By: Hans Themistode
Former four-division world champion Mikey Garcia knows good and well just how skilled Errol Spence Jr. is. After all, the 33-year-old was handed his first defeat at the hands of Spence Jr. in March of 2019.
Still, even with Garcia losing every single round of their contest, the California native believes it would be a grave mistake should he decide to move up in weight to face Canelo Alvarez.
“Canelo beats Spence,” said Garcia during an interview with Fight Hype. “He probably would even stop him.”
Recently, Spence Jr. has floated around the idea of jumping up two weight classes in order to face the pound-for-pound star. Ironically enough, Garcia (40-1, 30 KOs) was told a similar fate would be awaiting him when his showdown with Spence Jr. was finalized.
While Garcia was officially a belt holder at 140 pounds, he made his name and spent several years campaigning at 135 pounds. That, however, didn’t change his ambitions of chasing a bigger man in Spence Jr. On what was a forgettable night for Garcia, the multiple-time belt holder had difficulty dealing with the power, reach and overall boxing ability of Spence Jr.
With the unified welterweight titlist currently mulling the idea of moving up two weight divisions himself, Garcia doesn’t view it as a sagacious move. In fact, he believes Spence Jr. will succumb to a brutal ending.
“Canelo is too big and too strong. Spence is a big dude but he’s still a welterweight. Canelo is a huge dude and I think he stops him.”
As for Garcia, he’s closing in on a year outside of the ring. The California resident was last seen in February of 2020 dismantling former two-division belt holder Jessie Vargas.
Recent photos of the former champion have shown him to be a bit on the plump side as if late. Regardless of the few extra pounds though, he not only believes that he’s ready to return to the ring but he knows exactly who he wants next.
“I took too much time off. It’s time to get back. I got too fat so I gotta lose some weight. I want Manny Pacquiao then a rematch with Errol Spence.”