Ryan Garcia cements himself as boxing's biggest star with second-round stoppage of Conor Benn
· Yahoo Sports
LAS VEGAS – In no uncertain terms, we’ve entered the Ryan Garcia era.
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At 1:25 in the second round of his WBC welterweight title fight against Conor Benn, Garcia officially stamped himself as the biggest star in boxing with a devastating stoppage that was largely the result of a continuous onslaught that lasted the entirety of the shortened round.
The fight all but ended, albeit unofficially, about 50 seconds before referee Thomas Taylor ended things in actuality. Near the 2:15 mark of the round, Garcia landed a mind-erasing right hook that folded Benn at the knees and sent him to the canvas in the most unflattering of fashions. Benn managed to briefly steady himself, but from that point, calling the fight was merely a formality. The first round was a bit more competitive between the pair, with both taking an overly-aggressive approach, but it was obvious from the outset that Benn was overmatched.
“I think that it kind of went exactly how I imagined it,” Garcia said. “He decided to put pressure on me right away, kind of banking on the idea that I may just start folding somehow, and just maybe get a little tired. But you know, you can't jump in like that … He's exactly what I thought he was. He just needs to gain a little bit more experience. I don't think he has enough experience at this point.”
Going into the weekend, it was no secret that Garcia was in a position to potentially solidify himself as the marquee name in the sport. Getting the nod to headline a Las Vegas card on Mexican Independence Day is an honor that’s annually been reserved for the biggest name in the sport. And if the highly partisan, pro-Garcia powder keg that was T-Mobile Arena on Saturday bore one truth, it’s that Garcia is definitively the biggest star in the sport.
“You gotta say so, right?,” Garcia said. “I mean, you have to say so. You got to respect it. You know, I'm going to hold that as high as I can and try to always be the best champion and the best face of boxing I can possibly be. I'm going to continue maturing and continue evolving.”
If anyone in the fight game knows what makes a star, it’s Dana White. We knew White was going to seek the biggest names to build the reputation of Zuffa Boxing, and while Benn was the featured Zuffa fighter and Garcia is still with Oscar De La Hoya and Golden Boy for one more fight, it feels like pre-ordained fate that Garcia will soon become Zuffa’s face.
“He's one of the best in the world,” White said. “He did everything he said he was going to do, and he's got knockout power. He's a good-looking kid. He speaks well, and he ducks nobody. This kid wants to fight everybody, and that's what any fight fan likes.
“He's got knockout power. Speaks really well. Good-looking kid. You know, and a few years ago, the younger generation, you know, liked him. They started to follow him, even kids that don't follow boxing and don't traditionally watch the sport.”
When Garcia was asked in the post-fight presser about whether he would seek a move to Zuffa when his Golden Boy contract expired, he certainly didn’t shoot down the idea. In fact, he made a point to compliment how smooth the operation surrounding this bout went.
“Very, very impressed,” Garcia said. ‘I think that they did one of the best jobs of coordinating things, making sure that everything is regulated. I love their process. I know I sound like I'm glazing, but I'm just giving you the truth. Basically, like man, they were on top of everything. The media, the way they promote, it's like I can't keep saying how many good things. There's really great things, and let's just say I'm very impressed.”
Needless to say, the possibilities for Garcia are endless after proving what he proved on Saturday. The first two targets on his hit list are Teofimo Lopez and Devin Haney, the former of which was stopped from entering the ring after the fight and the latter of which was the target of an expletive-laced barb from Garcia in his post-fight interview. Regardless, Garcia knows he has the golden ticket and it’s clear he plans to take full advantage.
“I definitely got the golden ticket,” Garcia said. “They want to come get it. What other side will we get the golden tickets out to? We're Willy Wonka in there … I think they got a little taste of it on Mexican Independence Weekend. Now they're going to get the main dish for Cinco de Mayo.”