New Robert Brizel Editorial: The Ryan Garcia Mystery. What Happened to King Ry?
By Robert Brizel, Head Real Combat Media Boxing Correspondent
There are many reasons which are possible when a top-flight world champion pulls out of a scheduled world title defense. Injury is the most common reason. Covid-19 Novel Coronavirus is a more recent excuse development for pulling out, but it has happened in boxing corners, and amateur and professional sports. Contractual disputes promised pay and promised gate, issues with the judges, illness in the family, personal problems and issues, are among the other less common reasons for backing out of a scheduled bout, major or minor.
Ryan “King Ry” Garcia, 21-0 with 18 knockouts, Los Angeles, California, is the current interim World Boxing Council World Lightweight champion. Having already defended his title against Luke Campbell in January 2021, If regular WBC Lightweight champion, 25-0 Devin Haney, gets by an aging and faded veteran ex-champion Jorge Linares at Michelob Ultra Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on May 29, 2021, Garcia versus Haney would be a done deal.
When Garcia pulled out of his scheduled title defense against Javier Fortuna for mental health issues, the boxing world appeared stunned. Should it be? Could Garcia have family issues? Could Garcia have a Coronavirus issue? Could Garcia have deemed his training inadequate? Well, training would be a part of a decision. The world already saw a weakened Alexander Povetkin, recovering from the Coronavirus, pathetically lose a rematch to Dillian Whyte this year which appeared over before the fight even began. Common sense dictates if a fighter, and his camp, deem the fighter unfit for the ring, the fight should not take place, even in the face of contractual obligation pressures.
A social media star, Garcia has suffered from anxiety and panic attacks since childhood. At age 22, and on the verge of boxing stardom, Garcia is unique in his mental issues are apparently unrelated to his boxing career, having occurred earlier than that in his life. As such, boxing would have provided Garcia with a valuable emotional outlet of career motivation and self-expression.
The likely cause of Garcia’s emotional fall could be partying, and the fall of discipline. Alcohol, drugs and lack of routines often accompany the runaway disfocused ego, and have brought down many a fighter. The truth of such fighter falls is always rumor, but many professional athletes, caught in the spider of ego, fights, car accidents, out of the ring incidents and controversy, often find the limelight an elixir and allure which spins them away from training concentration. Whatever the cause of his emotional fall, this reporter applauds Garcia for having the audacity and fortitude to recognize his faults and shortcomings, and get help. As in the music Annie, “The Sun Will Come Out Tomorrow”. Tomorrow is not always from a champion inside the ring. To be a champion in life amounts to recognizing one’s faults and mistakes, and realizing the need to work towards self-mastery.
In that sense, Ryan Garcia is a mystery to be solved and a work in progress, but he is one the road to self-mastery and self-recovery. Fame is often too fast, and when it happens, an athlete has to get off the moving train and deal introspectively into subconscious self-examination. Self-mastery is a challenge inspired by an athlete’s achievements, and self-discovery is a feature which some achieve on the road to success, but not all. The mountain awaits Garcia, who remains a story and a work in progress, in a time period most unique for attempting to find oneself.
Trying to understand oneself is like trying to understand The Phantom of The Opera. Oneself is often the greatest mystery, as Garcia is likely discovering as he looks within early, a roadblock on the way to self-mastery but at age 22, a good omen to seek. The search for self-mastery early in life is the deepest journey, and success can sometimes accelerate the process. One can only guess where Garcia is. That’s the mystery.
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