Written by Hector Luis Garcia was one of the hottest fighters in the world going into his fight with Gervonta Davis on Jan. 7 in Washington, D.C.
The Dominican stunned the boxing world by outpointing then-unbeaten Chris Colbert in February of last year and then did the same against Roger Gutierrez to win a 130-pound title in August.
He was a Fighter of the Year candidate. And then the gifted Davis put him in his place.
“Tank” outboxed Garcia, broke him down with an increasing number of punishing blows to the head and body and then forced him to quit on stool after eight rounds of the scheduled 12-round 135-pound fight near Davis’ hometown of Baltimore.
As they say, there are levels to boxing. Garcia fights at a high level, Davis somewhere in the stratosphere.
The victory was particularly important because it sets up an anticipated showdown with fellow social media star and gifted fighter Ryan Garcia on April 15 in Las Vegas, although the deal hasn’t been finalized.
Ryan Garcia should be Davis’ most difficult opponent to date. However, Davis (28-0, 26 KOs) is already favored to win the 136-pound catch-weight bout because of performances like his dominating victory over Hector Garcia.
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Gervonta Davis forces Hector Luis Garcia to quit on stool after eight rounds
Gallery
Photos: Gervonta Davis’ knockout of Hector Luis Garcia