Promoter and former champion Barry McGuigan was ringside in Dallas, Texas, and watched rising lightweight star Ryan Garcia score a knockout win over Olympic gold medal winner Luke Campbell to capture the WBC interim-title.
Campbell is trained by Barry’s son, Shane McGuigan.
Garcia was dropped down hard in the second round, when Campbell landed a big counter-hook.
The younger man was able to fully recover by the following round. Garcia landed a big body shot in the seventh, which sent Campbell down to his knees for the full count.
The victory makes Garcia a mandatory challenger to the full WBC lightweight world champion Devin Haney.
After witnessing seven rounds of drama, McGuigan gave high praise to both Garcia and Campbell.
“Campbell is still in the shake-up but after a tough loss needs to take his time to decide his next move,” Barry McGuigan told The Mirror.
“He put up a great performance against Garcia. But as he acknowledged immediately after the fight, he was in with someone very special. Whoever Garcia is matched against next it is clear he has the potential to be boxing’s next crossover superstar. I was very impressed. He had a real gut check against Campbell and came through it. That shot that dropped him in the second round would have knocked out most lightweights. He just got up and walked straight back into him. Garcia’s eyes were crystal clear and his legs rock solid.
“Campbell is a slick counter puncher. He drops single shots. He does not run into you with volume punches. We knew it would be a cagey, clever, rear-guard action by Campbell. The plan was to up the pace in the second half of the fight. But Garcia showed he had real guts and can adapt. People said Campbell should have jumped on him, but when he did at the end of the fifth he was nailed with a counter.
“The target that was offered in the second round was no longer available. Garcia did not drop his right hand again. What he did do was show that he can take and land a shot. He is quick, heavy handed and explosive. Garcia has a great chance against Devin Haney, who did not get rid of veteran Cuban Yuri Gamboa in what was a pretty low-key performance last time out. Lopez is the standout. And Gervonta Davis’ power makes him a real threat but he can be inconsistent and unreliable. Garcia is as fast as any flyweight and has the power of a light middle, so nobody is going to be relishing that. They will be encouraged that Campbell dropped him but discouraged by the way he responded. Always the sign of a great champion.”