Elijah Garcia: Is He The Future Of Middleweight Boxing?
Elijah Garcia, the American/Mexican middleweight, is being tipped to be the future of the 160-pound division.
Garcia had a small amateur career, which ended with him winning the 2017 US National Championships. He became a father at a very young age, at just 16, as he turned professional. He has worked his way through the professional ranks at a very fast pace. Garcia is currently 16-1, with 13 wins by knockout. He faced Jose Roberto Hernandez Serano in his first pro fight, stopping him in the first round. Garcia then stopped his next four opponents, who were all Mexican, showing the power he possessed. He made major leaps in 2023, boxing three times as he stepped up his level of opposition.
Garcia’s Rise
He went ten rounds with Kevin Salgado Zambrano, beating him via a unanimous decision. He followed that up with an eight-round stoppage victory against Jose Armando Resendiz. However, he suffered the first setback of his career in his last fight. He lost a split decision against the American Kyrone Davis on the biggest stage at the MGM Grand, Las Vegas, Nevada. The fight took place in June, meaning Garcia has only boxed once this year. This is the first time this has happened in his career.
The boxer may be taking some time off to consider his next steps. He has changed his camp and hired Bob Santos as a trainer. Before the Davis fight, Garcia targeted a fight between the winner of Erislandy Lara and Michael Zerafa. Lara beat Zerafa and followed it up by winning against Danny Garcia. Lara is the current WBA Middleweight Champion. But at 41, he is at the tail end of his career. Garcia would fancy beating him. Garcia is confident he can bounce back.
Garcia’s Mindset
“His style and my style add up really good. He brings the experience to the corner that I didn’t have. There’s no style change; we’re just adding to it. If you’re off the hype train, stay off, because we’re coming to win titles. I really hope people look at my last fight and they think I’m as bad as they think I am, because that was not me, and adding Bob to the corner is going to make me 100 times better. We’re going to take over the 160 division, no two ways about it, that is what Bob says,” Garcia said
But Garcia’s loss has pushed back those plans even further. He is ranked 12th in the WBA rankings, meaning he has some way to go before he puts himself in a mandatory position. But Garcia felt he was the only one taking such risky fights at this age, showing his desire to face the best. Santos has also backed Garcia to come back better.
“Elijah’s already been in solid fights for someone only 21. Robert Guerrero did the same thing early on. And that’s why Elijah reminds me a lot of Robert Guerrero. I think there’s a lot of that I can bring to the table to help him reach that next level,” Santos stated
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