Former four-division world champion Mikey Garcia has apparently retired. No official announcement other that a new tagline on his Instagram page that reads “Retired World Champ 126, 130, 135, 140 lbs.”
From 2006 to 2018, Garcia was unbeatable. He ran his record to 39-0 with 30 KOs. In 2019, he ambitiously challenged Errol Spence Jr. for the welterweight title, but lost badly in a surprisingly one-sided affair. He chose to stay at welterweight and returned in 2020 with an uninspired decision win over Jesse Vargas, then was shockingly upset by 12:1 underdog Sandor Martin in his most recent fight last year.
Update: Mikey’s brother Robert Garcia Jr. has confirmed to ESPN that Mikey has indeed hung up his gloves.
Great fighters know when to stop, good for him. Thanks for all the great performances Mike
Wrong. Very few great fighters know when to quit. Most fight on well past their prime.
Congratulations Champ! God Be With You…
unless there is a big money fight out there for him, its probably not a bad idea
He seemed like one of those rare fighters that are talented yet do not love it. Talent wise I would say he was close to Alexis Arguello but I do not think he loved being a warrior as much as Alexis did. Business wise and I am guessing life wise he made smarter choices. So Arguello may be the more loved in boxing history but Mikey will likely have a nicer retirement. He seems like the type who would be smart with his money. Again these are just guesses from someone who never knew either gentleman. Regardless I wish him well in his retirement and I enjoyed watching him while it lasted. My feeling is that he will not make a comeback. His brother was similar that way.
Yep. I don’t think he loved it either Pete and for someone’s whose heart could never REALLY be in it, he did very well for himself. I think I remember hearing that his passion was racing cars.
I read Michael Spinks was a bit like that too. He had great talent and got the job done but I read he did not love boxing. He also got out relatively young after cashing out in the Tyson fight.
Yes, very similar to Spinks. Great fighter that probably lost his confidence after a difficult opponent. I don’t think he was himself physically in Spence. He looked bloated and slow. Not the same fighter who picked apart Broner with ease
We has stated that he only fought for money not out of passion or in the pursuit of legacy.
Typo. Meant “He has stated”
Alexis Arguello? You are trippin. Arguello is an all time great. Garcia beat? Stop with the drugs sir.
I do agree Arguello is an all time great and Garcia is not. My point was that Arguello wanted to be great and dared to be great. Mikey I think may have been as talented but seemed to look at it more from a business perspective. That is why he did not dare to be great like Arguello. That said had Arguello moved to Welter and fought one of the top welters of his era I doubt he would have fared any better then Garcia. Just my opinion.
Actually Jr Welterweight when he fought Pryor ; but I agree with you !!
Aaron Pryor, one of my favorite fighters of all time. Too bad he never got in the ring with Leonard or Hearns as a pro. That would have been fireworks.
You’re absolutely right. In Arguëllo’s era the top welterweights were Leonard, Duran, Hearns, Curry. Those guys would have beaten him for sure. Late 70s he may have had a shot but Alexis was never that big. He was best at 130-135 tops. And nobody was beating Pryor at 140 in those days. Leonard wouldn’t go near him.
I think Mikey’s heart hasn’t been in the ring for awhile. SInce he lost every round to Spence. Best to get out when the motivation leaves you
I remember when black people celebrate the victory of Spencer over Garcia
I would be ashamed to celebrate this victory where Spencer had so many advantages o e of them was the over weight
Actually spencer should ko García and couldn’t
It’s like Spencer move to 175 to fight canrlo and we celebrate canelo victory lol
Carlos,
The conclusion of that fight was forgone so I doubt many black people were celebrating. Like there was some drama or uneasiness. Garcia was badly outmatched on paper and in the ring vs Spence.
You’re a race-baiter. You don’t know shit about boxing. First off, who is “Spencer.” His name is Spence fool lol. Secondly, folks heavily believed Garcia was going to win. Once he was dominated now you’re making excuses as why it happened. Manny Pacquiao, Aaron Pryor and Pernell Whitaker were always at a disadvantage and kicked ass. Maybe Micky just wasn’t that good to over come his. Just say you hate black guys and get it over with lol.
