Ryan Garcia was stopped by Gervonta Davis in the seventh round of their mega fight this past weekend – and Carl Froch is the latest to weigh in on whether or not he ‘quit.’
‘Tank’ survived an eager Garcia in the second round before putting him down with a perfectly timed left hook. The hurt man boxed tentatively for five rounds before he had the courage to properly attack again.
This time, Davis answered with a body shot, and Garcia took a few steps back before taking a knee. He watched as the referee counted him out.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Froch – a four-time world champion turned analyst – first set out his terms for what it would take to serve him a stoppage loss.
“Unless you put one on the chin and knock me out – which I don’t think can be done – I ain’t going out. I’m going out on my shield. I’m fighting till the very bitter end. You’re gonna have to take me out that ring on a stretcher.”
As qualifications go, he can certainly judge from experience. It was 14 years ago this week that he started with lethargy against American Jermain Taylor, was knocked down in the third round and in danger of losing his WBC super middleweight title.
Behind on two cards out of three to begin the twelfth, ‘The Cobra’ was about to lose in Connecticut. He produced one of the most thrilling stoppages of its time, showing all of the grit and determination his career would be remembered for.
Speaking specifically about Garcia, he believes there was none of that. In short, he says he quit.
“As far as I’m concerned, if you stay down to a body and you haven’t got broken ribs – which he didn’t cause he walking round giving hugs and handshakes to people after – you’ve got to get off the canvas.
Stand up, take your licks, go out on your shield. If you [don’t], you’ve quit. For me, Ryan Garcia quit. It’s not good enough. You’ve got to stay in there, you’ve got climb off the canvas.”
Post-fight, Garcia mentioned struggling to breathe saw him unable to continue, although fans and analysts have pointed out how quickly he stood up once the ten-count was done.