Former professional boxer and Showtime broadcaster Raul Marquez recently caught up with ProBoxTV to give his thoughts on one of the most marquee bouts to start the spring boxing boom. On April 22nd, Gervonta Davis will face Ryan Garcia, live on Showtime pay-per-view, at a 136-lbs catchweight.
Marquez offered candid insight that shows why Marquez is gainfully employed as a veteran broadcast time and time again.
“That’s a big fight, that is the fight everyone wants to see,” said Raul Marquez last Thursday at Cache Creek Casino Resort, in Brooks, California, at the weigh-in for a nationally televised ShoBox: The Next Generation fight card. “I am glad it finally got made, it almost didn’t get made, but I am glad it got made.”
Marquez has had a first-hand experience with Davis as for many of Davis’ biggest fights, Marquez has gotten the call to broadcast the fight for the Spanish telecast. Marquez has seen the evolution of Davis from existing on the undercard to now a star in the sport.
For Marquez, it appears that the difference is the level of competition. Davis has been fighting some top names, world champions, and also tough opposition whereas Garcia has one notable win - Luke Campbell, a former Olympic gold medalist. That seems to be what separates the two for Marquez.
“I think Ryan Garcia is a really good fighter,” said Marquez. “I [know Ryan Garcia from the amateurs], because my other two sons were in the amateurs, and came up in the same era. I always thought he was good, but I don’t think he has fought the type of guys that Tank has fought. Tank is more seasoned. Tank has been in big fights like this, I say it is a little bit too soon for Ryan Garcia, but you never know, he might rise to the occasion."
