In a thrilling non-title catchweight bout, Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis knocked out Ryan Garcia in the seventh round, ending one of boxing’s fiercest rivalries.
Davis and Ryan Garcia entered the match with unbeaten records and an impressive history of knockouts, having verbally sparred for years before agreeing to the catchweight fight at 136 pounds.
The sold-out event took place in Las Vegas in front of 20,842 spectators. The fight lived up to its hype, despite becoming more one-sided as the night progressed. Davis claimed victory in five of the first six rounds before delivering the decisive blow in the seventh.
“I didn’t think that body shot would finish the fight, but when I saw his facial expression, I knew I had to hit him,” Davis said afterward, as reported by Sky Sports.
Initially, the powerful body shot didn’t seem like it would result in a knockout. Instead, Garcia continued as if it was just another hit he’d taken throughout the night. However, Davis’s power became apparent a moment later when Garcia, with a bloodied nose, fell to one knee and shook his head as the referee counted down.
In the second round, Davis knocked Garcia down with a left uppercut, but Garcia couldn’t get back up, bringing an end to one of the most anticipated fights in recent memory. However, the second round saw the action intensify, with Garcia unleashing a flurry of punches and Davis responding with a perfectly timed left hook that floored his opponent.
Garcia seemed to progress in the sixth round, landing two right-handed shots to Davis’ face before the seventh round, which was the decisive moment. Garcia admitted that Davis caught him with a well-placed shot, leaving him unable to recover. He explained that Davis’s strong body blow made breathing difficult, and he couldn’t get back up.
Davis’s career record improved to 29-0, with 27 knockouts, while Garcia’s record dropped to 23-1 after suffering his first professional loss.
Additional Input was taken from “CNN”