Opinions and Observations: Haney-Garcia

Haney-Garcia was the good stuff. It's why we watch – the theater of the unexpected, the element of surprise. It was a triumph for Ryan Garcia and a humbling experience for the Haneys (Devin and father/trainer Bill), as well as for boxing fans and observers, with so many convinced that the victory would be a formality for Haney, and that Garcia was on his way to an implosion in the ring. 

Garcia, who was a notable betting underdog entering the bout, was without a doubt the better fighter on the night, the one who dominated the second half, scoring three knockdowns. And Haney, for all his accomplishments in the ring, could not avoid Garcia's signature left hook. Haney displayed bravery in getting up from the knockdowns, but he was outgunned, and perhaps more concerning, outthought on the night. 

Photo courtesy of Cris Esqueda/Golden Boy

The first question that needs to be asked is why did Haney keep getting hit by Garcia's left hook? After the fight, Haney was asked about the punch and he acknowledged that he was certainly aware of Garcia's primary weapon. So, what happened? 

Garcia cracked Haney in the first round with the left hook and it's perfectly understandable that in the early part of the fight Garcia would have the element of surprise with the punch. It's one thing for Haney to see it on You Tube; it's another thing trying to defense it in the ring. Garcia whips his left hook with so much torque and can place it perfectly on the point of the chin. It's unlike most other left hooks in the sport. The trajectory, speed and power behind the shot is unique. It's not that Haney got hit with the shot early in the fight that's the major issue. Those things happen; the greats can make adjustments.  

My main issue with Haney's performance is how Garcia was able to land the shot later in the fight, after Haney had already seen it and had the opportunity to neutralize it. Haney, the supposed defensive master, continually got caught with the same left hook throughout the back half of the match. 

And this leads to the next question: Why was Haney still in range for the hook? Why didn't he try to make Garcia beat him with his right hand? Was it because of overconfidence? Arrogance? A lack of preparation? 

To be fair, Garcia's right hand was much better than advertised on the night and he had stretches of the fight where he created a lot of concern for Haney with his straight right. But none of the three knockdowns occurred from the right hand, and that was telling. At a certain point, a master boxer learns to take away a weapon. Recently, Shakur Stevenson did just this against Oscar Valdez. Stevenson was willing to get hit by Valdez's right hand to ensure that he stayed away from his left hook. On one hand Stevenson did get hit more than we are used to seeing, but he stayed upright and was able to win the fight comfortably because he understood the risk in front of him. 

The Haneys did not have a good night. Devin was in the pocket too much, in range far too often. Devin expected to grind Garcia down with volume and pressure. And although that initial strategy made sense when considering how badly Garcia blew weight and the legitimate questions about his mental state coming into the fight, why were there no adjustments from Haney when it was clear that Garcia remained a threat? 

With knockdowns in the seventh, 10th and 11th rounds, Haney continued to get pasted by Garcia's hook, and he let a victory slip away. Haney was essentially compliant in his own demise. He and his father were unable to get out of the same rut. 

Photo courtesy of Cris Esqueda/Golden Boy

Let's also take a moment to credit Garcia's other punches. Often called a one-trick pony, Garcia set up the first knockdown in the fight from a perfect hooking off the jab combination, where he landed the jab and immediately followed with the hook. The deception worked because of the effectiveness of Garcia's jab and his ability to throw both punches from the same arm slot; Haney didn't know what was coming. 

Garcia's right hand was a factor in the knockdowns in the 10th and 11th rounds. The tenth featured a multi-punch combination where he drove Haney back to the ropes with Haney eventually falling over from the onslaught. Garcia landed shots with both hands and it was a straight left in the exchange that did the most damage. In the 11th, Garcia was able to break free from a clinch (another subtle skill) and hit Haney with a cuffing right to the side of the head before unloading with a pulverizing six-inch left hook that had Haney's eyes rolling back before he hit the canvas. Without the right, I'm not sure that the left lands there. 

The fight contained all sorts of other goodies to discuss too. How about referee Harvey Dock's wild seventh round, where he might have missed two additional Garcia knockdowns (calling them slips after clean shots were landed), and rushing in to give Haney loads of extra time. He took a point away from Garcia for hitting on the break (which was certainly within his judgment to do so), but he took a massive amount of time to restart the action as Haney was reeling.  

