Davis remains undefeated after a devastating body shot ends the highly anticipated showdown with Garcia.
Gervonta “Tank” Davis handed fellow American “King” Ryan Garcia his first career loss with a heavy body shot in the seventh round of their main event in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Davis, 28, of Baltimore, Maryland, has won five world titles at super featherweight, lightweight and super lightweight and now has a record of 29-0 with 27 knockouts.
Davis had dropped the 24-year-old Garcia in the second round Saturday night with a ferocious left counterpunch.
It was a competitive fight, and Garcia had some good moments, but after the second round, Davis seemed to be out in front.
The knockout punch was blindingly quick as Davis took advantage of an advance from Garcia, landing a perfectly placed punch to Garcia’s ribcage.
After staggering back, Garcia steadied himself and appeared to be able to keep fighting, throwing a left jab into the air before dropping to a knee.
“It was a good shot,” Davis said after the fight. “I thought he was going to get up. I was looking at him, trying to tell him ‘get up’.
“And he just shook his head.”
There were no titles on the line for this highly publicized matchup, which took place at a catch weight of 136 pounds (62 kg).
However, a lot of bragging rights and profits were at stake in this fight, which was broadcast live on pay-per-view.
The fight also drew a packed celebrity audience with former world heavyweight champion Mike Tyson in attendance at the sold-out T-Mobile Arena.
“I am the face of boxing,” Davis declared after the fight.
“I just saw Rihanna perform at the Super Bowl, and I thought that would be me one day, and here we are,” she said.
“It definitely matches the dream, but the work is never done until I retire, so I’m going to keep my head down, be humble and keep working.”
Garcia, meanwhile, will have to go back to the drawing board after falling to 23-1 with 19 knockouts.
After a testy build-up to the fight, Garcia was gracious in defeat, calling it “an honor” to be in the ring with Davis.
Nothing like fighting one of the best! Hopefully one day we can run it again! 🔥👑 pic.twitter.com/oMEGoTifWk
— RYAN GARCIA (@RyanGarcia) April 23, 2023
“He just caught me with a good shot,” Garcia said. “I just couldn’t recover. She snuck under me and got me good.”
He said he did not want to elaborate but, when asked, agreed that he could not breathe.
“I was going to get back up, but I just couldn’t get up,” he said.
Discover more from PressNewsAgency
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.