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It’s Garcia vs Garcia this August as former WBC welterweight champion Danny “Swift” Garcia takes on four-division champion Mikey Garcia in a welterweight showdown that is reportedly scheduled for August 31, 2019, as part of a FOX pay-per-view event from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California.
Danny “Swift” Garcia
Danny Garcia is a two-weight division champion. Like his opponent Mikey Garcia, Danny started fighting at a lower weight class but unlike Mikey who came from way down at 120 pounds, Danny Garcia started fighting at light welterweight. He won the vacant WBC 147-pound title in 2016 by defeating Robert Guerrero in 2016.
Danny Garcia stands 5-8 tall, has a reach of 68 ½ inches and fights out of the orthodox stance. The 31-year old from Philadelphia has a record of 35-2 with 21 knockouts. Swift is just 2-2 in his last four fights after starting his career with a perfect 33-0 record. The former 140-pound unified champion, DSG won the vacant WBC welterweight title in 2016 but has struggled with the elites at 147 pounds.
Swift has a wide array of offensive skills. He has a good mix of punch combinations and has a jab that can dictate the tempo of the fight. His best weapon though is that left hook which has left many opponents, especially in the lower weight classes, eating the dust. DSG also loves to put pressure on his opponents with a high-volume offense.
Mikey Garcia
Mikey Garcia’s welterweight last March didn’t go well as he was dominated and shut down in the scorecards by a much bigger and more physical Errol Spence Jr. But just when we thought that Mikey would go back to his own weight division, he has decided to take another fight with an elite welterweight in Danny Garcia.
Mikey Garcia stands 5-6 with a reach of 68 inches while fighting as an orthodox fighter. He has an impressive record of 39-1 with 30 knockouts with his only loss the March setback against Spence. Mikey has won world titles at 120, 126, 135 and 140 pounds. He wants a fifth division at 147 but can he?
When he was fighting at the lower weight classes, Mikey Garcia dominated with his punching power. But the higher he got in the divisions, he started to lose his edge against bigger and more physical opponents. But as he’s fought bigger men, Mikey has learned to use his IQ, technical skills and patience to win fights. That didn’t happen though against Spence who is arguably one of the best 147 pounders today.
Who Wins?
Both these fighters have a very high fight IQ. They can either box or they can slug it out. Mikey Garcia gives up two inches in height and just half an inch in reach but Danny is naturally bigger as he’s fought as a welterweight in the last three years. That could be an issued for Mikey again as it was for him against Errol Spence.
Danny Garcia is not an ordinary welterweight opponent. He is a former champion and even during his losses to Keith Thurman and Shawn Porter, he looked good and was never really beaten badly. In fact, he did well in both fights and if they had different judges in those fights, DSG could’ve won both bouts and would still be unbeaten right now.
Looking at the boxing betting odds, I’m surprised to see an even fight because I believe Danny Garcia has the big edge here. While he is often underestimated, no one can question Danny Garcia’s durability. He withstood both Keith Thurman and Shawn Porter. As for Mikey Garcia, we know he’s a durable fighter but in his first welterweight bout, he looked undersized and physically inferior. I don’t think Mikey can carry his punching power at 147. Danny Garcia has shown that he has power in this division. I can’t discount the possibility of a knockout here.
I think Mikey Garcia will try to stay away from Danny Garcia’s left hook and circle to the opposite side. To me, Mikey is the better boxer here so he might as well try to win this fight with skills, not power. The disparity in reach is just half an inch so I don’t think to reach the other Garcia would matter here. What I’m concerned about is if Mikey can withstand punishment from Danny.
Sure, you can argue that Mikey survived 12 round with Errol Spence. But while Spence is a tactician, Danny Garcia is an action fighter who is relentless with his offense. I think Danny Garcia has the bigger punch and I think there is a real chance he is going to knock Mikey Garcia out.
I respect the pop in his punches but I don’t see Mikey winning by stoppage. The only way for him to win this fight is to outpoint Danny Garcia. The problem is that the only times Danny got outpointed was when he faced more physical fighters in Thurman and Porter. I don’t think the smaller Mikey can put physical pressure on DSG without getting hit.
This should be a competitive fight early on but as Danny starts landing those big left hooks, I think Mikey is going to slow down in the middle or late rounds. I don’t expect this to go the distance or even just go to the championship rounds. The bigger man wins here. Prediction: Danny Garcia by knockout
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