Ultimately, I think that there are two key takeaways from the fight. First of all, you can never discount a guy with an A+ punch. It doesn't matter if a fighter is getting beaten from pillar to post or has all sorts of other disadvantages in a given matchup; the big-time punches are separators. There are so few legitimate A+ punches in the sport that we tend to forget just how rare and special they are. Ryan Garcia is live in any fight because of his left hook. He can drop or stop anyone with it. It is up to the opponent to neutralize the shot, because if Garcia is allowed to land his hook, the punch can and will change a fight. 

I think the other key is the poor strategic and tactical performance from Devin and his father. In the Kambosos fights, Devin was masterful in staying on the outside to win. Yet, Devin and his father never employed this approach at any time against Garcia. They were determined to be the hunter, to go after Garcia, and they suffered because of it. Was it a stubbornness that they refused to change, or did the moment get away from them? They were never able to regain control in the second half of the fight. 

The official ledger from the fight will say that Garcia won by majority decision. There will also be a note that he missed weight by three pounds, with the upshot being that Garcia did not win Haney's title belt. Yet none of that really encapsulates the fight. Garcia was the one who dug down deep and turned the fight around. In the process, he not only beat a pound-for-pound-level fighter, but exposed serious shortcomings with Devin and his corner. 

Overall, Haney-Garcia was a thrilling night of action. I certainly hope that there's a rematch and it will be fascinating to see what happens if the Haneys get their tactics right. But first, a big piece of humble pie needs to be consumed. They need to respect their opponents more. And they also must understand the concepts of fallibility and mortality in the ring. Every fighter can be gotten to, every fighter can be hurt, but the key question is what happens next? And this is where they failed. 

On this night Ryan Garcia was king. He had heard all the criticism; he even played his role in facilitating much of it! But he reminded everyone what he can do in the boxing ring. As long as he has his left hand, he is a threat. To anybody.

Adam Abramowitz is the founder and head writer of saturdaynightboxing.com. 

He's a contributing writer for Ring Magazine, a member of Ring Magazine's Ring Ratings Panel and a Board Member for the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board. 

Email: saturdaynightboxing@hotmail.com

snboxing on twitter. SN Boxing on Facebook 

Haney-Garcia: Preview and Prediction

Devin Haney (31-0, 15 KOs) and Ryan Garcia (24-1, 20 KOs) enter Saturday's fight at Barclays Center in Brooklyn as familiar opponents. They fought six times as amateurs with each winning three times. But as they fight for Haney's junior welterweight belt on Saturday, those old amateur bouts will no longer matter in the squared circle. A new history will be written. 

As far as matchups go, this is one where both will think that they have advantages and opportunities to exploit. Garcia will like that Haney isn't a pure pressure fighter or a one-punch-knockout artist. He certainly will have periods of the fight where he will have space to operate. Garcia has better power and might have the advantage in hand speed. And he also doesn't have to worry about being perfect in the same way that he did against Gervonta Davis, who had the fight-ending power to punish mistakes – that was Garcia's only loss of his professional career; he didn't make it to the eighth round. 

Haney during his open workout
Photo courtesy of Chris Esqueda/Golden Boy Promotions

Haney will try to capitalize on Garcia's being left-hand dominant and his often-clumsy footwork. Haney has a decided advantage in foot speed and he certainly understands how to take away weapons. If he plants himself on Garcia's right side, he would favor his varied offensive arsenal against Garcia's right hand. Haney also has an advantage in experience in the professional ranks. He's been twelve rounds against current and former champs and won those battles. He has persevered.

But let's not make this fight so reductive; there are other vital considerations in play that can mean much more than who can establish his jab. It's no secret that there's a lot of bad blood between the two and that could manifest in the ring in different ways. Despite being a terrific boxer on the outside, Haney is often far more daring in the ring than his reputation suggests. He took the fight right to opponents such as Jorge Linares, Vasiliy Lomachenko and Regis Prograis. Instead of playing it safe, he often operated at mid-range and closer. And although he's not a standard pressure fighter per se, his volume and effectiveness at mid-range give opponents a lot of trouble. 

But that does create opportunities. Linares was eventually able to crack Haney with a big left hook late in their fight and Lomachenko turned the tide in the second half by pushing Haney back to the ropes; in that fight Haney's energy did flag during some of the later rounds. And with Ryan Garcia's left hook, he doesn't have to land too many of his best ones to change the direction of the fight in his favor. 

