Trainer Robert Garcia breaks down the debate on the best who ever did it from Mexico.
Wil Esco is an assistant editor of Bad Left Hook and has been covering boxing for SB Nation since 2014.
Speaking to Fight Hype, trainer Robert Garcia shares his thoughts on who should be considered as the greatest Mexican fighter of all time between Canelo Alvarez and Julio Cesar Chavez. Here’s some of what Garcia had to say on the topic.
“To just the regular fans, Chavez is always going to be #1,” Garcia said. “Chavez is never going to be moved from that position. But I could say that Canelo has already surpassed Chavez in many ways. Just in boxing itself Canelo has accomplished more than Chavez ever did. But when it comes to the love of the Mexican fans ain’t nobody ever going to be better than Chavez.
“So I have to say Chavez, Chavez just for that reason. But when it comes to accomplishing more and doing more, maybe even getting bigger wins — I think Canelo already did better but it’s just never going to be the same.
“We’re never going to see Canelo in a fight like Chavez was against Meldrick Taylor. We’re never going to see Canelo in a fight like Morales vs Barrera. Canelo’s just too smart, he fights smart, he takes care of his health, he fights to win without getting hit. He doesn’t go out and he doesn’t get dropped, he doesn’t get cut — those are the reasons why I think he already surpassed everybody.
“To me, he probably is the best Mexican of all time. But as a fan, no, because we want to see the blood, we want to see the knockdowns and get up from a knockdown and knockout your opponent. We want to see wars, rematches, fight each other.
“Just the fact that Canelo’s not fighting Benavidez is already something that goes against him when it comes to fans from Mexico…we wanted you to fight Benavidez, but then again he doesn’t have to. He already did everything, he doesn’t have to prove nobody just like I said about Crawford.”
On whether Canelo could steal the hearts away from Chavez with a blood and guts war with Benavidez
“100%. Even if he loses, which I’m not saying he will but even if he was to lose, if he puts up a fight that we want to see and everybody wants that fight and even if he loses I think that the fans would get his respect.”
