Danny Garcia has an excellent shot of beating Errol Spence Jr on November 21 due to the car crash ‘The Truth’ was recently involved in, according to promoter Lou DiBella. He says Spence’s Ferrari Spyder was traveling over 100 mph at the time of his accident on October 10 in Dallas, Texas, and he’s not certain if Errol will be the same fighter once was before the crash.
Although Spence (26-0, 21 KOs) looks in excellent shape from his recent videos, there’s no way of knowing how he’ll react when he starts taking big shots from Danny ‘Swift’ Garcia (36-2, 21 KOs).
Garcia might be the biggest puncher in the 147-pound division, which makes him dangerous for Spence, given the head trauma he suffered in his car accident.
DiBella says that if not for Spence’s crash, he would be a three or four to one favorite to beat the 32-year-old Garcia, but that’s not the case now. With the injuries Spence suffered, DiBella views the fight as an even month match-up. Garcia is getting the Spence fight at the ideal time to dethrone him, and knock him off the #1 spot at 147.
Spence’s car crash makes him vulnerable
“I love that fight,” said promoter Lou DiBella to Seconds Out on the Spence vs. Garcia fight. “I’ve had the opportunity to work with both fighters in the past. I think they’re both talented fighters.
“I think Errol’s pedigree, game, and attributes are slightly superior to Danny, but Danny is one of the most underrated guys in boxing. Danny keeps winning, and Danny Garcia is a terrific fighter.
“Now factor in an accident going 150 miles per hour in a Ferrari, and this being Spence’s first fight back. That adds all the interest and intrigue for me because what I would have considered previously to be a three to one type of battle for the likely result.
“Somewhere in that neighborhood; three to one, four to one. It now moves much closer to an even money kind of concept. I would still maybe assume that Spence is in better shape than many people think, and I would probably still make him a slight favorite, but a slight favorite,” said Dibella.
Danny Garcia can win
“Do I think Danny can win? Absolutely and is a fight that I want to see? Yep, and not only that. It’s a fight that I would pay for. So if that one’s on pay-per-view, I’m buying,” said DiBella on Spence vs. Garcia.
“He [Spence] knows how to fight. The issue isn’t whether he knows how to fight. He and his doctors know where he is right now is where he’s going to be in a year.
“Do I think it’s foolish or second-guessed if Danny wins? No. Spence was the #1 talent in that division before the accident. He’s had significant time off. His doctors and his managers and his crew believe this is a worthwhile risk.
“I’m not going to second-guess it because what would it prove if he went in there with an inferior opponent and won easily. And by the way, what would it prove if he went in there with an inferior opponent and didn’t look as impressive as he used to.
“It wouldn’t mean much either way. I actually think it’s exactly the right thing to do. I think he knows in his heart that he’s a favorite to beat Danny Garcia,” said DiBella of Spence.
Some boxing fans think Spence, 30, is showing Danny ‘Swift’ no respect by taking the fight against him without taking a tune-up. A win for Danny certainly seems possible, especially with the damage Spence took in the accident.
When you add in the fact that Spence has been acting agitating in his recent video, sounding strange and not acting like the calm person he was before the accident, he could be at risk for losing the fight.
You’d like to think that Spence’s memory has been checked out by his doctors to make sure that he didn’t suffer neurological problems as a result of the car crash.
Great opportunity for Garcia
“He knows that Danny Garcia will never be given a chance by you and me than right now. I actually think it’s an astute business move. I give Spence credit for it, and I think it’s a great opportunity for Danny.
“Yes,” said DiBella when asked if Spence is the #1 welterweight above Terence Crawford if he beats Danny Garcia. “It’s not that Crawford isn’t great.
“It’s because Crawford hasn’t had the opportunity to fight the same resume of fighters that Spence has, particularly if Spence defeats Danny Garcia.
“That’s a big victory. Not only that. I go a little bit farther. He goes into my top five pound-for-pound unequivocally and maybe as high a #2 or #3. I really am a fan of Danny Garcia. I think he’s a top-level welterweight.
“I think he’s a top, top guy that is somewhat underrated. The same way that I think Shawn Porter is somewhat underrated. If Spence coming off that kind of accident and this layoff can get in the ring and beat Danny Garcia in his first fight coming back.
“That in my mind is a tremendous athletic achievement. So he’s right up there in my mind with [Vasiliy] Lomachenko and [Naoya] Inoue, and I would put him ahead of Crawford,” said DiBella.
For Danny, it doesn’t get any better than this. He’s got Spence in the perfect position with him coming off a HARD fight against Shawn Porter and a car crash on top of that. If Spence is going to lose, this would be the ideal time for it to happen.
All the things that have happened to Spence have created the perfect storm that could wipe him out when he gets inside the ring with Danny.
What Spence has going against him:
- Car crash
- The punishment he took in the Shawn Porter fight
- Facing Danny Garcia, arguably the biggest puncher in the welterweight division
- Spence’s behavior seeming odd
- Failing to take a tune-up
- Overlooking Danny
Garcia hasn’t given any hints about what his game plan is for the fight, but you can bet that he’s going to be trying to take Spence’s head off with every shot. If something isn’t right with Spence’s brain, Danny will bring that out and expose it. Spence might need to take a long break from boxing to recover if he loses to Garcia.