Emotion can play the other way as well. After his knockout loss to Davis, Garcia admitted that he stopped listening to his corner and went for the knockout, even if he did so recklessly. Those decisions ultimately got him stopped in the fight; he provided Davis with too many openings. 

Garcia getting gloved up
Photo courtesy of Chris Esqueda/Golden Boy Promotions

Ultimately, this fight may come down to psychology as much as tactics or technical proficiency. Garcia can lose focus in the ring. He can junk a game plan when he's not satisfied. He often will give off bad body language when things aren't going his way, which can buoy an opponent even further. But Haney is a risk taker, and he doesn't necessarily have the big punch to bail him out of trouble. He often fights as if he has a point to prove, which can be to his detriment.  

Garcia's physical and mental well-being will be significant factors in the ring. Throughout the promotion, Garcia has repeatedly trafficked in strange and even offensive behavior. And it's not even what he was saying was adding to the the promotion of the fight; much of it was just bizarre. Furthermore, he wound up missing weight on Friday by over three pounds, not a sign of a fighter who's locked in at the moment. That could lead to desperation in the ring, which could play out in a number of different ways.    

I think that there are two distinct periods of the fight that will ultimately reveal the winner. The first three rounds will probably be the most intriguing. Haney will want to make an immediate statement and let's face it; Garcia doesn't really want to be boxing for 12 rounds. He's going to fire off some bombs and test Haney's chin. 

It's vital for Haney to make it out of the first quarter of the fight unscathed. If he does get dropped or hurt badly early in the match, Garcia will gain even more confidence. And if Garcia can damage Haney early in the fight, he must try to end it. There's an old saying in the sport that a wounded animal is often the most dangerous one, but that's also one of those aphorisms in boxing that doesn't always stand up to the bright lights of scrutiny, such as skills pay the bills or styles make fights. Sometimes they can be true; sometimes they aren't. Haney doesn't have the one-punch power to turn everything around if he's hurt. If there's a diminished Haney, Garcia has to go for it. 

If the fight makes it to the second half, that's when Haney needs to turn the screws to Garcia. By that point, Garcia would have tried his Plan A, which was to end the fight with a left hook. He hasn't often displayed a viable Plan B in many fights. Haney will have to continue to pepper Garcia with volume and psychological pressure, because there's a legitimate chance that Garcia could wilt. This is not the fight for Haney to chill on the ropes for a spell, play with his food, or take a round off. He needs to remove Garcia's will to fight, his self-belief; Haney wants doubt to creep into Garcia. And that won't happen by itself. 

For my pick, I'm going to side with Haney's experience and temperament in the ring. I've seen him prevail against tough opponents and in trying circumstances. I believe that Haney will have enough defensive responsibility to survive the perilous opening rounds with his faculties intact. Although he has had to navigate through a scare or two in the ring, he has survived those moments, and he has that experience in his back pocket. Eventually he will start to bank rounds, especially as he feels more comfortable incorporating additional facets of his offensive arsenal. I like Haney to pull away in the second half of the fight. 

I have very little confidence in what version of Ryan Garcia we will see in the ring. His power always needs to be respected and the possibility of a Garcia knockout can't be dismissed. But if he is losing as the fight goes to the second half, I've yet to see him pull a rabbit out of his hat. I'm not sure how resilient he is in the ring. Although Haney isn't a one-punch knockout guy, I think that he's a very solid body puncher, which could be vital in weakening Garcia, who likely will burn off a lot of energy early in the fight going for the knockout, and trying to calm his nerves.  

I'm picking Haney by 10th round TKO. I think that a body shot knockdown will cause significant damage and remove Garcia's will to win. Haney's intelligence, multiplicity of tools, consistency and positive big-fight experience will ultimately be the determining factors that lead to his glory. 

Adam Abramowitz is the founder and head writer of saturdaynightboxing.com. 

He's a contributing writer for Ring Magazine, a member of Ring Magazine's Ring Ratings Panel and a Board Member for the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board. 

