By Jack Tiernan: Returning from a long layoff, lightweight phenom Ryan Garcia and Emmanuel Tagoe almost came to blows on Wednesday when the two fighters got riled up after exchanging words during a face-off.
The two lightweights will be fighting this Saturday night, April 9th on DAZN at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.
According to Ryan’s trainer Joe Goosen, Tagoe (32-1, 15 KOs) stuck around during their time in the ring. It was supposed to be Ryan’s turn to work out in front of the media and the boxing fans.
Tagoe said something that angered Ryan to the point where he had to be pulled apart by the security because he was ready to start throwing blows right there.
Ryan Garcia: “Today, I got into a little thing with Tagoe. I think today was a little filler-out tester because he’s been speaking a lot online throughout the course of the fight, calling me, ‘Queen Ryan,'” said Ryan Garcia to Fighthype in explaining what led to today’s confrontation with Emmanuel Tagoe during the media workout in San Antonio.
“If you’re looking at his Tweets, he’s always saying he’s got the Ghana pepper, things that are a little wacky. So, I decided to give him a little taste of his own medicine and size him up and see how he is,” said Garcia about Tagoe.
Joe Goosen: “He started foaming up around the mouth right away,” said Joe Goosen in chiming in with Ryan about Tagoe’s reaction during the altercation today during the media event. “You had him worried, I’ll tell you that.”
Ryan: “He did He sure did. It definitely wasn’t something that was premeditated and I wanted to do. It was kind of an in-moment kind of thing. He was looking at me a certain way and it was kind of fire you up if you feel that.”
Goosen: “The bottom line was it was our designated time for the press workout. He always had his, so he purposefully came in to agitate you on your time. I literally looked away for a minute and there’s Tagoe. It was definitely a little rude. Could you ever see yourself doing that to somebody?”
Ryan: “No, not if they hadn’t come at me already, but I would definitely be there to finish it.”
Goosen: “You’ll finish it this Saturday night, I’ll guarantee you that.”
Ryan: “We’re ready and happy to be in the ring, and camp went good.”
Goosen: “It was one of the greatest camps I’ve ever been in. That was a seven-week camp that felt like three weeks because the work was so intense and so much of it. You really didn’t have time to think about.”
Ryan: “That was the crazy thing. Coronado Island [where Ryan’s training camp took place].”
Goosen: “If you’re going to do a little prison sentence for training camp that’s the place to do it. That’s Clud Fed, as they say. It was really nice.”
Ryan: “I also want to clear something up about the weight [139 lbs]. This was already predetermined and set up before it came out. This was already contracted at 139 right when we signed it. It had nothing to do with, I had to make weight and they had to switch it real quick like people are supposedly saying.”
Goosen: “Actually, let me straighten that out for everybody because I didn’t even know that was a thing. We made the weight today and we were actually under at 138 1/2. The contract is at 139. Yesterday, we were at 139 on the dot, and we could have hit 139 at any point.
“The fact of the matter is, you hadn’t fought in a year and a half. 139, that’s why they call it a catchweight. You don’t have to fight at a championship 135-lb weight. It was a catchweight.
“You are getting older and you are getting bigger and you are maturing more. Oscar De La Hoya started at 130-lbs and wound up at 160. Look, guys grow. You’re 23 now, and you’ll be 24 soon. You’re not 19, 20 or 21.
“Any man that has gone through the stages, you do not stay at the same weight your whole life.”
Ryan: “If you guys are going to be in town and can’t make it to San Antonio, make sure you go get your tickets. They’re on sale right now. It’s going to be at the Alamodome on ticketmasters. It’s going to be amazing.
“If you can go get your tickets. If not, watch it on DAZN, and it’s going to be a great night.”
Goosen: “I’m predicting it’s going to be one of your greatest performances. He’s going to be explosive because we sparred with 10 or 12 sparring partners, and not one of them got out of it unscathed, I can tell you that.
“They all paid a price. I was like nothing I’ve ever seen, and I’ve been doing training camps for half a century.”
Ryan: “How your sparring goes is how the fight is going to go. It determines at least how you’re going to be. How explosive you’re going to be and how you’re body should react in the fight, throughout the rounds, and whatnot.
“That’s why I’m so confident now because I know what my body is capable of and what I can do during a 12 round setting, and that’s even better. One guy in a 12 round setting.
“I’m used to fighting three different guys, and they keep going. I’ve got to readjust to a new guy, a new guy, a new guy.”
Goosen: “They’re fresh and you’re slowly wearing down a little bit.”
Ryan: “The 15-round session, that was a good day.”
Goosen: “Try that one day. First of all, they don’t even have 15 round fights anymore, number one. Number two, you did 15 rounds with three different guys, each doing five rounds.
“You got a fresh guy each time coming at you. So after ten rounds, you got another fresh guy in there to do the last five rounds.
“They don’t even do 15 round fights anymore, but you did 15 rounds with three different guys. They were all quality sparring partners. It was an amazing thing.
“I haven’t seen that done since Diego Corrales when he was getting ready for [Jose] Castillo. He was the last guy I saw do that, and it ain’t easy.”
Ryan: “For sure, not. So all in good spirits, guys.”