Your thoughts on Mikey Garcia....

Anyone else a fan? I'm really big on this guy. I think he's a really good fighter. Mature beyond his years, good balance, sound fundamentals. Solid jab, beautiful right hand which he really gets a lot of purchase on, follows through with that straight right and hits through the target. Circles well. Good counter puncher. Just love his poise and calmness in the ring. Really does have a subtle brillience about him.

The kind of fighter someone like Amir Khan could learn a lot from.

He does have some flaws too and i'm not saying he's a special fighter, before everyone thinks i'm in love. But he really has impressed me for a while now.

Tough fight against Orlando Salido up next.

 

I do have some concerns too. But his mentality is not one of them. I actually think his mentality is one of his biggest strengths. I think he has what it takes to keep his bearings and not allow himself to be walked down. He reminds me of Andre Ward in the way he's been brought along. Handled really well and allowed to develop at his own pace. In terms of the way he fights, he has a lot of Alexis Arguello about him.

He said he didn't love boxing? That's interesting. But i wouldn't be too concerned about it. Some fighters box because they CAN and not because they really WANT to. But it doesn't necessarily hinder them.

I'll give you an example. Mike Spinks also said he didn't like boxing. Spinks was a smart guy, much like Mikey Garcia. He didn’t like boxing, he fought because he was talented and he didn’t want to waste his talent. And it didn't stop him from achieving greatness.

I'll say this though. Salido is an out and out dog. That guy is no joke and he'll really test Garcia. We'll definitely find out what he's make of.

 

That's a bit harsh, Lirva. We have to see more of him under the gun, but he's been doing what he's had to do. He's learning his trade quietly and tbh looks so far removed from Victor Ortiz both in skillset and mindset, he's more cerebral than Ortiz and makes better decisions, he also has a better defense. I think Concepcion, Barros, Remillard are all good outs. We'll have to wait and see and i'm not anointing him just yet, but i think he'll be just fine.

I really do think he's been handled so well. We've seen many young prospects that have struggled recently. The promoters as a whole don’t have a clue. Most of them just want undefeated, knockout guys. So as a manager what do you? You adapt and you put your guy in with guys he can stop and look good doing so.

Now this has a negative domino effect. Because these prospects knockout all of these hams and eggs on the way up. Then a network calls, but the problem is the network will only approve a tough guy. So what happens they go in tough and they struggle or resort back to their amateur muscle memory.

The other side of that is, you see someone doing better than you expected, rolling over guys who are meant to give them a hard time and they rush them too quickly. Before they're ready or fully developed. That's why so many guys get knocked off the top before they can establish legacies.

With Garcia they have struck the right balance. Maybe his progression has been a little slow, but that's the same thing that was being said about Andre Ward. And it's better if it's slow and he's ready when the spot comes then being quick and getting knocked off.

I knew you'd be a fan, Mo. :good

 

I think Garcia will be able to keep him 'honest'. He definitely has enough pop to do so. Garcia really boxes well in tight circles. He circles alway from power punches and pivots nicely. Really good fundamentals which should stand him in good stead against Salido. He has the ability to stay on his P's and Q's.

Salido will give him trouble though. Salido is one of those deceptive guys. In addition to being really tough, he does some subtle things in there which if you're not ready for can throw you off.

For example sometimes when he crosses the danger zone he'll feint or measure you with his lead hand then he'll cross over (making you think a right hand is coming, but this is also a measuring stick) almost switching stances right infront of you and hitting you with an overhand powershot from the southpaw stance. This is something Roberto Duran used to do, and that's saying something.

 

You'll like him, Bill. Very methodical, works out his opponents, doesn't waste punches or a lot of motion and good power in both hands, especially the straight right, which is his best punch.

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