Email: saturdaynightboxing@hotmail.com

snboxing on twitter. SN Boxing on Facebook 

Opinions and Observations: Davis-Garcia

Even though Gervonta "Tank" Davis and Ryan Garcia entered Saturday's matchup with a similar number of fights – 28 for Tank and 23 for Garcia – it became obvious that there was a master-student dynamic in the ring. In the two most pivotal moments of the fight, Tank's knockdown in the second round and his KO in the seventh, Tank, like a wise old sage, exploited Garcia's reckless aggression in short order, sending the pupil to the canvas twice. 

Both instances followed periods of success for Garcia. And as Ryan landed more shots, he pressed what he perceived as an advantage, but ultimately, the master punished his student for overconfidence. 

Davis landing a straight left
Photo courtesy of Esther Lin

In the second round Garcia landed a series of cuffing right hands in close range. He continued to go on attack and overshot a wild left hook. The shot left him wildly out of position. Tank adeptly pivoted and countered with a blistering short left to the head that dropped Garcia.

That knockdown spooked Garcia. He was chastened. He was unwilling to take chances or let his hands go in a meaningful way during the third, fourth and fifth.  

But by the sixth round, Garcia had regathered himself and felt comfortable going on the offensive again. He landed several hard right hands to the head. As the seventh started, Garcia continued his aggressive forays, attacking Tank with power shots. And as he lunged forward with a combination, Tank snuck in a perfectly placed left to the body as Garcia's arms were extended and his body unprotected. Garcia actually landed his right hand as the final punch of the exchange, but the pain from Tank's left started to circulate throughout his body. He took a step back. He dropped to a knee. He couldn't beat Thomas Taylor's ten-count.  

Tank-Garcia will not be remembered for its round-by-round entertainment value. Although the fight was intriguing on strategic and technical levels, the punch volume from both was meager. There were prolonged periods of inaction, where both fighters were unwilling to throw punches. But the fight did provide a vital, conclusive ending. It also crystalized important points about two of the most significant American boxing attractions. 

First, Tank confirmed his status as a master counterpuncher. He exploited split-second opportunities that demonstrated superior technical skills, self-confidence and clear mental processing. Many fighters would have immediately retreated into a defensive shell when Garcia unfurled his menacing left hook, but Tank stood his ground, slipped the punch, and executed his counter left with ruthless proficiency.  

Similarly, when Garcia charged forward in the seventh after having sustained success in the previous round, many fighters would have gone into self-protection mode to take the steam off Ryan's combination. But Tank instinctively recognized an opportunity; he fired the perfect short counter in a tight window. The punch was so precise and sneaky that a replay was needed to grasp its perfection. These were masterful boxing moves.  

As for Garcia, he admitted after the fight that he had tried to force the action too much. Even though his trainer Joe Goossen had wanted Ryan to fight more responsibly, Ryan ignored that advice and went after Tank, to his own detriment. Garcia lacked the emotional maturity to understand the risks involved in the fight. He was too overeager to impress, to put his signature stamp on the fight, to be the alpha dog.  

In theory Saturday's result could be a great learning opportunity for Garcia. He should now realize that his technical flaws can jeopardize his career. He paid massively for overcommitting, for falling out of position and for running into traps.  

However, until he understands that he must be more adaptable in his fighting style, it's very likely that we will see similar outcomes against top opponents. He has to be able to win fights in different ways. Who's to say what would have happened if Garcia decided to box Davis at range all fight? Yes, the bout might have been boring and maybe Tank would have eventually gotten to him, but Ryan wouldn't have been hitting the canvas in the second round and rendered ineffective until the sixth. Goossen thought that Ryan needed to be more contained to have success, but Ryan had other ideas. 

Garcia has to learn that momentary mistakes can have massive consequences. And not all of these mistakes are technical in nature. Some of them involve his decision-making process: when to engage and when to bide time. 

Photo courtesy of Ryan Hafey

Meanwhile, Tank's knockout show marches on. With an almost inconceivable 27 knockouts in 29 fights, Davis is one of the true killers in the sport. I do look at his punch stat numbers with some concern though. As he faces better competition, it's likely that more of his fights will go the distance. And in 12-round fights, Tank's punch volume can be problematic for winning rounds. Judges just aren't going to give a guy a lot of credit when he throws under ten punches a round. Ten punches a round is a punch every 18 seconds. That's a long time! 

