BOXING
Manny Pacquiao says Ryan Garcia should “strengthen his body”
Boxing great Manny Pacquiao didn’t miss the Davis-Garcia bout and gave his advice on how ‘KingRy’ should prepare for the future after losing the fight.
Many personalities attended the T-Mobile Arena last Saturday night to watch the Gervonta Davis vs Ryan Garcia much-anticipated showdown, considered one of the biggest boxing events of the year.
KingRy, who had the size and the speed advantage, ended up losing the fight after a devastating body shot by Davis that closed the show in the seventh round.
It was a tough night for Garcia, who entered the ring in the biggest fight of his career, but Davis proved to be too much of a challenge for a fighter who hasn’t fought anyone near the caliber of ‘Tank’.
After the fight against Davis, Garcia said he will be fighting at 140 pounds, his natural weight, where he believes he will perform at his best.
Pacquiao’s advice
Among the thousands of spectators that enjoyed the fight was one of the best boxers of all time, Manny Pacquiao. After the fight, he gave his take on what Garcia should improve if he wants to be successful in the future.
“It was a good fight, but we need more development from Garcia. He’s still young. He should strengthen his body and also learn more technique. That’s what he needs. He has the skill of boxing but he needs to improve it”, he said to Fight Hub TV.
Some fans and analysts believe Garcia just gave up when he was given the 10 count by the referee after Davis’ punch to the liver, while others think that it was a perfectly placed left hand that would have sent to the canvas almost anyone.
The PacMan is probably one of the wisest voices in this regard, as he knows what it feels to go to a fight being weight-drained and losing after receiving a body shot.
It was back in 1999 when Pacquiao was in his early days as a boxer and faced Medgoen Singsurat. The Kiwabe native, like Garcia, wasn’t at his best physically and lost that fight after being knocked out in the third round.
However, since then, he started a program to change and strengthen his body and he never got defeated by a body shot again.
It will be interesting to see if Garcia, even at 140, will follow Pacquiao’s advice and if he will be mentally recovered from his first professional loss to keep progressing toward stardom.