Many questions surrounded Errol Spence Jr. heading into his unified welterweight titles clash against Danny Garcia on Saturday night. How would he look after that horrific October 2019 automobile accident that nearly cost him his life? Would he able to take the hard shots from Garcia?
Well, Spence answered those questions by putting on a clinic to beat Garcia via unanimous decision (117-111, 116-112, 116-112) to retain his IBF and WBC welterweight belts at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. DAZN News scored the fight 119-109 for Spence.
Right from the opening bell, Spence established his dominance by asserting the jab to the head and body to let Garcia know that he didn't have any ill effects from the accident last fall. By the fourth round, Spence was well in control, busting Garcia up not only with the jab, but battering him with power shots as well.
Any time Garcia appeared to be garnering momentum, Spence would come back with a multiple punch combination to regain control. Not only was Spence standing in the pocket and trading with Garcia, but he also got comfortable enough to start throwing from different angles, which only made Garcia more gun shy.
Even though his left eye was nearly swollen shut and he was down on all three judges' scorecards, Garcia (36-3, 21 KOs) was reluctant to abandon his counter-punching style to attempt to get himself back into the fight. Being a content counterpuncher once again cost the former two-division world champ.
That, and Spence (27-0, 21 KOs) simply outclassed Garcia. Could we finally see Spence clash with WBO welterweight titlist and fellow pound-for-pound great, Terence Crawford, next? Crawford was in attendance at AT&T Stadium on Saturday night to get a closer look at "The Truth."
Spence didn't divulge much in his post-fight interview beyond his desire to return to the ring during the summer. For the sake of boxing fans, let's hope Spence vs. Crawford happens because boxing needs to learn to put the politics and pettiness aside and do what's best for the sport to grow.
Here's how the entire Errol Spence Jr. vs. Danny Garcia card went.
Spence vs. Garcia undercard results
- Frank Martin def. Tyrone Luckey via TKO at 2:31 of the fifth round
- Juan Tapia def. Fernando Garcia by unanimous decision (79-73, 78-74, 78-74)
- Isaac Avelar def. Sakaria Lukas via unanimous decision (98-92, 98-92, 98-92)
- Vito Mielnicki Jr. def. Steven Pulluaim by unanimous decision (60-52, 60-52, 60-52)