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Ryan Garcia’s promoter expressed support Saturday after the popular lightweight withdrew from his upcoming fight.
Oscar De La Hoya, whose company promotes Garcia, stated on Twitter that Garcia’s health is of “utmost importance” to those at Golden Boy Promotions. Garcia alluded to health issues with which he is dealing in an Instagram post Saturday, but the 22-year-old contender didn’t specify exactly why he pulled out of his fight against Javier Fortuna.
Garcia (21-0, 18 KOs), of Victorville, California, and the Dominican Republic’s Fortuna (36-2-1, 25 KOs, 2 NC) were scheduled to fight July 9 for Garcia’s WBC interim lightweight title.
“The health of our fighters is of the utmost importance to us at Golden Boy,” De La Hoya wrote in a Tweet to his 958,000 followers. “We wholeheartedly support Ryan Garcia and wish him the best during this time.”
Fortuna offered Garcia well wishes earlier Saturday.
“I wish Ryan Garcia a speedy recovery,” Fortuna said. “There are things more important than fighting and I hope he is able to quickly recover. We can reschedule our fight for a time when I can face and beat a 100-percent prepared version of Ryan Garcia.”
The Garcia-Fortuna fight was officially announced April 13. The site for their fight had not been determined before Garcia withdrew from it.
Garcia previously revealed his struggles with anxiety and depression on social media, but his admission Saturday came as a surprise.
“I know this news may be disappointing to some of my fans, but I am announcing today that I am withdrawing from my July 9th fight,” Garcia wrote on his verified Instagram channel, which has 8.6 million followers. “At this time, it is important to manage my health and wellbeing. I have decided to take some time off to focus on becoming a stronger version of myself. I hope to be back soon and am looking forward to stepping back into the ring when I am my healthiest self. I want to Thank God, my family, my doctors and my supporters.”
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.