Thurman to Danny Garcia: You’re getting knocked out

BoxingNews24.com

By Eric Baldwin: WBA World welterweight champion Keith “One Time” Thurman )27-0, 22 KOs) says WBC belt holder Danny Garcia (33-0, 19 KOs) has made a grave mistake in signing the contract to fight him on March 4, because he’s going to knock him out and take his WBC title in the process.

Thurman, 28, respects the punching power of Garcia, but he sees his own knockout power as being a level above his. Thurman points out that when Garcia hits guys, they go down and then get right back up. In contrast, when he knocks guys down, they stay down and don’t get back up.

(Photo Credit: Amanda Westcott/SHOWTIME)

This is going to be a good fight between Thurman and Garcia. The fight will be televised on Showtime Boxing on CBS at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

“He signed the wrong contract though, because Keith Thurman’s got this,” said Thurman. “Danny Garcia, you’re getting knocked out. He’s dangerous but we believe I’m more dangerous. He hasn’t fought a true welterweight with punching power. I believe I’ll be the last man standing and the true champion on March 4.”

Thurman is right about Garcia not having fought a true welterweight with any kind of punching power. Garcia’s fights at welterweight have come against Lamont Peterson, Robert Guerrero, Samuel Vargas and Paulie Malignaggi. Those are not big punching welterweights. Garcia has always been the bigger puncher in his fights at welterweight. That’s not to say that Garcia hasn’t been in the ring with a fighter with welterweight level power. Garcia fought Lucas Matthysse in 2013, and beat him by a 12 round decision. Matthysse has huge power that would give any welterweight in the division problems, including Thurman.

What we don’t know about Garcia is how well he’ll be able to take the shots from Thurman. He punches with better hand speed, and has better boxing skills than the fighters that Garcia has fought in the past. Garcia will need to make sure he keeps his guard up at all times, because Thurman could hurt him if he catches him with a shot that he doesn’t see coming.

“Danny Garcia has some power. He has enough, even compared to me,” said Thurman. “But if you look at a lot of his fights, he knocked guys down. But they got back up. There is a difference between knockdown and knockout power.”

Thurman’s opponents don’t always stay down after he drops them. Robert Guerrero got back up and made it the full 12 rounds against him. Thurman doesn’t sit down on his shots enough for him to score one-punch knockouts. He’s constantly moving in reverse mode when he throws his power shots, and he’s generally so antsy that he robs himself of his power. Thurman fights like someone who doesn’t trust his own chin, so he’s not going to stay still long enough for him to get the maximum amount of power on his punches.

Thurman does still have a lot of knockouts, but his knockouts aren’t coming against the best in the 147lb division. They’re coming against guys like Luis Collazo, Julio Diaz, Jesus Soto Karass, Diego Chaves, and Carlos Quintana. Thurman has only knocked out two out of his last five opponents. Thurman still calls himself “One Time”, but as Amir Khan said, he should be called “Sometimes”, because he’s not knocking everyone out like Gennady Golovkin does at middleweight.

Garcia and his father Angel Garcia have seen enough of Thurman’s fights in the past to note that he slaps a lot with his punches, and he can’t take it to the body. Angel totally believes that Thurman can’t body shots, and fights an amateur.

“He ain’t going to be able to hit Danny by slapping,” said Angel about Thurman to Fighthype.com. “He slaps. He ain’t got no skills, bro.

“I’ve seen him fight plenty of times, so I’m pretty sure I already know what he’s going to do,” said Garcia about Thurman. “He fights the same way. I think he’s going to try to do that, but he’s not a natural boxer. I’m going to force him into something he’s never been into before. I’m going to do what I do best. I’m going to go in there and make adjustments. Everybody knows I can come forward. I can come forward for 12 rounds. I can be liked I boxed Matthysse, and Guerrero. So I’m going to go in there and make adjustments like I always do. That’s what makes me a great champion. I always go for a knockout.”

Angel Garcia doesn’t see Thurman lasting long against Garcia. He sees him being knocked out by the midpoint of the fight.

“I see it going down by the 6th,” said Angel Garcia. “He’s going to cut him, and go find him.”

Thurman is probably going to use a lot of his circle fighting against Garcia, because he does not like to stand in one place for too long. Thurman did let Porter attack him while he was backed against the ropes, but that was after he figured out that he’s not a big puncher on the inside. Porter was smothering his own shots all night by getting too close to Thurman and not having the power to bother him from that distance. Once Thurman realized that Porter lacked power on the inside, he was more willing to let him come in close and throw his weak shots. Garcia has better power on the inside, and he’s got the intelligence to know that he can step back and fire one of his big left hooks to try and hurt Thurman.

“I’m going to wear my track shoes that day,” said Garcia. “I’m going to have my sneakers on. I should have known [Lamont] Peterson was going to run when he came into the ring with sneakers on,” said Garcia.

Thurman is going to do a lot of start and stop type of fighting on March 4. Thurman will be motion much of the time. He’ll then attack with one or two punches, and then take off running again. If Garcia is good at riming Thurman, he would hurt him with one of his hooks when he comes forward trying to last his own punches.