AMERICAN ACTION
Reports on Garcia-rios, Alexanderortiz, Beltran-moses and more
FOLLOWING Danny Garcia’s surprisingly competitive ninth-round stoppage of Brandon Rios, father/trainer Angel Garcia told reporters, “This bulls**t with putting fighters down has to stop. You guys like to take shots, but never took one on the tip of your nose.” Garcia’s mouth ought to come with a filter, but every now and then some reason seeps through.
When this fight was first announced, it was scorned as just another cherry-pick for a Garcia whose career is supposedly filled with them. From Amir Khan to Lucas Matthysse to Lamont Peterson to Zab Judah to Mauricio Herrera to Keith Thurman, Garcia’s fought ‘em all at 140 and 147 – and the former two-weight world titlist is still only 29. Yet fans love bringing up opponents such Rod Salka, an undeserving challenger who the Philly man flattened nearly four years ago.
Oxnard, California resident Rios, 31, was expected to meet a similar fate, and for good reason. The former world lightweight champion’s peak was so long ago, Kanye West was still considered sane. Weight struggles and wars sapped much of his prime. The cries of mismatch were well-deserved, even though he showed flashes of old in stopping Aaron Herrera in June.
“I ain’t no damn cherry,” Rios declared before the fight. “I’m a wild berry, whatever that means.” At the weigh-in, he looked as fit and happy as we’ve seen in years. “Bam Bam” had summoned the best possible version of himself for this bout, aided by an adoring crowd at the Mandalay Bay Hotel & Casino.
If Garcia had lost any hunger after his decision loss to Thurman in March, Rios figured to expose it. Garcia controlled the action in the first. Rios unveiled his strategy in the second, cutting off the ring and using angles to attack Garcia when his back touched the ropes. He enjoyed a better third, burrowing his way inside and catching Garcia with overhand rights.
A brawl broke out in the fourth. This was Rios’ fight. When Garcia landed his right, Rios responded with his own. He motioned for more as Garcia returned to his corner at round’s end. Rios continued to dictate the action in the fifth and sixth. In the corner, Angel Garcia pleaded with his son to remain composed. He responded in a dominant seventh, picking Rios off as he came in, and momentarily stunning him with a counter hook-right cross combination.
Garcia began pulling away in the eighth, beating Rios to the punch with punishing shots. Rios was wearing down. With a minute remaining in the ninth, he dropped his left ever so slightly after throwing a jab. Garcia countered with a booming right over it. Rios sagged to the floor. He managed to rise at ‘eight’ but stumbled when referee Kenny Bayless asked him to come forward, prompting the stoppage at 2-25 of this WBC welterweight title eliminator.
The fight ended then, but the action didn’t. Midway through Garcia’s post-fight interview, Shawn Porter stormed the ring and demanded a fight. A heated exchange ensued, and the scrum was broken up by security. Garcia-porter is a fan-friendly fight between two world-class welters. Make it happen.
David Benavidez’s [inset] rematch with Ronald Gavril was supposed to be the most competitive match on the card. Instead, WBC super-middleweight title-holder Benavidez dominated, boxing his shorter opponent to win a wide unanimous decision.
Twenty-one-year-old Benavidez, of Phoenix, Arizona, is arguably the best 168-pounder today. In September, he eked out a split points win over Gavril, 31, in one of the best fights of 2017. Benavidez took the lessons from that fight and made veteran-like adjustments this time.
The champion won the first three stanzas using an effective jab. He almost ended it in the fourth, when a right uppercut nearly decapitated Gavril. But the Las Vegas-based Romanian’s chin is as hard as quitting sugar. He survived the round, but never threatened again.
Benavidez controlled the fight with that jab. When the challenger finally went for broke in eighth, Benavidez ate him up with a series of rights that nearly forced referee Russell Mora to step in. Gavril half-heartedly followed Benavidez around thereafter, losing by two scores of 120-108 and one of 119-109.
THE VERDICT Garcia is now in line for a rematch with Thurman, but a clash with Porter could be next.