Canelo Alvarez saw the writing on the wall for Ryan Garcia.
The undisputed 168-pound champion recently opened up about the ongoing turmoil between Garcia, the lightweight star from Victorville, Calif., and his promoter, Golden Boy Promotions founder Oscar De La Hoya. Alvarez says he had previously warned Garcia about his current predicament.
Garcia and De La Hoya recently had an acrimonious back-and-forth exchange on social media, not long after Garcia’s seventh-round stoppage to Gervonta Davis in their high-profile fight. Garcia took issue with De La Hoya for being a no-show in the post-fight press conference. In June, Golden Boy reportedly sued Garcia for attempting to get out of their contract.
Alvarez, of course, was once promoted by De La Hoya and then sued the Hall of Fame fighter over a contract dispute. They parted ways in 2020.
Alvarez was also a training stablemate of Garcia—under Eddy Reynoso—but they also had their own falling out of sorts. Garcia is currently trained by Derrick James.
“Yeah [I saw it coming],” Alvarez said on The Breakfast Club when asked about the situation between Garcia and De La Hoya. “And I told [Ryan]—you can ask him. I told him, at the end of the day, it’s his decision, right? It’s his decision. From my experience I told him, ‘Hey, take it easy. You need to see what you’re gonna do.”
“I don’t know about anything in his contract. When I was with them, I made my own contract. They don’t come and say ‘You need to sign this.’ I came with my own, with what I want.”
Alvarez is currently signed to Premier Boxing Champions on a reported three-fight deal. His first on that arrangement will take place Sept. 30 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas against Jermell Charlo, the undisputed 154-pound champion, for Alvarez’s four 168-pound titles.
Sean Nam is the author of Murder on Federal Street: Tyrone Everett, the Black Mafia, and the Last Golden Age of Philadelphia Boxing.