In a night that was meant to reaffirm Ryan Garcia’s redemption arc on May 2nd in Times Square, Rolando “Rolly” Romero did something far more dramatic—he rewrote it. Garcia’s highly anticipated return to the ring, after a year-long suspension, ended with a bitter decision loss at the hands of the ever-chaotic Romero, who, leading up to the bout, was a massive underdog. Shocked by the upset, most immediately took to social media to express their disbelief. Images of Terence Crawford, Shakur Stevenson, and Mike Tyson sitting ringside, reacting in shock after Garcia’s second-round knockdown to Rolly quickly went viral. “I told @ShakurStevenson before the fight that Rolly was going to win,” Crawford even tweeted following the bout.

The following weeks witnessed the boxing community massively slamming the Victorville native, with some even attributing his 2024 initial win over Devin Haney to his consumption of PEDs. So, a few days ago, when Kevin Garcia from FightHype caught up with Claressa Shields, someone who shares a massive dislike for Ryan Garcia, it was probably expected that the conversation would go only one way. But surprisingly, it didn’t.

When asked directly whether she was more impressed with Rolando Romero’s performance or disappointed by Garcia’s, Shields didn’t flinch. “I was—I was impressed by Roelly. I thought that Ryan had better skills than Rolly, but Rolly came out there and had the better game plan, had the better skills, and I mean, he knocked him down, which, I mean, it was the most exciting thing that happened fight night,” she admitted candidly. Claressa Shields has criticized Ryan Garcia in the past. But here, she simply acknowledged Rolando Romero’s better planning as the reason for his winning the fight. But overall, as the 30-year-old said, the 2nd round knockdown was the only interesting part of the night.

According to CompuBox stats, the two combined only managed to land 123 out of his 490 punches thrown. This was even lower than the 503 punches that Devin Haney and Jose Ramirez managed to through combined in the co-main event that night. Romero’s knockdown in the second round—a vicious left hook—shifted the entire energy of the fight, and Garcia never truly recovered.

In the end, the judges scored the bout 115–112, 115–112, and 118–109 in favor of Rolando Romero. Regardless, the loss does paint a grim portrait for the 26-year-old who was all set to face Haney. Because of the upset, the future of that rematch has now been rendered uncertain.

Nevertheless, if Claressa Shields’ verdict was calm and clinical, Rolando Romero’s former trainer, Bullet Gordon, had no such interest in diplomacy.

Rolando Romero’s former trainer breaks down Ryan Garcia’s loss

Cromwell ‘Bullet’ Gordon’s analysis of Ryan Garcia’s loss was laced with disappointment. “Ryan is not a dog,” Cromwell told FightHype. “He’s a good talent, he’s not a dog, and he doesn’t have any heart… Once you take his heart, it’s over,” he stated pointedly.

Coach Gordon, who trained Romero into championship form, claimed he wasn’t the least bit surprised by the upset in Times Square. In his words, Garcia “was afraid to engage” before the knockdown in round 2 even landed. Once Rolly dropped him, Bullet felt, “the fight was over.” And to his eye, Garcia never mentally recovered. His body remained in the ring, but the fight in him had vanished. What the public viewed as hesitancy or tactical caution, Coach Cromwell interpreted as a complete psychological collapse—a fighter who quit before he had a chance to claw back.

Beyond emotion, Bullet pointed to boxing fundamentals—or the lack thereof. Ryan Garcia’s signature left hook was telegraphed and easily baited. “He threw a semi-fast left hook, and Rolly was hoping and wishing for it and just gave him a dose of his own medicine,” he said. Rolly’s evolution, in Cromwell’s eyes, was patience. “He showed the world he’s more patient, and that only comes with time.” But he was quick to temper the hype, warning fans not to overvalue Rolly’s performance just yet. “He was fighting a gun-shy fighter. If it had been Pitbull Cruz in that ring, Rolly would’ve looked just as mediocre.”

Still, Bullet made his core philosophy clear: Rolly is a fighter with “heart”—Ryan Garcia, in his opinion, simply isn’t. Whether that harsh judgment holds under future lights remains to be seen. But one thing’s for sure: Garcia’s next move will be carefully examined and his return eagerly awaited, and how he bounces back will tell the world who he is.