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Ryan Garcia looks strong for his December 30 exhibition match against Rukiya Anpo in Japan. Garcia will fight Anpo in 19 days in Tokyo in a bout that will air on Fanmio PPV for $49.99.
In one video clip, Ryan has his pants pulled up to hide his Fury-style spare tire that wasn’t there before seven months. He has obviously been eating a lot since April 20th and we are seeing visible results.
The Anpo Advantage
Garcia has gained weight for this fight, which could slow him down because he doesn’t look as fast as he did when he was lighter. These two-minute rounds will be fast and could work in Anpo’s favor. It looks in very good shape. Anpo has the perfect target for his blows. Aim for Ryan’s midsection.
In a training clip this week, Ryan (24-1, 20 KOs) has his pants pulled up in what appears to be a move to hide his flabby stomach. It’s a move often seen on middle-aged men like Tyson Fury when they lift their trunks to hide their belly. Watching Ryan resort to this move is jarring.
He looks like he weighs around 160 pounds, but he’s carrying 20 extra pounds of fat from the lean fighter who beat Oscar Duarte a year ago on December 2, 2023.
Garcia has been gaining weight since before his last fight against Devin Haney on April 20. He was 3.2 pounds overweight, 143.2 pounds, and had to pay $600,000.
The extra weight seemed to prevent Garcia from fighting hard in each round, and he took many breaks to recharge his batteries. He could get away with it against Haney because he’s not a puncher or a pressure fighter. But if Ryan is like that against one of the busy fighters, he will be knocked out.
The extra weight Ryan, 26, has gained doesn’t appear to be muscle, and that could be bad for him. The 6’0” Anpo appears to be taking this eight-round exhibition match seriously, and that could be a problem for an out-of-shape Garcia.
We watched as Anpo beat 45-year-old Manny Pacquiao in their three-round exhibition on July 28 in Saitama, Japan. Pacquiao earned every penny he received in that match because he took a lot of hard punches from the wiry 29-year-old Anpo.
Garcia’s future
Ryan will need to lose weight when his suspension ends in April 2025 because he can’t look like he does now. He doesn’t have the build to fight at 154 and may not be strong enough to campaign at 147 either. He can potentially do well at 147 against lesser fighters like Mario Barrios and Conor Benn, but he will crumble against Jaron Ennis and Eimantas Stanionis.
