Ryan García is one of the most discussed names in boxing right now, and for all the right reasons.
The young lightweight sensation started off 2021 with the most important fight of his career- defeating Luke Campbell and becoming the WBC interim champion.
Since winning against Campbell, García has been very vocal about facing his sparring idol- Manny Pacquiao in a faceoff that he addresses as ‘the dream’.
However, there are no official conformation yet, despite mixed speculations that it could be an exhibition fight. However, García’s promoter Golden Boy has been positive to make the bout happen.
For many boxing fans, the clash would be an easy win for the eight-division world champion Pacquiao, aka “PacMan” who is WBA’s ‘champion in recess’ at welterweight.
The 42-year-old filipino pugilist made his last appearance in the squared circle all the way back in July 2019 against Keith Thurman, winning the WBA belt, which was later stripped off due to inactivity.
Interestingly, while García’s supporters are willing to put the odds on the 22-year-old, Pacquiao’s trainer Freddie Roach himself asserts that the match could go either way, and also picks out the reason why KingRy could easily walk all over Pacquiao.
Facing García can get Pacquiao ready for a title fight, says Roach
Speaking to Fight Hub TV, Roach pointed out that Pacquiao needs to be careful against the undefeated lightweight and some mental tactics would also be necessary because taking the ‘ordinary’ approach won’t be fruitful against García.
“The García fight, I really like that fight. I think he’s a good fighter, he’s got a very good left hook, he can punch a little bit, you’ve got to be really careful with him, and that’s the key,” said Roach, “Manny has to be careful with him a little bit and be smart. To beat this guy, you have to do not just ordinary things.”
“He’s got a terrific left hook, and he puts people right on their ass with it. He’s not an easy fight for anybody, not even Manny, and where is Manny right now? Is he so into politics in his country that he – can he still fight like he used to? And I will say this: with the tapes he’s sent me, yes he does. He works his ass off still, every day.”
Pacquiao, who is very much on his peak physical condition even at his age, could still toil the ravages of time a boxer deals with, Roach asserts the main culprit here being speed, where García has the undoubted advantage.
The veteran boxer himself recently revealed that he wants to have a belt around his waist as soon as possible, but Manny’s trainer wants to sail a different boat and sees the García fight as preparation before he can square off against the likes of Terence Crawford or Error Spence Jr.
“I would like to go with Ryan first. There are certain guys that when you get older, you get a little slower and so forth, and Manny can’t show signs of that coming into the bigger fight against [Spence] and [Crawford], and he needs to do a tune-up fight like this. I think it would be a great fight for him to get ready for,” Roach added. (H/T BoxingScene)
