Ryan Garcia and Rolly Romero have stepped into the boxing ring with one another before, they know one another quite well it turns out.
They have sparred previously and are well acquainted with one another.
Speaking on the official ‘Face Off’ shoulder program on DAZN, the two fighters had an interesting, frank exchange of views and words with one another ahead of Friday:
“Ryan Garcia: It feels good, though it’s a bittersweet moment because of everything that happened afterward. At the end of the day, I’m excited to be back in the ring. Rolando is a solid fighter, and this fight has been a long time coming. It could set me up well for a rematch with Haney, but first, I need to focus on Rolly. Here we are, and I’m thrilled to be back.
Rolando Romero: I said it would be one of the biggest fights in boxing history, especially in the United States. Look at this card—it’s stacked. We have two four-time world champions on the undercard. Ryan, you should thank me for the success you’ve had in your career because you used that sparring match to boost your profile. Let me ask you, how many followers did you have back then?
Ryan Garcia: What are you talking about? I was the hottest prospect in the sport. You keep bringing up that sparring video, but I was on a roll. That video has been everywhere for eight years. It’s iconic, like a TV show that won’t stop, like Friends. I’m tired of seeing it.
Rolando Romero: It’s been running for eight years straight and never left your career. No matter what you did, it’s always there. I’m happy this fight is finally happening so we can find out what would happen in a real fight. It’s long overdue.
Ryan Garcia: You called me out a million times, and now it’s here. Let’s do this.
Ryan Garcia: Absolutely, especially when I was coming up. It was everywhere, all the time. It wasn’t even that bad—I thought it was a regular sparring session. I had a few good moments, and considering I was much lighter back then, I think I did alright. But it did bother me, and I’ve always wanted to put it behind me. That’s why I’m here to fight him, destroy him, and make sure no one talks about it anymore.
Rolando Romero: I remember walking into the gym that day. Otis told me this kid wanted to spar. I hadn’t sparred in a while, but I was stopping everyone at Floyd’s gym. I even cracked Blair two weeks before that. I felt like I got the better of Ryan that day, but he pushed the video out there for years.
Ryan Garcia: You posted the video first! I did what I had to do. You were bigger, hitting hard, so I was jabbing, hooking, moving. You couldn’t catch me. I’m bigger than you now, so none of that wrestling stuff will work this time. You were dirty back then, trying to rough me up, but that won’t happen now.
Rolando Romero: You’re lying. You were the one being dirty, hitting after the break. Now you’re smaller than me. I saw your last two fights with Pitbull and the others—you don’t look strong anymore. You’re in for a rude awakening.
Ryan Garcia: I showed everyone on Instagram I was drinking and smoking back then. Now I’m clean, focused, and training every day. It’s going to be worse for you. I want you at your best so no one can take credit away when I stop you.
Rolando Romero: You’re retiring that night, I promise. It’ll be your last fight.
Ryan Garcia: We’ll see. You’re going out with a bang.
Ryan Garcia: He’s a great talker. He’s made me laugh millions of times online, going after Shakur, me, or anyone. He’s a comedian. He’ll have a career in comedy after this, but in the ring, he’s gone downhill since his knockout. His chin hasn’t recovered. Pitbull didn’t even hit him that hard, but he’s not handling punches well anymore. There’s no way I don’t catch him with a good shot in 12 “
Rolando Romero: You quit against punchers, like Tank. I had a broken rib and was dehydrated, but I didn’t quit. You haven’t been the same since. You got knocked out looking for Easter eggs with Isaac Cruz, talking about “Happy Resurrection Day.” You didn’t even know where you were.
Ryan Garcia: I knocked out Duarte. You can’t talk about weight issues or lawsuits. I couldn’t make 140, so I’m at 147 for a reason. I had to kill myself to make weight for Pitbull and others, but I won. You got knocked out.
Rolando Romero: You got hit with a body shot when you were already broken. If I get a fair rematch with Tank, I’m not going down like that.
Ryan Garcia: They need me to make money. We’re making good money here. You haven’t had many big fights. I’m doing better than you.
Rolando Romero: I know you better than you know yourself. I know everything about you.
Ryan Garcia: That sounds like you’re in love with me. Are you in love with me?
Rolando Romero: Nah, that’s weird. You’re not my type. Maybe others are in love with you, but not me.
Ryan Garcia: Maybe he does. But power is about landing shots they don’t see. I’ve fought punchers like Barroso and Luke Campbell, who dropped me, but I got up and knocked them out.
Rolando Romero: You didn’t stop Campbell. That was controversial. He was dodging your punches.
Ryan Garcia: Watch the replay. Everyone knows you were losing to Barroso.
Rolando Romero: I hope Ryan beats Devin again, but he has to beat me first. Even if I beat him, he’ll still fight Devin. It has nothing to do with me. I’d love to see Ryan knock out Devin four or five times in a row.
Ryan Garcia: It was an insignificant amount, but the weight issue helped. Devin had a chance to pull out but took the money instead. If you take the money, don’t complain about the weight or make excuses on ESPN. That’s weird. He and his dad are weirdos.
Rolando Romero: I hope you beat him even worse next time. Do the boxing world a favor.
Rolando Romero: I didn’t quit. I was badly damaged before the fight—blistered lips, pissing blood. I shouldn’t have been in the ring, but I took the fight for the money. It was the fifth-largest gate in boxing history. I tried, it didn’t work, but I’m ready to right that wrong by beating you, Devin, Teofimo, and Tank.
Ryan Garcia: No, he’s working hard. I want him at his best to make this fight huge. I know he’ll bring his A-game because of who I am. I’ll be at my best to beat him.
Rolando Romero: Ryan flatlined on the canvas or taking a knee, as usual.
Ryan Garcia: I’m the better boxer. My skills will beat him. If he gets knocked out, so be it, but I’ll dominate him easily.”
Two characters, that’s for sure, Garcia and Romero.
Two heck of fighters, more importantly.
These two are going to unleash real fury on Friday night in New York and if you blink in this one, you might literally miss about 10 punches.
These guys have fast hands, very fast.
Romero is very aggressive as well, he’ll look to start fast and catch Garcia slipping with ring rust, most likely, that will be his early strategy.
To catch Garcia cold.
Garcia wants redemption and will be coming all guns blazing this week.