Spencer? Jeez.
You’re right about almost everything you posted, and that guy posted BS.
However, I remember the build-up to Mikey and Errol’s fight and distinctly remember the overwhelming majority of knowledgeable fans picking Spence. We were kind of surprised Garcia went 12, even though he got shut out.
Nice career Mikey, made some bucks and came out of it healthy. Job well done…
See you back in 2024
Not a surprise, and we all knew he wasn’t into it for the last few years. However, even though he won trinkets in four weight classes he is not a first ballot HOF’er. He didn’t really have any wins against a great fighter.
I do not think he is a first ballot HOF’er but I can see him eventually getting in. I mean they have Terry Norris and the late Arturo Gatti (no offense to him) in the HOF, and I do not believe they were deserving. It appears they r letting anyone in these days. Not as prestigious as it use to be.
Oh, he def deserves to get in. Just not on the 1st call. Gatti should have never been inducted, but Norris barely.
Lot of guys don’t belong. Mancini, Norton, Buchanan, Danny Lopez, McGuigan. Broner and Mikey won 4 belts but in this day and age it’s not that impressive. Canelo’s titles are tainted and he’ll get in for sure.
I always enjoyed watching him fight,until he pulled the standing tank job against Spence, robbing boxing fans of their hard-earned PPV money. Mikey didn’t even try to go all out & beat Spence, he merely tried to survive.
Nordic, I’m willing to give Garcia the benefit of the doubt on his Spence fight. I believe he thought he could win, but knew after the first minute that he was wrong.
As far as, robbing the PPV money he and Spence didn’t inspire me. I thought it was a bad mismatch and I don’t pay for those. The only surprise was that Spence didn’t stop Garcia.
Overall, he had a good career and certainly seems to be making the right decision to hang the gloves up.
He gave him a break did not want to embarrassed him at the end.
Mikey was so good he and I both believed he could beat Spence, after that he lost a passion for the game I thought, he had a fancy car and beautiful home he earned and I wish him health and happiness in retirement. I hope we can continue to watch him in the Garcia gym.
What a mess the last part of his career but if you step back from that Mikey had a superb career.
he should have never moved up to welterweight.
Knowing Mikey he’s probably doing this because some negotiations fell through and now he wants ‘Payday’….
Probably retired because his market value plummeted after that embarrassing loss to Martin. Good luck to him. Better to get out sooner than later
he’ll be back next year
Happy about his retirement, wish you the best Mickey..
Not too long ago, this was the right time to retire. Get in, fight hard, often and get out. He had one hell of a run. Hopefully, he made more than enough to enjoy life and have his earnings do the work.
Thank you Mikey. You have us great fights, ran from no one and provided an all time classic knockout by flattening Zlaticanin.
Mikey was a fine fighter but his best wins came against Salido, JuanMa, Martinez, Burgos, Zlaticanin, Broner, Easter, and Lipinets, hardly the resume of a great fighter. Another example of how the proliferation of world title belts can inflate a fighter’s profile. It’s too bad because a few signature wins against top opposition like Lomachenko and Linares at 135 could’ve made all the difference. The best fighter he ever fought was Spence and that was more a drubbing than a fight, unfortunately. Nevertheless, the fact that he’s one of three fighters to win titles at 126, 130, 135, and 140 (the others being Pacquiao and JMM) likely gets him a nod to Canastota.
You make a very good point.
When he needs money ( next year) he will be back.
VERY VERY HAPPY MICKEY GOT OUT WITH HIS BRAINS INTACT… HE’LL BE ABLE TO HOLD A GOOD CONVERSATION IF HE FEELS LIKE IT AND HE’S ALSO A FORMER WORLD CHAMPION… GREAT JOB MICKEY AND THANKS FOR ALL THE THRILLS!!!!!
Decent fighter, nothing special. 4 division this, champion that – whatever. Decent fighter, no more no less.
have a good retirement good luck to mickey garcia was a decent fighter
Great career Mikey hi from San Antonio Texas.
Good for the sport of boxing. Boring ass fighter.