Where do you think Ryan Garcia is? Well, according to an apology video he made to his ex-wife after trashing her home and sending her NSFW texts, he should be in rehab, right? Well, in true Garcia fashion, he has made a U-turn on his promise. Safe to say, it is very unlike him to stay away from the limelight, and spend time in quiet introspection. The Victorville native is currently in Japan and made an appearance at the Super RIZIN 3 event where Filipino boxing legend Manny Pacquiao was fighting Rukiya Anpo in an exhibition match. Serving a suspension of one year in boxing due to consumption of the banned substance Ostarine ahead of the Devin Haney fight, he announced on social media beforehand that he would be present at the event.

As expected, wherever Ryan Garcia goes controversy follows him. But, this time it wasn’t of his making. He sat quietly in the audience while two fighters faced off at the press event. Things took an ugly turn when one of the fighters, a Japanese kickboxer, spotted ‘King Ry’ in the audience. Shoving his opponent away, the fighter moved toward Garcia intending to start a brawl with him. From the podium, he showed ‘KingRy’ the middle finger repeatedly, and the Victorville native responded by flipping him off as well.

Ryan Garcia and the Japanese kickboxer were ready to come to blows. But, the security team present at the venue intervened, and the Japanese fighter was escorted away from the podium. Meanwhile, Garcia was surrounded by his bodyguards while he yelled at his provocator. Moreover, in a funny moment, he told the Japanese kickboxer’s opponent to “knock him out”.

Additionally, Garcia also met Manny Pacquiao and both of them posed together for a photo at the RIZIN event. The two fighters even faced off against each other. Taking to Instagram, Garcia wrote, “It’s on like donkey Kong @mannypacquiao I love you and respect you But a battle is a battle” sparking rumors of a potential fight in the future. Notably, Garcia was in talks to fight the eight-division champion in 2021, but the negotiations fell through.

Coming back to the verbal skirmish at the RIZIN 3 event, it is still not known what exactly angered the Japanese fighter and prompted him to start a potential brawl with Ryan Garcia. Thus, it leaves room for fans to speculate on the highly tense affair.

Is challenging Ryan Garcia a straight shot to stardom?

One fan believes it was a deliberate effort on the part of the kickboxer to engage in a confrontation with Garcia as it would lead to a big PPV fight. After all, Garcia was involved in one of the biggest PPV events in fight history when he fought Gervonta Davis. The fight also generated the fifth-largest gate revenue in Nevada history at $22.8 million.

Another fan also thought the fighter engaged in a war of words with Garcia to build his own profile. Ryan Garcia is one of the biggest PPV draws in boxing, and fighting him could guarantee the kickboxer the biggest paycheck of his life.

He is just chasing the clout

— Social Updates (@socialupdatesss) July 27, 2024

Meanwhile, one fan was amazed that Ryan Garcia didn’t instigate the confrontation and was visibly calm. A quick look at the Victorville native’s social media feed would tell you that he loves to rile up his detractors, and sometimes blatantly crosses the line as well.

One fan pointed out that Garcia knew exactly how to catch people’s attention. Although, in this incident, Garcia wasn’t the instigator, he knows the art of marketability quite well. Currently, he is the most sellable fighter in boxing, all thanks to the drama he brings with him.

What do you think of Ryan Garcia’s confrontation with the Japanese kickboxer? Let us know in the comment section below.