Ryan Garcia secured a knockout victory over Oscar Duarte in his return to the super lightweight division, marking his first win since his April 22nd loss to Gervonta Davis at lightweight. Despite the win, Garcia’s experimentation with untrained techniques appeared to create challenges for him, almost putting him in trouble multiple times. The main event took place at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas, on December 2nd. The fight card was promoted by Golden Boy Promotions and broadcasted by DAZN.
Under the guidance of new trainer Derrick James for the first time, Ryan Garcia (24-1, 20 KO’s) did not exhibit the same dominance as in previous matches, attributed partly to the new partnership and Oscar Duarte’s (26-2-1, 21 KO’s) determination to win. However, in his return to 140 lbs, Garcia secured the victory by knockout.
While Garcia convincingly won the early rounds, the latter part of the match revealed Duarte’s resilience and strength in withstanding Garcia’s punches. Garcia’s defensive struggles, particularly with ineffective shoulder rolls, drew attention as he turned his back on Duarte while attempting and failing advanced defensive techniques.
Although Duarte posed an offensive threat, Garcia’s superior skill set and physical attributes allowed him to win the majority of rounds and secure a knockout victory in the eighth round. The knockout followed a left hook that appeared to heavily stun Duarte, and Garcia capitalized with devastating punches, sending Duarte to the ropes and ultimately to the canvas.
Despite Duarte seemingly almost beating the count of ten, the referee waved off the match, and Ryan Garcia was declared the winner by knockout, adhering to Texas Commission rules that consider count-outs as knockouts.
Garcia’s victory marked another triumph at 140 lbs, his first after the loss to Gervonta Davis earlier in the year. At the post-match press conference, the spotlight was on the new partnership between Ryan Garcia and Derrick James, which Garcia embraced after the loss to Davis.
“I feel like I found a home in Dallas, a home with Derrick [James],” Garcia explained during the presser.
“I just think that we’re a great fit, and I’m just happy to be there. I committed to it, and I know Derrick believes in me and… I don’t know, there ain’t really nothing to say. I’m loving it there [and] I’m ready to keep on training with him.“
In the co-main event, lightweight contenders Floyd Schofield (16-0, 12 KO’s) and Ricardo Lopez Torres (17-8-3, 12 KO’s) saw Schofield retain his unbeaten record with a stoppage win over Torres in the first round of their ten-round fight.
Golden Boy fighter Shane Mosley Jr. (21-4, 12 KO’s), son of retired boxing legend Shane Mosley, secured a stoppage victory in the sixth round against American opponent Joshua Conley (17-6-1, 11 KO’s).
