HOUSTON — In Round 8, Garcia—fighting for the first time since a TKO loss to Gervonta Davis in April—heard boos and seemed to be losing the match. It was then that he struck with his left hand, causing Duarte to stumble and ultimately drop to the ground.
With nine seconds remaining in Round 8, Garcia, 25, from California secured the victory via knockout after Duarte stood up as soon as the referee’s count hit ten. “I just had to slow his momentum down. He was building momentum, momentum, and I was like, ‘Man, I got to cut this off somehow. He was a strong fighter. He took a good punch. I hit him with some hard shots, and he just kept coming,” said Garcia (24-1, 20 KOs) in media reports
“It was tough. It was very tough. I have the killer instinct. Sometimes when I hurt somebody that bad, I just be cracking them,” he added. Duarte(26-2-1, 21 KOs), a 27-year-old Mexican said he was offended by the referee’s 10-count even though he had taken the heavy knockdown blow.
“I feel like it was unfair because I still got up,” said Duarte in media reports. “I still felt like I could keep going,” he added.
At the moment of stoppage, Garcia had the judges’ scorecards 68-65, 69-64, and 68-65 in his favor. On two of his three scorecards, he lost Rounds 5 and 6, and in Round 8, just as Duarte was starting to gain ground, Garcia clipped him.
Following the defeat by Davis, Garcia took significant action. He relocated from Los Angeles to train with 2020 Trainer of the Year Derrick James. Those actions appear to be having an impact. Additionally, they have made it possible for Golden Boy to make more money and engage in bigger fights in the future. If both parties are able to go past their differences and move forward.
“Derrick said, ‘Start using your legs a little bit, it’s going to open up the shot,’ and it literally did that,” said Garcia.
“It’s our first fight together. We’re going to build off this, and we’re just going to get better. I’m committed to becoming a world champion,” he continued.
