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Why Mario Barrios does not deserve harsh criticism after Ryan Garcia loss
Ryan Garcia captured the WBC welterweight championship live on DAZN with a unanimous decision victory over Mario Barrios in Las Vegas at the weekend.
The win saw ‘King Ry’ become world champion for the first time, and he dominated the bout from start to finish. Garcia looked on point from the first bell, dropping Barrios in the opening stanza on his way to a near shutout victory, with the judges scoring the bout 120-107, 119-108 and 118-109 in his favour.
Garcia deserves his flowers after a rough couple of years and I’m sure the WBC is absolutely thrilled that their shiny green and gold welterweight belt is now resting on the shoulders of one of the sport’s biggest social media influencers.
But spare a thought for the former champion – now 29-3-2 (18) - and behold the ugly gloating over a man’s downfall. Social media was a riot of malicious glee after the fight, with people queuing up to point out that Barrios was never any good to begin with.
You know Mario Barrios was TRASH when everybody with a pulse was challenging him to a fight to take that title from him.
Every boxing skill is thrown out the window for barrios. This is sad.
Lowkey want to make a tier list of boxings worst ever champions. I'm almost positive Barrios would comfortably be in there.
In 2026 we should be used to these undisputed champions of the comments section, but I felt the criticism of Barrios in the immediate aftermath of his Garcia defeat was over the top.
Boxing isn’t fickle because it is unfair. It’s fickle because it is honest. All it takes is one clean shot. Or one bad night.
However last time I checked they don’t give WBC welterweight titles away. ‘El Azteca’ didn’t win his in a raffle. Barrios is a real fighter, one who is dedicated to his craft.
He gave Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis a real fight in 2021. Stopped in the eleventh, Barrios more than held his own in that one and proved he belonged at world level, out-landing Davis in six of the ten completed rounds.
There are obvious flaws in his game. He tends to walk forward in straight lines and doesn’t move his head much. His jab, such a weapon in his 2023 victory over Yordenis Ugas, was second best against Garcia.
Hall of Fame trainer Joe Goossen had been parachuted in to train him for this fight. It was a big talking point in fight week, as Goossen used to work with Garcia. Garcia even referred to Goossen as a traitor, despite essentially sacking Goosen after his own loss to Tank Davis in May 2023.
However, after Saturday in Vegas Team Barrios might want to think about reaching out to Virgil Hunter again. Under Hunter, Barrios had developed into a classy technician, and a great body puncher. The unassuming Hunter was credited with sharpening El Azteca’s boxing fundamentals and strengthening his inside game.
Barrios will be hurting right now. Most of us will not know what it feels like to lose a world title. His house must feel incomplete. It was there a few days ago. Shiny. Heavy. Excellent for resting dramatically on one’s shoulder while looking in the mirror or pretending not to enjoy the applause at an event. And now it’s gone.
He looked out of ideas against an inspired Garcia, but I refuse to join in the online pile on alluding he was never any good. Cuff me. He is 30 years old and an established player in a division that is red hot. This is almost certainly not the end.
Sporting legacy is a fragile thing. Today’s ‘can’t miss prospect’ is tomorrow’s melancholic podcast guest explaining how it all went wrong.
Boxing mirrors life and like always, some perspective is needed. Because perspective reminds us that boxing isn't about never falling; it's about how you carry yourself in defeat and the character you show after a loss. What this sport has shown us is that a bit of perspective - and perhaps a cold compress - reveals that a loss is rarely the end.
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