Tank's lack of activity explains why none of the judges awarded him a 10-8 round in the second even though he scored a knockdown. He only threw six punches the entire round. That's one punch every 30 seconds! He just wasn’t doing enough.  

At boxing's highest level, it's fine margins that can make the difference. Garcia found out the hard way what happens when he lunges in with shots and ignores the advice of a seasoned trainer. And perhaps Davis will realize one day that every point matters. Imagine if a fight goes to the scorecards and he loses or draws because he didn't get a 10-8 round where he scores a knockdown. Winning rounds matters and Tank must find a way to be busier, to make it harder for judges to give rounds to his opponents. 

But all of that is for another day. 

In facing one of the toughest tests of his career, Tank passed with flying colors and demonstrated that he belongs at the graduate level; Garcia still needs to repeat his current grade. Ultimately, if a fighter makes a mistake, Tank will punish him. That's his calling card. He exploits weaknesses. He takes out lesser talents and exposes their flaws. Davis only needs a couple moments, a brief, fleeting opportunity to cause maximum damage.  

It's going to take a special talent to beat Tank: one who can stay within himself, fight intelligently, not get too caught up in the moment, offer punch volume while minimizing return risk. There aren't many of those boxers in the sport. And that's the central problem when facing Davis. A fighter will have to be close to perfect to beat him, and perfection is seldom seen in the ring. 

Adam Abramowitz is the founder and head writer of saturdaynightboxing.com. 

He's a contributing writer for Ring Magazine, a member of Ring Magazine's Ring Ratings Panel and a Board Member for the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board. 

Email: saturdaynightboxing@hotmail.com

snboxing on twitter. SN Boxing on Facebook.

Davis-Garcia: Preview and Prediction

In an electrifying matchup on Saturday between two of boxing's rising stars, Gervonta Davis (28-0, 26 KOs) faces Ryan Garcia (23-0, 19 KOs) at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Although no major belts will be on the line, the winner of Saturday's fight will be rightfully viewed as one of the faces of U.S. and international boxing moving forward. 

Davis at 28 and Garcia at 24 are both in their athletic primes and feature knockout ratios above 80%. The fight will be contested at a catchweight of 136 lbs., one of two deal points that on paper could help Davis (the other being a punitive 10-lb. maximum rehydration clause, which in theory could hurt Garcia, who is perceived as being the bigger boxer in terms of his best fighting weight). 

In analyzing this matchup, the most important aspect to me is power. Both possess it. Both haven't faced much of it. Who can utilize it better? Who can take it better? Although Davis has faced taller orthodox fighters such as Mario Barrios and Leo Santa Cruz and Garcia has fought several southpaws, including Javier Fortuna and Luke Campbell, neither has fought a guy with the power profile that his opponent will be bringing into the ring. To this point we've yet to see Davis seriously hurt in a fight while Garcia has been dropped by a Luke Campbell straight left. But let's dive deeper.  

Ryan Garcia has one of the best left hooks in boxing. It may be one of the few A-plus punches in the sport. The trick to it is the tremendous amount of torque he gets on the shot. He literally whips the punch to his desired location. It's lightning quick, powerful and he can place it beautifully. Despite the number of technical errors that Garcia can make in the ring (more on this later), he does a tremendous job of disguising his hook. He can look right at an opponent's eyes and go down to the body with it. He can take a step back and throw it as a counter. He can lead with it from distance. 

"Tank" Davis has never faced such a punch in his professional career. And like another blessed left hooker, Nonito Donaire, Garcia has the power to end any fight with his best hook.  

Davis (left) and Garcia at the introductory presser
Photo courtesy of Ryan Hafey

Davis is a far more well-rounded puncher. He features several knockout weapons, including his straight left, an overhand left, uppercuts with either hand and his right hook. He's also a gifted combination puncher and often catches opponents with shots that they don't see.  

Both fighters believe in their power and probably have fallen in love with it a little too much. Garcia can get frustrated if he's not landing his left hook. Although he does have a jab and a serviceable right hand, he can get flustered when the knockout doesn't come quickly.  

Davis is not a guy who goes into fights trying to win rounds (one day this really could become a major issue). Especially when he perceives a threat, Davis will reduce his punch volume at the beginning of a fight as he acclimates to his opponent and attempts to identify potential weaknesses. 

