By Brian Webber: Trainer Joe Goosen says Ryan Garcia punches like a heavyweight and is the third most powerful puncher he’s trained behind only David Tua and Lance ‘Mount’ Whitaker during his career.
Goosen states that it’s difficult for him to hold the body cushion for the 23-year-old unbeaten lightweight Ryan (22-0, 18 KOs) because he hits so hard, particularly with his left hook.
This Saturday, Ryan will have the opportunity to test his power against former WBA super featherweight champion Javier Fortuna (37-3-1, 26 KOs) in their 12-round headliner on DAZN at the Crypto Arena in Los Angeles.
Fortuna has power of his own, so Ryan will need to keep his guard up if he doesn’t wish to get bowled over, like in his fight against Luke Campbell last year. Campbell was never known for his power, but he flattened Ryan in the second round.
“I think Ryan Garcia, and he said it, is on another level, and that’s going to be apparent once the fight gets moving along, and the fur gets flying, as they say,” said trainer Joe Goosen to Fight Hub TV.
“His [Ryan] power, it’s ungodly. I’ve held that body cushion for heavyweights, and I’ll say the two hardest guys I’ve held them for are David Tua. He was 270 pounds. It was a real challenge to hold that for ten rounds with him and Lance Whitaker, ‘Mount Whitaker,’ who I trained for a number of years.
“6’8”, 280 lbs, 275. I’m going to tell you the guy that is third on the list isn’t another heavyweight; it’s Ryan Garcia,” continued Goosen about the hardest punchers he’s worked with during his training career,” said Goosen.
What Goosen isn’t saying is that Ryan’s power is limited to his left hook only, his jab is weak, and his right is useless for anything. Ryan has never developed his jab or right hand, and because of his reliance on his left hook, he’s predictable.
“I’ve never really felt anyone from any weight division and felt, ‘Man, do I really need to hold this against this kid?’ He’s so heavy [handed], I’ve never felt anything like it, and he’s fast to boot,” said Goosen about Ryan.
“You really have to tense your body up; otherwise, you’re going to get rocked. So, holding the body cushion for Ryan Garcia was like holding it for a heavyweight. I’m just telling you that if you get hit by this kid’s left hook, forget it.
“I saw him drop, wobble, stun, knockout, break bones with his left hook in my gym. That’s a fact, and there’s nobody that escaped the wrath.
“If you did somehow escape that without getting dropped, stunned, knocked out, and you made your six to eight rounds, you weren’t coming back after two of those sessions because e
“The reason I say that is because I brought in some really difficult left-handed sparring for Ryan. When you fight a southpaw, you really have to re-train your brain because everything is coming from an opposite side now from a right-hander,” said Goosen.
