Ryan Garcia’s May 2nd loss wasn’t just another notch in the red column. It might’ve been the end of his redemption arc for all we know. After that wild April bout last year, where he dropped Devin Haney three times, only for the fight to be ruled a no contest after Garcia tested positive for Ostarine, this was supposed to be his return home moment, a mere tune-up fight for the eventual rematch with Devin Haney. Instead, he came up short again, dropping to a unanimous decision loss to Rolando Romero right in the heart of New York City. Though the rematch may go ahead as scheduled, this does diminish Ryan Garcia’s standing among the boxing elites, at least for the moment. It might be the reason why even Jake Paul is taking a hit at the Victorville native now.

Though they were friends in the beginning, things have soured between the two lately. It felt like they had made up after Garcia won his Devin Haney fight last year, but it quickly waned. Then came Ryan Garcia’s statement last month. During the lead-up to the Romero bout, in an interview with USA Today Sports, when asked for his thoughts on Jake Paul, the 26-year-old replied, “He’s a wild card.” Oh, but that wasn’t all. Garcia added, “I mean, I don’t know if he’s a boxer… He’s never fought in a ranked match at his weight class. I don’t even know what his weight class is, I don’t know if it’s heavyweight, I don’t know. It’s cruiserweight. I don’t know what his weight class is, so [I] can’t really say that he’s legitimate.” Now, if you are Jake Paul, you might take offence to it. And take offense he did.

After the loss, while sharing an image of Ryan Garcia on the canvas after his second-round knockdown, on his Instagram story, Paul wrote, “Irony always wins.” Then today, the 28-year-old fired another salvo at Garcia. “Yeah I mean he [Ryan Garcia] was all week saying, Jake’s not a real boxer, saying things about me,” Jake Paul stated when asked about his Instagram story. “Then goes in there and throws the least amount of punches in a 12-round fight ever. So you can’t really talk about me when you put on performances like that.”

And if that wasn’t enough, Jake Paul added, “He’s really in a weird position in his career.” In the end, the 28-year-old shared, “I love the kid but if he wants to talk smack, I’m gonna talk smack back.” But while Jake Paul criticized Ryan Garcia for falling short in his performance, Canelo Alvarez, his former training partner, feels sorry for his young friend.

Despite Jake Paul’s rebuke, Canelo Alvarez shows his support for Ryan Garcia

Fresh off a unanimous decision victory against William Scull on May 3rd, when asked by FightHubTV for his thoughts on Ryan Garcia’s loss to Romero, Canelo Alvarez kept it simple. “I feel sorry for him,” he said. “But he’s in boxing. You know things happen.”

The 34-year-old further added, “One year layoff—it’s hard.” When the Guadalajara native was asked, “Would you rather see him fight Haney again? Or Rolly again?” Canelo Alvarez didn’t push for either direction. “You know, whatever,” he said calmly. “He’s a good fighter.” You see, even after Ryan Garcia’s back-to-back setbacks, Canelo Alvarez continues to show his support for the young star.

So with that said, it’ll be interesting to see which route Ryan Garcia chooses next. But what do you think—does Jake Paul have a point? And who do you think Ryan Garcia should fight next?