Boxing fans, myself included, want to believe in magic. That’s why so many were picking Mikey Garcia to beat Errol Spence Saturday night at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. It wasn’t a dumb pick or a misinformed one, it was simply one where people, again, myself included, felt that Garcia had the smarts and the ability to accomplish the near-impossible.
By the fifth round of their bout, however, it became very clear that Garcia wasn’t going to be able to produce the magical evening boxing fans live for and wasn’t going to produce one of those moments in history where cold, hard logic falls at the feet of a man’s incalculable will to win.
And the reason for this magic-less evening was Errol Spence.
Simply put, Spence just never showed an exploitable weakness. He was focused, steady, and consistent throughout the fight and that was always going to mean doom and gloom for Garcia. The only real hope Mikey had was to capitalize on a Spence who can be a little leg-heavy, who lacks head movement, and who can, at least in theory, be beaten to the punch.
But Spence, to his great credit, stuck with what was going to make him an easy winner. He shot out a heavy jab, worked the body well, and, overall, never let Garcia forget that he was the bigger man who was going to make him pay for every inch advanced.
Against the Spence who showed up on Saturday night, Garcia never had a chance.
But, still, kudos to Garcia for at least trying, for daring to defy the all-important risk vs. reward calculations that rule the boxing game today. The Moreno Valley, California native didn’t need to take this particular risk—against someone who could deliver some serious, serious damage—for a financial score that’s not exactly a guaranteed bundle. But he did. He came out on the losing end and got beat up pretty bad, but that’s the risk you take when you aim big. Mikey’s not done by a longshot. If he can squeeze down to 135 again, he will rule that division and if he settles in at 140, he can do some big things in a division filling up with young talent.
And Errol Spence?
I’d love to say that he was a step closer to fights with Keith Thurman, Shawn Porter, Danny Garcia, or Manny Pacquiao—but, if anything, those fights are even less likely to happen now, more “marinating” time will be demanded by those not eager to deal with “The Truth.”
Pacquaio, who was at AT&T Stadium and later brought into the ring after the fight to be directly challenged by Spence, was most likely there, hoping for the smaller, more vulnerable Garcia to win and become his next PPV opponent. Instead, he smiled his way through a Spence challenge and then—as is his customary move—conveniently forgot much of his English in trying to come up with a response to a most inconvenient question about whether he’d fight Spence next. Until we see otherwise, the only way you're going to get Pacquiao in the ring with Spence after this recent performance is with tranquilizer darts and an oversized butterfly net.
But, man, Spence is in need of a chance to become the star he should be. Hopefully, he won’t have to move up two divisions, himself, to get a chance at a really big legacy-defining fight.
Quick (S)hits:
-- David Benavidez absolutely steamrolled J’Leon Love on the Spence-Garcia undercard. I mean, him beating Love wasn’t a surprise, but the way he did it was very impressive. If the kid can stay clean this time (testing positive for cocaine last year cost him his WBC title), he can rule 168 until the day he decides to move on to 175. Man to Man, nobody at super middleweight can handle what he can deliver. Only David Benavidez can beat David Benavidez.
-- Chris Arreola? He’s a nice guy and a lovable character, but what, exactly is the point of a comeback? I know that the heavyweight division is a seller’s market right now and everyone’s looking to parlay a “name” into a fat network contract, but a 38-year-old Arreola ain’t moving any needle anywhere—and beating Jean Pierre Augustin to kick off the Spence-Garcia PPV is not going to get him anything but a few novelty fights on light undercards. But, let him keep earning, I guess…everyone’s gotta pay the bills.
-- There will be a backlash against an ultimately one-sided fight like Spence-Garcia being on pay-per-view and the critics wouldn’t necessarily be wrong. If there ever was a fight that belonged on free TV, it was this one. With reportedly more than 47,000 fans in attendance, this looked like a “big” fight, but one that would lead to an even bigger fight (vs. Pacquiao, probably). And, then, THAT would’ve been the breakthrough event to build the winner’s star.
Got something for Magno? Send it here: paulmagno@theboxingtribune.com