Rising boxing superstar Ryan Garcia scored the best win of his career over the weekend against former gold medalist Luke Campbell. After being knocked down in the 2nd round, the 22-year-old American phenom turned the tables on the 33-year-old veteran contender to score an epic 7th-round knockout.
If you missed that stunning knockout, you can watch it below.
RYAN GARCIA KNOCKS OUT LUKE CAMPBELL 🔥 @ESPNRingside
(via @DAZNBoxing)
Here’s another angle that Garcia posted via Instagram.
LeBron James and Other Superstars React
While the UFC and boxing world was obviously super hyped to see Garcia do his thing on Saturday, mainstream sports figures and other celebrities were also extremely excited to see the 135-pound phenom nab his stunning victory.
NBA superstar LeBron James posted via Instagram, “Mean!!!! The kid ain’t no joke!”
Even Lebron showing King Garcia some love… 👊
Meanwhile, fellow NBA notable, Damian Lillard, was also watching the action.
Like LeBron, Lillard was impressed with what he saw from “KingRy”.
Lillard posted, “Ry Garcia got dropped and showed some real toughness… real mean streak… he showed me somethin today! 135 on [fire]”.
Ry Garcia got dropped and showed real toughness… real mean streak… he showed me somethin today! 135 on 🔥🔥🔥
Lillard even offered his own take on Garcia’s future as well as potential future showdowns.
He posted in response to a fan suggesting Garcia would have more trouble with Gervonta “Tank” Davis, “…if tank lands clean maybe you’re right. But the height and reach difference will make it hard to land something like that. Luke Campbell is a big 135”.
But it wasn’t. If tank lands clean maybe you’re right. But the height and reach difference will make it hard to land somethin like that. Luke Campbell is a big 135
One of the fighters Lillard knows that might also provide a future stern test for Garcia in boxing’s super competitive 135-pound division is WBC light heavyweight titleholder, Devin Haney.
Haney posted that he’s ready to make that fight happen next.
Haney posted, “…now you’re my mandatory let’s make it happen!”
Decent performance @KingRyanG now you’re my mandatory lets make it happen!
‘Creed’ Actor Touts Garcia
Actor Michael B. Jordan, who played the titular character in the feature films “Creed” and “Creed 2”, posted something that hearkened back to a scene from Sylvester Stallone’s 2006 film “Rocky Balboa”: “‘it ain’t about how hard you hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward; how much you can take and keep moving forward’ Congrats young king”.
MLB star Carlos Correa was also watching Garcia’s huge comeback win.
Correa posted, “Ryan is for real. Heart of a champion. What a performance”.
Ryan is for real. Heart of a champion. What a performance 🔥 #GarciaCampbell
Additionally, Correa went on to lavish praise on Garcia’s trainer, Eddy Reynoso, who also trains Saul “Canelo” Alvarez.
Correa posted, “Eddy Reynoso is the best trainer there is. The corner advice was key to Ryan’s win. Kept him under control during the entire fight even when Ryan was facing adversity for the first time in his career.”
Eddy Reynoso is the best trainer there is. The corner advice was key to Ryan’s win. Kept him under control during the entire fight even when Ryan was facing adversity for the first time in his career #teamcanelo
YouTuber Logan Paul was watching the big fight, too. Paul posted, “ryan f***ing garcia”.
ryan fucking garcia
Retired boxing superstar Oscar De La Hoya, who is Garcia’s promoter, also offered praise for the young megastar, “[Ryan Garcia] became a man tonight!!! Congratulations and great fighter [Luke Campbell]”.
@KingRyanG became a man tonight!!! Congratulations and great fighter @luke11campbell
Is Garcia Boxing’s Next Big Thing?
Garcia is one of the best-looking young fighters in boxing. With these kinds of celebrity fans already, the sky is the limit for his boxing career.
In fact, DAZN’s Chris Mannix told me last week for Bleacher Report that Garcia had the potential to become the biggest superstar of the new century.
“How many crossover stars have there been during this century? There was Oscar De La Hoya. There’s Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao. But even with Floyd and Manny, you didn’t see them make the rounds on the talk-show circuit and be true crossover stars. Ryan is that guy,” Mannix said.
That’s a super high expectation for a 22-year-old, but one that hasn’t been proven wrong just yet.
Actually, it almost seems like it could be Garcia’s destiny.
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Twitter: @Kelsey_McCarson
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