Boxing Superstar Shouts Out ‘Naruto’ Before Match

Naruto is one of the most popular anime and manga franchises today, so fans of the series are constantly surprised by how many big names are fans of the series too.

The latest cool shout out to the series comes from the world of boxing as professional Super featherweight boxer Ryan Garcia let fans know on Twitter that he pumps up for his fights by watching Naruto.

Before his latest bout against Braulio Rodriguez at Madison Square Garden, Garcia took to Twitter to mention that he watches Naruto before his fights. He didn’t want fans to ask why he does, but he does. His knowledge of the series goes pretty in-depth too as he mentioned in a follow-up tweet one of the lessons from the series that he believes to hold real weight as well.

Garcia, boosted by the power of Naruto, impressed that night as well as he quickly defeated Rodriguez. Knocking out his opponent in one minute and fourteen seconds into the fifth round of their bout, Garcia netted his seventeeth win in an impressive 17-0 streak. He even shared a clip of his impressive win to Twitter.

It’s not hard to see why Naruto is such a popular series, especially with such a prominent athlete. The series focuses on how a young ninja believes in himself to such an extent, that he eventually makes his dreams come true and earns the respect of his peers and elders through hard work and bolstering his talent. With a smile on his face, Naruto became one of the biggest heroes in shonen manga and it’s not hard to imagine Garcia eventually doing the same in the world of boxing with the power of anime at his side.

Originally created by Masashi Kishimoto, Naruto ran in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump for 700 chapters. The story follows a young ninja, with a sealed demon within him, that wishes to become the leader of his home village. The sequel, Boruto: Naruto Next Generations is set several years after the events of the original Naruto story and features the children of many of its key characters such as Naruto and Hinata.