But while he can fall behind in the punch volume game, he does have an improvisational genius in figuring out what can work in the ring against a given opponent. He will often use his opponents' strengths against them. More than once he has folded an overly aggressive opponent with a perfectly placed counter.  

The two main issues for the fight that I see are Ryan Garcia's defense and what happens if Tank can't land the home run punch. These two things are related, of course. Ryan's chin is a major issue. Yes, he's been down before, but in this context I'm not referring to his ability to take a punch. I'm talking literally; his chin is easy to find. He only features sporadic head movement and often stands far too upright leaving his chin exposed. Additionally, when he shoots his punches he will often lunge in with his body before throwing the shot, making his chin even more vulnerable to incoming fire. An unprotected chin is not a recipe for long-term success in boxing. 

However, let's also consider that Ryan has one of the best trainers in the business in Joe Goossen and I'm sure that Joe is well aware of Garcia's chin placement issues. I have no doubt that he’s worked with Ryan to address these flaws. This doesn't mean that Ryan will suddenly become impenetrable, but perhaps he won't lunge in as much. And maybe his body won't be over his front foot as it has been in the past. If Ryan is able to fix these issues, then he can be much more difficult to hit cleanly.

And this is what leads to the central conundrum for Tank in the fight: What happens if the knockout doesn't come?

I expect him to be cautious in the early going as he tries to adjust to Garcia's hand speed and defend the left hook. But what happens if he can't crack Garcia's chin with his best shot? What if the fight gets to the second half and Tank is down significantly on the scorecards? I have no doubt that Garcia will be attempting to put rounds in the bank. What happens if he builds up an early lead and tries to play keep away in the second half?  

In the Barrios fight Tank showed an impressive ability to turn on the gas when needed, and he might be in a similar predicament during Saturday's fight. But let's face it: Garcia is far more of a threat than Barrios. Tank may not be able to just simply turn on a switch. The other guy is bringing a lot of thunder to the dance as well.    

Prediction:

I'm not expecting Davis-Garcia to be a wall-to-wall action fight. I think it will be a cagey affair between two young fighters who have a tremendous amount of respect for the other. But I believe that the more versatile one, the one who has the higher Ring IQ will be the one with his hand raised in victory. 

After some rough early moments, I think that Davis will work his way into the fight and gradually unfurl his arsenal. Davis' creative punch selection will keep Garcia guessing. And Garcia's inability to recognize punch sequences or take away weapons will lead to his undoing.  

I think that the fight will turn on Tank's superior ring craft. His ability to feint and set up shots will benefit him the longer the fight goes. Garcia will be respecting Tank's power and that will allow Tank to create openings with feints, traps and misdirection. I think that Tank's overhand left will be a key weapon. And he can throw it as a lead, at the end of a combination or after feinting with the jab to the body. 

I don't think this will be an easy fight for Tank, but eventually I believe that he will get the job done. I have no doubt that he will have some choppy moments and will be forced to think his way through the fight to get to Garcia. But the longer the fight goes the more success I see him having. In the second half of the fight I think that he will start to open up Garcia with a variety of power punches and combinations. Ultimately, I see an overhand left finishing the job around the eighth round.    

Gervonta Davis KO 8 Ryan Garcia.

Adam Abramowitz is the founder and head writer of saturdaynightboxing.com. 

He's a contributing writer for Ring Magazine, a member of Ring Magazine's Ring Ratings Panel and a Board Member for the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board. 

Email: saturdaynightboxing@hotmail.com

snboxing on twitter. SN Boxing on Facebook.

Ryan Garcia and The Gift

I may have told this story once before, but it's probably been a number of years so if you could, indulge me for a minute. When Deontay Wilder was fighting on undercards and not necessarily progressing in his career, I remember pointing out a number of his flaws after one of his performances: his ponderous footwork, his limited repertoire, his low punch volume, etc. A fellow boxing writer, Ryan Bivins, responded that with Wilder's right hand, it might not matter. His right could knock anyone out. And Ryan gave no caveats regarding skill level. It was a blanket statement. Everyone, even those with more perceived talent or skills, was at risk. 

Over time, Bivins was proven to be correct. Wilder did become a champion and it was his right hand that brought him to the dance and kept him there. And whatever else Wilder did or didn't develop in the ring, his right was a true eraser, and few opponents were able to escape its wrath. 

