Errol Spence registered a shutout win over Mikey Garcia, winning every single round on all three judge’s scorecards to successfully retain his IBF World welterweight title.
In one of the more audacious ventures by a fighter in recent memory, Mikey Garcia showed glimpses of the quality that enabled him to collect world titles in four divisions throughout the early rounds, but Spence’s consistency, steady output and superior conditioning enabled him to secure a victory by deservedly wide margins.
It had the look of a high-quality affair from the outset as neither fighter wasted punches and displayed great accuracy and composure, but it was Spence who asserted his authority early with a sharp right jab and consequently dominated from that point onwards. Garcia was largely unable to make his work count whenever he got into range, and in tasting Spence’s power became more and more reluctant to engage over the course of the fight.
On the other hand, Spence was supremely effective, showcasing great discipline and clinical accuracy at distance – punishing his increasingly gun-shy counterpart with 1-2 combinations as the size difference became painfully apparent to those watching and the thousands in attendance at the AT&T Stadium in Texas.
Sensing his opponent was hurting, Spence methodically upped the tempo and began mixing it up with some spiteful work downstairs, but Garcia maintained a distinct composure under pressure and his slipperiness and stubbornness prevented Spence from forcing the stoppage he presumably craved.
Nevertheless, any slim hopes of a late rally on the part of the underdog were destroyed as Spence continued to ruthlessly pummel a passive Garcia in the championship rounds, virtually cruising to victory – a historic one – at the home of his beloved Dallas Cowboys on what will most certainly be the first of many pay-per-view events.
Article by: Navi Singh
Follow Navi on Twitter at: @DarkMan________