For a man who enjoys a following of upwards of 12 million on Instagram and 1 million on X, Ryan Garcia is now facing real heat on social media. The newly crowned welterweight champion is dealing with backlash after past clips resurfaced showing him and his father and trainer, Henry Garcia, criticizing Terence Crawford.

The timing of those posts is what has raised eyebrows. They resurfaced shortly after Ryan Garcia called out Shakur Stevenson, a close friend and protege of Crawford, over rehydration conditions tied to a potential matchup. The clips quickly gained traction online and soon caught Garcia’s attention. He moved to address the situation, suggesting that the push to circulate his old remarks appeared coordinated.

“So strange, seems super coordinated that multiple people are posting throwbacks of me disguising as if it was current,” Garcia wrote. “Really interesting bc it’s from many different platforms and different accounts. Just noticing.”

His response followed a series of tweets featuring him discussing Crawford and Stevenson. The first, posted on March 22, appeared to show him taking aim at the former undisputed champion and Shakur Stevenson during an X-Live session. A day later, another clip surfaced in which he described Crawford as overrated.

“I don’t think he’s (Crawford) as good as people say,” he said during the interview. “I’m the better fighter. Faster, stronger, I’m in my prime. He didn’t look good in his last fight….I don’t think he’s ever fought a generational talent in his life.”

Later, a third post featured Henry Garcia. Speaking at Mill City Boxing, he said Terence Crawford cautioned Shakur Stevenson in the arena about Ryan’s power following his dominant win over Mario Barrios. The resurfacing of the clips also prompted a response from Marcos Villegas, who weighed in publicly.

“I was just about to reply to one saying that clip was like a year old,” the Fight Hub TV founder wrote. “Weird how old content has been getting pushed.”

What triggered Ryan Garcia’s reaction? A look at the resurfaced clips

Beyond the online reaction, the renewed attention may also connect to Garcia’s recent interactions with David Benavidez and his team. In the build-up to his fight against Barrios, Garcia trained alongside the light heavyweight champion, and footage of their sessions drew attention online.

The two appeared together again during Garcia’s Kick stream a few days ago.

In that footage, Garcia and Benavidez took verbal shots at Shakur Stevenson. After the Barrios fight, Garcia publicly called out Stevenson, who became a four-division champion after edging out Teofimo Lopez in January.

Although open to the matchup, the light welterweight champion has set one condition: the fight must include a rehydration clause. That stipulation remains a sensitive issue for Garcia, who suffered his first career loss to Gervonta Davis three years ago after agreeing to similar terms. He has indicated he does not intend to repeat that mistake.

“Bro, I really wanted to fight Shakur bad,” Garcia told Benavidez when asked about the fights he’s looking forward to. “I just don’t like those people that think they’re like, ‘You’re not the best, bro. ‘You’re not even showing that you’re that in the ring.'”

Notably, the video was shared by the same account that posted the earlier clips of Garcia and his father.

Taken together, the sequence of posts and reactions suggests more than coincidence. Whether coordinated or not, the episode highlights how quickly old footage can resurface in today’s fight landscape and how social media narratives can shift just as fast as title opportunities.