LAS VEGAS – Finally, a world title has been strapped to boxing’s most popular personality, Ryan Garcia.
In a sensational showing opened by a first-round knockdown of former titleholder Mario Barrios, Garcia moved beyond the disappointment of his three prior title-fight failures to capture the WBC welterweight belt.
His convincing unanimous decision triumph came by scores of 119-108, 120-107, 118-109.
“It feels great. I’m dedicating this to my dad,” Garcia said of his father, Henry, whom he re-hired after Henry coached him through his amateur and early pro career. “It was what I wanted to show: my whole arsenal. I should’ve had a knockout, but I hurt my right hand.
“We put on a hell of a show. … I showed my amateur pedigree. I can move, I can box. I hurt him multiple times. He’s a tough son of a bitch.”
Garcia, 25-2 (20 KOs), wasted little time getting to his craved feat, knocking down Barrios with a vicious right to the side of the head just 27 seconds into the bout.
Showing immediately that he was more than a one-trick pony who leaned on the left hook to knock down Devin Haney in an overturned 2024 victory, Garcia’s rights and jabs were productive against Barrios, making the hook almost an early afterthought.
“Early in my career, all of my knockouts were from the right hand. I hurt it around the sixth or seventh [round],” Garcia said. “Other than that, it all went well.”
The power rights forced two-division champion Barrios, 29-3-2 (18 KOs), to cover in the third, as he reached to land punches of substance on the Southern Californian Garcia.
Throwing the rights so rapidly had Barrios literally on his toes because the champion coming off two straight draws – including July’s versus 46-year-old Manny Pacquiao – was ill-equipped to deal with this 27-year-old prime performer.
Another right in the fifth staggered Barrios, and a left hook to the body brought another grimace. Barrios turned to protective measures, covering up and backing up at points.
“He fought very smart, very intelligent,” Barrios said. “We figured to expect the right hand. I wasn't expecting it the way he threw it, a looped overhand.
“He fought a very smart fight.”
Garcia retreated to the corner where his father-trainer Henry resided after Garcia had cycled through cornermen including Eddy Reynoso, Derrick James and Joe Goossen, who cornered Barrios on Saturday.
A left hook to the head in the sixth wobbled Barrios, as Garcia retreated to his father for reminders delivered with a confident smile.
“It’s like it was written for a story,” Garcia said. “There’s a special relationship with your father. If you've got a dad, tell him you love him.”
Powerful head combinations by Garcia in the seventh diminished Barrios’ hopes. Garcia eased through the eighth, then returned to discouraging Barrios with the power shots that noticeably swelled Barrios’ nose.
Garcia spent the opening minute of the 10th further weakening Barrios with wicked deliveries, appearing to turn to Goossen in a confident display of work that reminded the trainer Garcia referred to as “traitor” couldn’t inspire any magic on this evening.
“Tough guy to track down, fleet-footed, quick-handed,” Goossen said of Garcia. “Mario was trying to get the knockout in the later rounds. That was our opportunity. We couldn’t capitalize on it.”
Nodding to the crowd after the 11th, Garcia neared his moment of reckoning after the 2023 body shot by Gervonta Davis that stopped him, the Haney fiasco and the surprise, sluggish showing last year against Rolando “Rolly” Romero in New York’s Times Square.
All that’s over now for the new titleholder who, in a time of great debate over the importance of title belts, savored his.
In victory, Garcia called out unbeaten four-division champion Shakur Stevenson.
“You know who I want: Shakur Stevenson,” Garcia said. “I’ll fight anybody. You've got to get some kind of punching power to keep me off you. I want that fight.”
Lance Pugmire is BoxingScene’s senior U.S. writer and an assistant producer for ProBox TV. Pugmire has covered boxing since the early 2000s, first at the Los Angeles Times and then at The Athletic and USA Today. He won the Boxing Writers’ Association of America’s Nat Fleischer Award in 2022 for career excellence.
