RYAN Garcia found fame and fortune overnight after becoming a viral sensation – but his first big contract did not last long.
Garcia is one of boxing’s biggest superstars with an army of fans and over 10 million Instagram followers.
His antics online have made him almost as famous as his devastating performances in the ring.
And it all started for Garcia when he was just a teenager, showing off his sensational hand speed in the gym in front of a cameraman.
His blistering combinations, almost too fast to catch with the naked eye, were captured on film and uploaded on social media.
And by the time Garcia went to bed and awoke, he was an overnight sensation and boxing’s new one to watch.
“There’s this gym and I remember the photographer he decided to record me hitting the bag,” he told DAZN.
“I just did a normal video, he posted it on his Facebook and I never thought anything of it. I wake up and everybody’s talking about me.
“Then I blew up like crazy and everybody’s positing me and from there anything that I posted was huge.
“It’s a lot of pressure, kinda. It’s kinda overwhelming.”
Garcia was already a top prospect at the time, having amassed a record of 215–15 with several titles to his name.
He then turned pro at 17 in Mexico before announcing himself to the American market when he turned 18.
Garcia’s viral videos meant he was already a familiar face among boxing circles, but he proved he had the talent to back it up.
One stoppage was so impressive he was handed a $50,000 contract – but the pay packet was KO’d just as quick as his opponent.
“The first fight I had on TV after I blew up on the internet, I knocked out the guy in 30 seconds on ESPN,” Garcia, now 25, said.
“Then it just went nuts. That’s when the manager gave me a $50,000 check – and I spent it in a week! I didn’t care, even though we were broke.
“I was just like, ‘I’ll pay for some rent but I need to buy some s**t.’ Because, I always believed I was going to be big. I always believed it.
“I never had a sense that I wasn’t going to make it.”
Garcia quickly became one of the hottest prospects on the scene but it proved all too much for the teenage phenomenon.
“I’ve been having mental health issues since I was 17 years old,” he bravely opened up.
“At first it was extreme anxiety, OCD when I was becoming a breakthrough star.
“Every post I was posted was a million likes, a million likes. I was becoming a bonafide star.”
“There was so much pressure on him but he never wanted to stop,” his dad Henry, who is also one of his coaches, said.
“If you have a son like that and you see that he’s winning more than he’s losing, then that’s gotta tell you he really wants it.”
Garcia last year suffered his first defeat, losing in seven rounds to rival Gervonta Davis, 29, in a huge blockbuster bout.
I blew up like crazy and everybody’s positing me and from there anything that I posted was huge. It’s a lot of pressure, kinda. It’s kinda overwhelming
Ryan Garcia
But he returned to winning ways in December by stopping Oscar Duarte, 28, to earn himself a shot at old enemy Devin Haney, 25.
The pair boxed six times in the amateurs, tied at three apiece to set up a true Game 7 on Saturday in New York.
Garcia has raised concern in the build-up to the pay-per-view bout with erratic behavior online and at media events.
And questions remain on how seriously he is taking his first world title shot.
“A lot of people have a misconception that I don’t train hard and that I am not disciplined and I think people want to see me like that,” Garcia said.
“They want to find something wrong with me. I know how to lock in, I know how to stay focussed, I know how to hit the switch. If it’s time to go it’s time to go.”
“I am a bit of a maniac and I’m a little crazy. I don’t know how he’s going to stop me,” he added.
“This is my only opportunity right now, to me it feels like a do-or-die moment. I promise you, this is going to be one to remember.”
