Ryan Garcia's first fight with Derrick James as his trainer got off to a stellar start Saturday night.
Fighting for the first time since suffering his lone loss this past April, Garcia delivered a stunning eighth-round knockout of Oscar Duarte at Toyota Arena in Houston, Texas, and live on DAZN.
Just when it looked like the pressure-fighting Duarte was gaining momentum, Garcia turned the tide in a flash with a left hook to the temple that put Duarte on jelly legs. Sensing he had Duarte hurt, Garcia smothered him with punches, including a right hook and uppercut, forcing Duarte to drop to a knee.
Duarte would rise off the canvas after the count of nine, though the referee stopped the fight right then and there, rewarding Garcia (24-1)Â with his 20th pro knockout.
"I fought hard to find myself again and I did a lot of soul-searching," Garcia told DAZN's Chris Mannix about returning to the ring since falling to Gervonta Davis by seventh-round KO nearly eight months back.
Garcia entered the fight flashing his quicker hand speed, though he seemed to respect the power of the heavy-handed Duarte. Toward the second half of the fight, Garcia noticeably resorted to the shoulder roll more, while moving around the ring enough to draw boos from the Texas crowd.
That hook to the temple ended any criticism of "King Ry" on the night as he positions himself to go after a 140-pound world title next, having these words for WBA titleholder Rolando "Rolly" Romero.
"I'm committing to becoming a world champion," Garcia told DAZN. "If Rollys wants that, bring it on, Rollys."
Here's how the entire Garcia vs. Duarte main card went.
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