Last Saturday night featherweight contender Miguel ‘Mikey’ Garcia showed his complete arsenal is disposing of gritty but outgunned Matt Remillard at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. For ten rounds we saw a one-sided showcase punctuated by Garcia’s late-round thrashing as he upped the ante in dropping Remillard in rounds nine and ten before the Connecticut-based fighter’s corner wisely called a halt to the fight.
At 23 years of age Garcia is a blossoming talent. There may not be anything particularly striking about his skills inside of the ring but he goes about his business in a workmanlike fashion and he is a powerful and sturdy kid who has a professionalism about him that beguiles his youth.
The top dogs at 126 pounds are WBA champion Yuriorkis Gamboa and WBO kingpin Juan Manuel Lopez, both of whom Garcia and his trainer and brother Robert seem to hint that he isn’t quite ready for. So what should be next for Mikey? When eyeing the landscape a few names come to mind.
Bernabe Concepcion
On May 6th Bernabe Concepcion will make the first appearance inside of a ring since his disastrous 2nd round TKO loss to Lopez last July. Concepcion is an athletic and powerful guy but his loss to Lopez was so dramatic that you can’t help but wonder how he will bounce back.
Concepcion is only 23 years old but he has the aura of a veteran about him with seven years of pro experience and two world title shots already under his belt. On the 6th is he scheduled to face off with the dreaded TBA and if successful he will likely be looking to recharge and shoot for a victory that can catapult him closer to another title shot.
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A fight between Garcia and Concepcion would likely be a barn burner, given the pop in each man’s fists and the aggression they have showed in the past. And anyone looking to discount the Filipino brute should look no further than the end of his first round with Lopez, a stanza in which he dropped the Puerto Rican with an excellent counter right hook.
This fight would give Concepcion the chance to show people that he still belongs and would allow Garcia to show that he is ready for a legitimate title shot.
Rafael Marquez
Two time champion Rafael Marquez is a man who shouldn’t be taken lightly.
The last time we saw the Mexico City fighter inside of a ring he was seen taking Lopez to hell and back in the fourth round of their fight before fading late and eventually suffering an 8th round TKO after refusing to answer the bell for the ninth round. Shortly after his loss Marquez’s people cited an injured shoulder for his inability to continue on.
At 35 years of age Marquez isn’t the same man who held titles at 118 and 122 pounds nor is he the fighter we remember from his electrifying battles with Israel Vazquez. But that doesn’t mean he can’t still surprise us again if the situation is right.
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Often times in the sport we will see a seasoned veteran with their back to the wall who defies the odds when pitted with a young gun on the rise. A Garcia-Marquez clash might be Rafael’s last shot on such a stage and he would be coming into the bout with a chip on his shoulder, fully believing the Lopez bout would have been different had his shoulder not acted up.
They always say that a fighter’s power is the last thing to go and that’s a key reason why Marquez, who has shown a chilling propensity of icing his opponents in the past, will always be dangerous. If Garcia could find a way to weather his storm and emerge victorious it would be a serious victory.
