DLH Recalls How Mayweather Snr. “Threw Bucket Of Water Over My F*****g Head!”
As fans know, Ryan Garcia is now working with trainer Derrick James, this after having split with Joe Goossen shortly (if not immediately) after his stoppage defeat at the hands of Gervonta Davis. And promoter Oscar De La Hoya, who may or may not continue working with Garcia in the months and years ahead (subject to that ongoing lawsuit) says the thing Garcia needs in camp is “authority,” as in authority over him.
De La Hoya, in speaking with Fight Hub TV, said Garcia needs “military,” as in military style methods and discipline he must deal with in training camp – in boot camp if you like. Garcia has to be told what to do and he must do it, is what De La Hoya is basically saying. Referring to his own ring career, De La Hoya says the one man who really lived by a disciplinarian code was Floyd Mayweather senior, who trained Oscar for a number of his big fights.
Mayweather Snr. would do all manner of things to get De La Hoya moving and working ahead of a fight.
“From my experience, he needs authority, he needs military,” De La Hoya said of Garcia. “He needs someone that’s gonna f*****g tell him what to do, and not be afraid. Because I had that as well. The one trainer that I most respected, the one trainer that would get me out of bed at 4:30 in the morning when I didn’t wanna get up, was Floyd Mayweather Snr. I mean, he would literally throw a f*****g bucket of water over my head so that I would wake up! But that’s what I needed. So, if his new trainer, Derrick, if he’s gonna be that authority to Ryan….. I think Ryan is a sponge – he wants to learn; he wants to feel like somebody’s teaching him. So, yeah, I’m glad that he has Derrick as his trainer, because I know he’s gonna be there cracking the whip.”
Garcia is of course still young at age 24 and with a 23-1(19) record, and if he can put in the work, if he and James do gel well, maybe “KingRy” can reach the top. The fight Garcia has called for is one with Regis Prograis, up at 140 pounds. That would be heck of a statement of intent, Garcia taking that fight. Can Garcia bounce back from that loss – some say “quit job” – to Tank? Is Derrick James the man Garcia needs at this point in his career the way De La Hoya needed Mayweather Snr. at that point in his?