Former two-division champion Danny “Swift” Garcia says the time is right for him to move up another weight class, as the Philadelphia native is targeting the 154-pound division following his December loss to Errol Spence Jr.
“My goal in boxing was to be a three-division world champion: 140, 147, and 154,” Garcia told SouthBoX Radio. “And I fought everybody at 147, I fought everybody at 140. I thought I beat Thurman, I thought I beat Porter. I feel like I did everything I was supposed to do at 147. Even though I didn’t unify the division like I wanted to, I still became champion. I feel like my next chapter in my career is at 154.
“I’ll go up to 154, I’m still a bigger name than all the dudes at 154. I’m definitely gonna be the biggest name in that division. And they need someone to help them bring more light to that division. You know how boxing is, boxing’s all about matchmaking. You get the right matches at 154, that’s all it’s about.”
Garcia (36-3, 21 KO) says he won’t run right into a fight with someone like Jermell Charlo, but will in time go after the top dogs at the weight, and if his history is any indication that’s probably believable.
“I’m not gonna go right up and fight the biggest guy. I’ll do a couple fights, break myself in, and then we go for the gusto like I always do,” he said.
Charlo, of course, is the No. 1 guy at 154, and he’s looking to possibly go undisputed by fighting Brian Castano next with all four belts on the line. The move to 154 also makes sense for Garcia in that much like welterweight, PBC have the bulk of the top fighters at the weight, and Jermell has indicated no desire to move up to middleweight of yet, either.
Along with titlists Charlo and Castano, PBC have Erislandy Lara, Jeison Rosario, Julian “J Rock” Williams, Jarrett Hurd, Tony Harrison, Erickson Lubin, Sebastian Fundora, and Terrell Gausha in their stable at junior middleweight.
So there’s no doubt he can get good matchups at the weight, and the question will be entirely about how well Garcia, 32, will fare at the higher weight. He’s going to be small for the division, but so was Miguel Cotto, for a recent example of someone who won belts at 140 and 147 and then did so at 154, too.
