If you caught last Wednesday’s press conference announcing the Keith Thurman-Danny Garcia title unification fight, well then you know that trainer Angel Garcia had one of his classic meltdowns on stage.
This one, however, was even a little more over the top than usual, with the elder Garcia going on a tirade where he hurled the N-word in Thurman’s direction nearly a dozen times while also dropping some homosexual slurs and making odd references to illegal immigrants.
For a big-time fight that is going to be aired on CBS network television to a huge audience (much bigger than boxing is accustomed these days), this isn’t exactly the kind of image the powers that be cared to project. In fact, Angel Garcia’s rant was much to the chagrin on promoter Lou DiBella, who after the press conference tweeted:
DiBella would have a conversation with Al Haymon (who manages/advises both Thurman and Garcia) following the presser, and they decided that nobody from either fighter’s camp would be allowed on the dais during the fight’s final press conference, Angel Garcia in particular.
“Angel Garcia won’t have the opportunity to do that again,” DiBella said. “He won’t have a microphone, nor should he after what he did.”
That could be the end of it, or there could be more to come. Some, including ESPN’s Dan Rafael, believe that Angel Garcia shouldn’t be licensed to work his son’s corner due to his conduct, but ultimately that will be a decision for the New York State Athletic Commission who has jurisdiction over the fight at the Barclays.
At this particular time, though, Angel Garcia is not subject to the athletic commission’s jurisdiction as he has not yet applied for a license to serve as a trainer for the fight. But he will have to do just that, eventually, if he wants to be in the corner come fight night.
“The New York State Athletic Commission does not in any way condone or excuse Mr. Garcia’s words and actions,” the commission said in a statement given to ESPN.com. “Angel Garcia is not a licensee of the Commission and, therefore, is not subject to its jurisdiction at this time. In the event Mr. Garcia pursues a license with the State Athletic Commission, this incident and all relevant information will be reviewed and this matter would be revisited in that context.”
The WBC, who will be sanctioning the fight, also chimed in to double-down on not condoning Angel Garcia’s actions and mentioned that they will be reviewing the incident. What actions they can and will take remains to be seen at time time, however.
Do you think Angel Garcia should be suspended or banned from working his son’s corner because of his outburst? And do you think it will actually happen?
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