Will Ryan Garcia Make Good on Bouts with Javier Fortuna and Gervonta Davis?
On July 16, lightweight fighter Ryan “King Ry” Garcia (22-0, 18 KO’s) will continue to repair his damaged reputation with the boxing populace. On that date, Garcia will test his might against the wit and ferocity of veteran boxer Javier “El Abejon” Fortuna (37-3-1, 26 KO’s) who is an one-time Regular WBA super featherweight champion. Ideally, they will both actually make it to the ring this time as they were already set to dance with one another almost a year ago to the day.
Well, that was before Garcia bowed out citing mental health reasons as the inciting factor. Moves like that and promising the public he would take on oppositions such as boxing living legend Manny Pacquiao and Gervonta Davis then didn’t, have mangled his credibility in the boxing world. Perhaps it’s only appropriate that King Ry double-back and settle this unfinished business with Fortuna.
ROUND TWO
On this occasion, now, it seems as if Garcia is earnestly committed to fulfilling his obligation to this impending dustup. Yet, if he was given the option, the prizefight that he truly craves next is one versus Regular WBA lightweight champion Gervonta “Tank” Davis (27-0, 25 KO’s). Like he did with Fortuna, Garcia talked a big game about facing Tank only to have the negotiations quickly melt down.
Naturally, one would expect Davis to be leery and highly skeptical of approaching another fight with King Ry. Luckily for Garcia, and the fans of this would-be bout, Davis has already expressed his interest. He took those feelings public directly after his sensational knockout of Rolando Romero. This is precisely why King Ry was mystified when Tank snubbed him over their social media accounts. Despite the gruff response, the social media titan expressed his confidence that Davis still wants in on that rumble in a recent interview with Fight Hype.
“Yeah, he said, ‘F me’ and I was like, ‘okay. Well then why are you screaming my name outside your fight, talking about you next, you next’? So why should I shut up? You’re the one that was talking like that. Now it’s like you are going to want to do it or you not going to want to do it. Don’t tell me that, in a fight, you’re going to fight in the ring if you’re not really going to be about it. He can say shit all he wants; he wants that fight!”
TALE OF THE TAPE
It’s the height of irony that Garcia is telling Tank to be more decisive about fighting him, given their history. Yet, like it or not, this is a very intriguing fight both athletically and financially. Truth be known, Tank has found himself being out-boxed or out-worked numerous times. Such was the case in his recent fights with Rolando Romero, Isaac Cruz and Leo Santa Cruz.
Garcia is a talented fighter and should be able to pose Tank a couple problems. Both have fast hands, each can crack, and both have shown that their chins can be touched. So, once sealed in the ring, they should make for one fun match. Not to mention, both are wildly popular boxers and should represent a handsome payday for the other. First however, King Ry must make it to the arena and then beat Fortuna. If he fails to do either, then this is just a meaningless pile of words. So, let’s tune in and see what takes place on July 16!
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By: Bakari Simpson
