Ryan Garcia cruised to a lopsided decision win over Mario Barrios on Saturday, winning the WBC welterweight title in the process.
Garcia dropped Barrios in the very first round, and while he could not replicate or better that moment as the fight wore on, he stayed in complete control throughout.
After the final bell sounded, Garcia was declared a unanimous-decision winner (119-108, 120-107, 118-109), as he became a full world champion for the first time.
The precocious 27-year-old previously held an interim world title at lightweight, but Saturday marked a grander triumph for “King Ry”, as he dethroned Barrios in Las Vegas’s T-Mobile Arena.
Garcia is best known for his powerful, check left hook, but it was a clean right cross that scored a flash knockdown of his fellow American in the first round. A startled Barrios did well to recover, but the 30-year-old champion could do little more than that, failing to mount any meaningful offence as the fight progressed.
Garcia, meanwhile, relied on that right cross a surprising amount, troubling his southpaw opponent with it time and again. Midway through the fight, Garcia’s father – his head coach – actually told DAZN that the young boxer’s right hand might be injured, but King Ry was using it again before long.
Still, combination punching served him well, too, as he eased over the line in the final rounds, condemning Barrios to a third straight fight without a win; the champion had drawn his previous two bouts, including against a 46-year-old Manny Pacquiao last summer.
Conor Benn was expected to be next for the winner of the Vegas main event, with the British star holding the status of mandatory challenger. However, Benn’s shock departure from Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom has complicated the situation.
On Friday, it was announced that Benn was leaving Matchroom to join rival promotion Zuffa Boxing, which is led by UFC president Dana White and intends to move away from boxing’s traditional belts.
Enjoy 185+ fights a year on DAZN, the Global Home of Boxing
Never miss a fight from top promoters. Watch on your devices anywhere, anytime.
Buy Now
ADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.
Enjoy 185+ fights a year on DAZN, the Global Home of Boxing
Never miss a fight from top promoters. Watch on your devices anywhere, anytime.
Buy Now
ADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.
Whatever is next for Garcia, Saturday’s win is the finest moment of his career – a career that has been far from straightforward.
In 2023, Garcia was stopped by Gervonta Davis; in 2024, his win over Devin Haney was overturned when Garcia failed a drug test; and in 2025, after returning from a year-long ban, he was dropped and outpointed by underdog Rolly Romero.
But Garcia looked to back to his best against Barrios, and he said after his win: “It feels great, man, but it feels better to be a child of God, to be honest. I dedicate this to my dad, though.
“I wanted to show my full arsenal. I believe it was a kind of masterclass, but I should’ve got the finish. But I hurt my right hand, [and] Mario’s a tough warrior, a fellow Mexican-American. I hurt him multiple times, but like I said, he’s a tough son of a b***h.”
Garcia also called for a showdown with compatriot Shakur Stevenson, who picked up the WBO welterweight belt in January by schooling Teofimo Lopez in New York City.
“You know who I want,” Garcia said. “He’s right there: Shakur Stevenson. Let’s go, let’s run that s***. I’m not scared of anything.”
