Ryan Garcia Blames Times Square Crowd for Letting Him Down vs Rolly Romero

He came, he saw, and he left defeated. Julius Caesar‘s famous words needed a twist to reflect what unfolded in Times Square just hours ago. Amid fanfare, glitz, and high expectations, Ryan Garcia returned to the ring after a year-long suspension. With the much sought-after rematch against Devin Haney lingering in the background, many assumed his fight against Rolando Romero would be little more than a warm-up, a cakewalk. Instead, it turned into a nightmare.

Romero stunned the crowd by dropping Garcia in the second round, ultimately pulling off a unanimous decision victory. A major upset in New York. On the same card, Devin Haney secured a lackluster win over Jose Ramirez. But by the end of the night, it was clear: the highly anticipated Garcia-Haney rematch may have lost its momentum and now hangs in the balance. To his credit, Garcia was gracious in defeat, offering congratulations to Romero. Still, he couldn’t hide his disappointment. Some fans and commentators had hoped for the electric energy associated with Riyadh Season boxing spectacles. This wasn’t that it seems.

The frustration was written all over Garcia’s face. When asked by a reporter about the subdued environment, the question cut straight to the point: “Just your take on the whole scene. I’m wondering, if it had been a full arena, fans chanting — might it have changed anything? It felt kind of quiet, not what we were expecting.”

Garcia didn’t hold back. “Yeah, I didn’t really… uh, wasn’t a fan of that at all,” he admitted. “It felt like a sparring match. You could hear everybody — it just didn’t feel authentic to me.“

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