me, I know it’s an opportunity of a lifetime for him [Benavidez] so the stakes are high for the both of us, I just gotta win,” he said.

As Garcia was making this statement after he finished working out in his North Philadelphia private gym, he continuously looked over to a large mural that contains portraits of several fighters that have inspired him. When asked about what fighters like former 154-pound champions and Hall of Famers Felix Trinidad and Miguel Cotto mean to him, he quickly stated, “Legacy, it’s about legacy, this is what it’s all about, this is why you train. Look at Cotto, he moved up to 154 at 34-years-old and lost to [Austin] Trout and [Floyd] Mayweather. He took a break, got another surge of energy for his career, that’s how I feel.”

Garcia has been fighting professionally for 14 years. That doesn’t include the decade he spent as a highly decorated amateur. So, after losing to Spence, after close to 25 years of dedication to training and living the life of an athlete, it was the perfect chance for Garcia to completely step away from the sport. Although he claims to have made trips during his break to his gym to help the younger generation of fighters coming out of Philadelphia, he didn’t mind not having to deal with the added pressures that come from fight negotiations and training camps. “After 25-years it can get tough, you still have to come in here with the same energy every day, spar hundreds of rounds, and push yourself even when you don’t feel like doing it. You reach a breaking point; you have to listen to your body.”

Needing a break from the grind that fighting on the elite level can become is not something new to hear from top fighters. However, in the five years since his first loss to Keith Thurman in March of 2017, Garcia has fought an average of just once a year — not exactly the Spartan-like schedule that he had committed to when turning professional in 2008. For Garcia it was also the fact that he wanted to focus on his growing family and interests outside of the sport.

“You have to weigh your options at this point. I love to fight, this is what I do, but when you think ‘do I really want to go through it all for a check when I already have money in the bank,’ spending time away from family, can get rough.” After the Spence fight, I still wanted to fight, but I was mentally tired, so I had to take a step back and do what was best for Danny Garcia.”

With all the accomplishments that Garcia has achieved to this point in his career, when he enters the ring on Saturday night – if you listen to him — it will be purely for the love of the sport. That’s the beauty of boxing; everything that is discussed prior to the opening bell goes away and the truth about what occurred in the dark comes out under the bright lights. If we are to believe what Garcia has said pre-fight, his performance on Saturday will be the start of what could be a glorious final chapter to a career that already stands on the cusp of eternal glory in Canastota.

Photo credit: Amanda Westcott / SHOWTIME

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