M ikey Garcia didn’t just join the family business when he took up boxing – he became the Garcia dynasty’s crown jewel. In a pro career that ran from 2006 to 2021, he would hold titles in four weight divisions, from featherweight to junior welterweight, including a Ring championship at 126 pounds. He reached as high as No. 4 on the magazine’s pound-for-pound list. The journey had many chapters, though. Here’s how three of the big ones began: First time he put gloves on: “Growing up in a boxing family, there was always gloves around the house. I do remember one of the very first times I put on a pair of gloves, I was probably 4, 5 years old. We were at the Boys & Girls Club where my brother
didn’t turn up, and my brother asked the age and weight and looked at me and signed me up. I was not there to fight. I had never done any proper training. I’m 13 years old, but now I’m under pressure. I’m a little embarrassed. If I say I don’t want to do this, [my brother and sister would make fun of me]. I didn’t have a license; they made it an exhibition. And once I started getting into it, I felt comfortable. It felt natural. And we did three rounds, and the ruling was a draw. That’s when I kind of got the itch. It was kind of natural and felt comfortable: ‘OK, maybe I’ll do this again.’ That’s when I started to go to the gym and work out, train, practice, and six months later, I had my first official boxing match.”
First professional fight: “Crazy scenario. I was scheduled to be fighting a different day. The fight gets canceled. I get a phone call from my
(former junior lightweight titleholder and three- time Ring Trainer of the Year Robert Garcia) and Fernando [Vargas] and some of the other guys were training. They were still 15, 16 years old. My dad (Eduardo Garcia, who trained Vargas en route to winning two junior middleweight titles) was a coach. I would come to the gym just to fool around. Again, I’m only 5; I can’t legally be licensed as an amateur. Fernando Vargas’ brother Felix was around my age and would come to the gym to fool around. And one day, my brother, Robert and Fernando put gloves on me and Felix,
manager, Cameron Dunkin, on Friday morning at 8 a.m.: “‘Hey, do you want to fight tonight?’ “‘I’ve been training, but what do you mean tonight?!’ We haven’t even weighed in.’ “‘Well, I’ve got you the opportunity to fight tonight if you get to Montebello,’ which is an hour and a half from Oxnard. ‘They’ll weigh you in right now and you get to fight tonight.’ “So, my dad, my brother are like, ‘Let’s go.’ I’m like, ‘OK, I guess we’re doing this.’ It was so quick, so I didn’t have time to react. We show up, we weigh
My First Time Mikey Garcia As told to Anson Wainwright
and they put us in the ring. I didn’t want to do it. I was scared. I had never done that. They put us in there, and I remember Felix spinning around with his arms out trying to punch me, and I did the same thing. It became fun, a lot more fun than expected. I said, ‘OK, it’s not that bad.’” First amateur fight: “I was 13 years old. We go to support my nephew, Javier ‘Pelos.’ He had an amateur competition. We go as a family – my sister, my brother, etc. – to support him. While we’re there, my brother asked the coaches about other kids that were gonna fight, and there’s one kid, Gilbert – I forget his last name – who didn’t have a match. His opponent
in – I think like 129 pounds. My opponent was similar; I forget. (According to BoxRec.com, their weights were 131 and 133, respectively.) Well, while my dad left the ballroom to get me some gauze and some Gatorade, I’m waiting in the ballroom for him to come. It’s an hour, then it’s two, and my dad didn’t come back. I’m like, ‘What’s going on?’ My dad and mom show up and realize someone stole our vehicle with all my gear, my shorts, my shoes, my cup, my mouthguard – everything stolen. So now I have to call the police and file my report, and that took some time. Then I have to go to the Big 5 Sporting Goods store to get me some new shoes. I call Robert, who was at an amateur show out in Indio, California, for Desert Showdown, which is about two hours away. They left to come to my fight, and he brought me some shorts from
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