In addition, Bivins' comment exposed a crucial flaw that too many in boxing succumb to: we focus too much on what a fighter can't do rather than what he can. And Bivins' comment had one more vital application. Identify the A-plus punches in boxing. There aren't too many of them. A fighter with an A-plus punch, despite other limitations, can still go far. 

This naturally segues us to Ryan Garcia, the controversial young fighter who has legions of fans, as well as detractors. Garcia was a decorated amateur with wins over Devin Haney, Vergil Ortiz, Tiger Johnson and a number of other professional fighters you may have heard of. At the moment he's 23-0 with 19 knockouts in the professional ranks, including a stoppage win on Saturday against Javier Fortuna. On one hand Garcia's only 23, but he's also been on the world scene for several years. His resume isn't filled with top contenders and there have been a number of attractive fights that either he or his team has rejected. 

Ryan Garcia before the Javier Fortuna fight
Photo courtesy of Tom Hogan

Garcia's a "new-school" fighter, embracing Instagram, amassing millions of followers on social media. He's released several training videos that display what looks like blinding hand speed. I'm sure they have impressed many novices, but many of his drills don't have practical applications in the ring. 

In addition, he's already had his fair share of personal and professional problems. He's already on his third pro trainer. He tried to get out of his deal with Golden Boy. He left the ring for 16 months while undergoing assistance for mental health issues. 

Garcia in the ring has a number of technical flaws that give many fight observers pause. He doesn't move laterally well. He stands too upright and leaves his chin exposed. In addition, he doesn't set punches up well. Very rarely will you see a three- or four-punch combination from him. He likes fighting on the outside and at this point has very little to offer at close range.   

All of these points are worth considering, but let's not lose sight of one thing: he has The Gift. Ryan Garcia's left hook is one of the best punches in boxing, maybe the best hook since Nonito Donaire's. He can throw it to the head or body and although Ryan isn't known for having a high Ring IQ, he throws the punch with deception. He understands how to look up top and throw the punch down low. Fighters who follow his eyes may have a real disadvantage in trying to anticipate the trajectory of the punch. 

The punch itself looks different than most left hooks in the sport. Ryan gets so much torque on the shot. He whips the punch and it usually travels downward before it connects. If a typical hook is thrown somewhere between a 75 and 90-degree angle. Garcia's more often is in the 30 to 45-degree range. It's almost a straight shot, but not quite. Think of his hook as a late-breaking slider or curveball in baseball. And fighters, like those defenseless batters, struggle to track it. 

But it's not just the trajectory on the left hook, it's also the speed and the power. He has landed his hook on everyone – orthodox, southpaw, tall, short, offensive-minded, defensive-minded – it doesn't seem to matter. Similar to Wilder's right hand, even when a fighter knows it's coming, Garcia is still able to land it and end fights with it. 

In and around Garcia's weight class, there are a number of fighters who would be favored to beat him, such as Gervonta Davis, Devin Haney and Shakur Stevenson, to name three. And it's very possible that they will, but I also want to remind everyone: always remember an A-plus punch. 

Garcia will have a puncher's chance against any opponent. As long as he is standing, he remains a threat. His left hook is that special. Even at 37 and well past his physical prime, Donaire was breaking the orbital bone of perhaps one of the best fighters in the sport. And Garcia's left hook may be on that level. 

Yes, it would certainly help Garcia to incorporate different elements into his game. His right hand and jab are inconsistent weapons. In addition, the more that he can go away from his left hook with other punches, the better off he will be when he decides to go back to it. The element of surprise is in his favor and if he gets too hook-happy, top fighters will be zeroed in on trying to take it away. 

As Garcia ascends in the sport, he will face elite fighters and trainers who will know several ways to neutralize a hook. It will be up to Garcia to become more well-rounded if he wants to be considered among boxing's best. 

Ryan Garcia's myriad flaws may dissuade you from believing that he may become elite, but discount him at your own risk. His hook is a game-changer, a finisher, a sleep aide. He could win any fight at any time. He has The Gift, and The Gift can make up for a lot of mistakes.

Adam Abramowitz is the founder and head writer of saturdaynightboxing.com. He's a member of Ring Magazine's Ring Ratings Panel and a Board Member for the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board. 

Email: saturdaynightboxing@hotmail.com

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