By TXMMA Staff // Emil Fischer
From consummate entertainer to student of the game, “Bad Boy” continues his MMA evolution
EDGEWOOD, NM – Love him or hate him, Plainview Texas native Leonard Garcia (31-18) is one of MMA’s top showmen. His presence in the cage is often accompanied by spirited, MMA flavored violence. The exciting Jackson-Winklejohn featherweight will be fighting 4OZ Fight Club’s Daniel Pineda (29-18) from Houston, Texas on November 14th at Legacy FC 37 and fans have a lot to look forward to in this fight.
When asked about his recent development as a fighter, Garcia succinctly says “I’ve become a student of the game instead of an entertainer.” This is an evolution for a fighter known for his reckless abandon. Win, lose, or draw Garcia has always been a pace pusher. He knows how to rile up his opponent as well as the crowd. As for his goals at his upcoming legacy fight “Being reckless with no direction was one thing! Having a point to end the recklessness with an upper hand is the difference!” Controlled chaos is key.
Leonard Garcia is as excited for this fight as fans should be, “I feel that me and Daniel are both competitors with a chip on our shoulders I believe this fight will be a great matchup to see who is more of a man type fight! Anything other than that and I’ll be disappointed in him!” Regardless of his reckless abandon, Garcia has always been a respectful and gracious opponent “I think Daniel is a tooth and nail type guy I hope to win a close split decision after a long dragged out war! I plan on making a trip to the hospital together after this one… he’s a friend of mine! He’s the one guy that I’ve always wondered about! Now we have the opportunity to find out! I think he’s a great fighter!”
Unfortunately, Leonard Garcia was cut from the UFC after a 5 fight loss streak. However, since joining LFC, he has won 3 of his 4 fights. He is however considering retiring sooner or later “This fight will determine a lot for me being 35; I feel that my run might be coming to an end! The good thing about that is I can give it all I’ve got these next few fights and bow out with some great memories!” There is a silver lining to grappling fans though “I will actually do submission grappling tournaments in the future I think it’s very important to show my skills if I plan on being an instructor in a mixed martial arts school!”
Garcia does plan on continuing his involvement in MMA well after he leaves the fight scene “I’m going to be an instructor at Full Contact Fight Academy out of Corpus Christi Texas and it will hopefully branch into west Texas where I’m originally from!” He hasn’t begun instructing because of his fighting career “I think that fighting is an all hands on deck gig you can’t expect to perform at your best when you’re teaching others! I’ve seen many fighters lose that way.” Garcia feels that he will without a question be a great instructor because “former fighters are the best because they have seen all sides of the spectrum and they understand that the game is always evolving.”
“Fighting is a tough sport and I love it, I thank god for everything he has allowed me to accomplish! Without him I’d be nothing so I’ll continue to give him the glory so that my voice will be heard loudly! I hope to leave memories in this sport that my grandkids will hear ‘your grandpa was a great fighter!’” TXMMA will continue covering Leonard Garcia’s career, if his next few fights go his way fans may get to see more of him yet. If not, fans will get to see his influence on newer generations of fighters, and his fights will always go down in the books as thrillers.