Ryan Garcia returned to winning ways this weekend in Texas, stopping tough Oscar Duarte in the eighth round.
The 143lbs catchweight bout saw Garcia under pressure from Duarte, he steamrolled forwards for the first half of the bout, forcing the favourite to find ways to deal with the attacks.
Just when it looked like Duarte was finding more success, Garcia unleashed a quick combination that staggered him, dropped him to a knee and ultimately saw the referee call a halt to proceedings.
Speaking at the post-fight press conference, Garcia praised Duarte and was glad to kick off his relationship with new trainer Derrick James with a victory.
“He was a tough fighter. I knew he was gonna be tough. Everybody was saying why would you take this fight? So now I gotta get my credit where it’s due. I fought in there. I had a fight with some grit and found a knockout. I think I did good, especially with my first round with Derrick [James.]”
Asked who he’d like next, he named WBA Super-Lightweight World Champion, Rolando ‘Rolly’ Romero.
“I want Rolly to be honest. I feel like it’s a fun fight. He’s an aggressive, crazy dude. Lead up would be crazy. He has the title… technically. Let’s do it … I don’t know if you have a real injury or not.”
‘Rolly’ responded quickly, saying he would end it inside the first three minutes.
Rolly by murder in the first 💥
— Rolly 🤍 (@SignUp4KOs) December 3, 2023
He is currently out with injury and has a mandatory challenger to face next, which will be the winner of Ohara Davies versus Ismael Barroso.