Abel Sanchez names his fighter of the year contenders – and dismisses Ryan Garcia

2026 has been an interesting year for boxing. Depending on who you talk to, some will say it’s been a car crash of a year, with the biggest fights not happening consistently enough. However, others will highlight the brilliant fights that have happened, including Daniel Dubois vs Fabio Wardley x2 and Naoya Inoue vs Junto Nakatani. Dubois’ brilliant performances have ensured he is being involved in fighter of the year conversations, and after his impressive win over Emanuel Navarrete, O’Shaquie Foster has also entered the fighter of the year conversations. Respected trainer Abel Sanchez recently spoke to Fight Hub TV, where he dismissed the notion of Ryan Garcia as fighter of the year, while naming his two choices.

Abel Sanchez dismisses Ryan Garcia fighter of the year talk

Speaking to Fight Hub TV, Abel Sanchez made it clear that Ryan Garcia didn’t deserve to be crowned fighter of the year, despite the fighter himself saying he does: “No, I don’t think Ryan Garcia should get it,” the respected trainer said.

Sanchez was then asked why Garcia doesn’t deserve to be crowned fighter of the year, despite dominant wins over world champion Mario Barrios and WBC number one-ranked Conor Benn: “Look at the opposition,” Sanchez said. “In whose mind was he (Benn) rated number one? He didn’t belong in the top 10.”

“I think either (Daniel) Dubois or (O’Shaquie) Foster. They’re (Dubois victories) significant wins, just like Foster’s are significant wins,” said Sanchez regarding Dubois and Foster’s respective wins in 2026.

The Big Fight Weekend verdict

We are not quite at the end of the year, but fighter of the year discussions will start soon. There are more fights on the schedule for later this year, including the monster showdown between Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua. 

Looking back on what we have seen so far in 2026, there have been some standout performances, including Shakur Stevenson’s brilliant win over Teofimo Lopez. Ryan Garcia should be congratulated for his wins over Mario Barrios and Conor Benn; however, Sanchez is right: it’s not the highest calibre of opposition. Daniel Dubois lost decisively to Oleksandr Usyk for the second time, but managed to collect himself to come back and beat Fabio Wardley twice. Those two wins ensure he’s involved in the conversations.

O’Shaquie Foster produced a career-best win against Navarrete and deserves all the plaudits as he becomes a current three-belt champion. Looking at many other performances this year, it’s difficult to get away from Foster’s recent win and how that backed up another good win over Ray Ford earlier in the year. Unless something drastic happens between now and the end of the year, our vote goes to O’Shaquie “Ice Water” Foster.

Featured Image Credit:

Queensberry, Leigh Dawney