De La Hoya Rips Ryan Garcia: “Fame Isn’t Talent”

Promoter Oscar De La Hoya went on a long rant about Ryan Garcia and young fighters like him who have never accomplished anything in the sport, showing disrespect.

(Credit: Golden Boy)

Oscar sounded off about how Ryan (24-2, 20 KOs) confuses fame with having elite talent. He points out that there are no shortcuts in boxing to reach the top. He bothers De La Hoya that Garcia (24-2, 20 KOs) has shown so little respect to him.

“Enough Is Enough” Moment

Garcia is a special case. He’s a hybrid fighter who gained fame because of his social media following. It’s obvious he’s going downhill as a fighter and will never win a world title.

“It all started with disrespect, you know. You have these young fighters who haven’t won anything, who haven’t done anything in the sport, who may be popular, who may be, you know, who have followers… in the non-boxing space. And you know, enough is enough,” said Oscar De La Hoya to talkSport Boxing.

It doesn’t look like De La Hoya’s situation with Ryan Garcia will end well. His contract is up with Golden Boy, and he’ll likely move on and go the free agent route like Devin Haney. At this point, it doesn’t look like he’s going to stay with Golden Boy for another hitch. Instead of De La Hoya getting upset about it, he should focus on fighters who are serious about their careers.

The Disrespect Line Crossed

“Including Ryan Garcia. But you know, the disrespect he’s shown to the sport, to the fans, to himself is not of an elite athlete. You know, it’s not of a top athlete who really wants to become a legend in the sport,” said De La Hoya

Ryan’s best shot at capturing a world title came when he fought then-WBC light welterweight champion Devin Haney on April 20, 2024, but he blew that opportunity by missing the weight and then testing positive for the PED Ostarine.

That was a major missed opportunity for Garcia, as he mopped the deck with Haney in that fight, dropping him three times in his 12-round majority decision win.

If Ryan had played it right, he’d have made weight, tested negative, and would have been at the top of the sport, one of the most famous boxers worldwide. Instead, he’s on a downward spiral career-wise. Yes, he’s rich, with a net worth of $50 million, but he doesn’t seem happy.

Tom Galm’s Viewpoint: Boxing’s Boring Soap Opera

De La Hoya’s problems with Ryan sound more like celebrity therapy, complaining about being “disrespected. Ryan obviously feels misunderstood and disrespected by Oscar’s public comments about him. It’s more relationship issues than boxing.

Ryan Garcia stopped being a fighter in a true sense after he was suspended by the New York State Athletic Commission for his positive PED test last year. That suspension took the air out of Ryan’s career. De La Hoya is wasting his time complaining about something he has no control over.

Oscar’s comments aren’t going to transform Garcia into the dedicated fighter he was earlier in his career, when he captured world titles in multiple weight classes. Ryan isn’t that type of fighter, and he doesn’t have the motivation to become that.