In a fight that started slow, Gervonta Davis needed just a a few seconds in round eight to land two hard shots to the jaw of Hector Luis Garcia and get a stoppage win after Garcia could not come out for round nine in front of a sold out crowd of 19, 731 Capital One Arena in Washington, DC.

When the fight got going, Garcia fought well by mixing in body shots to offset Davis trying to land power shots from the outside. The fight was on even terms as it headed into the eighth round. Even in round eight, Garcia began the stanza well by working the body. Late in the round, Davis landed two flush lefts that hurt Garcia. When Garcia got to the corner, he did not come out for round nine and the fight was officially stopped at 13 seconds.

Davis, 134 lbs of Baltimore will now take on Ryan Garcia, presumably on April 15th with a record of 28-0 with 26 knockouts. Garcia, 134 lbs of the Dominican Republic is 16-1.

Gervonta Davis

“A little surprised (he didn’t come out). But I knew he was hurt bad but he’s a fighter and he didn’t want to show it. I knew he was hurt though.

“I feel as though – I have stuff to work on. Everything. I’m a fighter and I’m not retired so I’m always willing to learn.

“I wasn’t throwing a lot of shots (in the beginning) because I was trying to beat him mentally. I was trying to trick him with my hands and my eyes and things like that because he’s a tough fighter. I had to bait him.

“His southpaw style bothered me a little bit because I don’t fight a lot of southpaws but it’s okay; it’s a part of the game.

“God willing I’m ready for the fight (with Ryan Garcia). It’s scheduled for April. I’m here. He’s been training. He’s been talking. And let’s see who’s really about that.

“On my end I’m ready. I’ll be in the gym Monday. Well, not Monday. I’ll probably take a week off but I’ll be back for sure soon.

“I have to bring my people in close and listen to my close ones, listen to Al Haymon and just stay focused. There’s a lot of bumps in the road but if we stay focused together – that’s how I’ll (maintain) longevity in the sport.”

Hector Luis Garcia

“When I got the shot to my head in the final round, that’s when I couldn’t see from my eye. I didn’t know where I was when he hit me with that shot. My vision is back but my head still hurts. I couldn’t see from my right eye. It was going well up until that point. I was picking my shots.”

Ennis Decisions Chukhadzhian to Win IBF Interim Welterweight Title

Jaron Ennis went the distance for the first time in 20 fights, but won the IBF Interim Welterweight title with a 12-round unanimous decision over slippery Karen Chukhadzhian.

Ennis pressed the action while Chukhadzhian danced around the outside, and only coming in sporadically. Ennis landed the majority of punches and won by scores of 120-108 on all cards. Ennis landed 203 of 592 punches; Chukhadzhian was 97 of 573

Ennis, 145.5 lbs of Philadelphia is 30-0. Chukhadhian, 146.25 lbs of Kiev, UKR is 21-2.

Jaron Ennis

“We come here to dominate. I feel like I could have thrown more punches. I should stop that guy and that’s on me. I wanted him to engage but we did what we could. 

“I learned to just take my time and to not rush anything. I’m glad I went 12 rounds. It felt great. I felt I was in the best shape. I just needed to throw a little more punches. I should have got him out of there.

“He ran a lot. Hats off to him since a lot of guys didn’t want to fight me. So shout out to him for coming here and taking this fight.

“Everyone knows that I want Errol Spence and the winner of Virgil Ortiz and (Eimantas) Stanionis. You know – all the top guys. Let’s get it, you know?

“I’ll wait until the time is right and (Spence) is ready.”

Roiman Villa Scores Two Late Knockdowns to win Majority Decision over Rashidi Ellis

Roiman Villa needed all 36 minutes to score a 12-round majority decision over previously undefeated Rashidi Ellis in an IBF Welterweight Elimination bout

It was a fight that Ellis controlled early with his jab. Villa was applying pressure. Villa was slowing gaining momentum in the fight when in round 12, Villa decked Ellis with a vicious left hook to the jaw. Villa continued landing hard shots to Ellis, who at this point was backtracking and trying to land shots while going backwards. In the final seconds, Villa dropped Ellis again with a hard right hand.

Ellis landed 268 of 604 punches. The knockdowns were the difference as Villa was just 114 of 631.

Villa, 146.75 of Venezuela won by scores of 114-112 twice and 113-113 to raise his mark to 26-1. Ellis, 146.25 of Lynn, MA is 24-1.

Roiman Villa

“First of all, thank God for this victory. Second of all, he was a tough fighter. He moved a lot. He does hit hard. The first couple rounds I was a little tight but then I got loose.

“I was on top of him from the first round. I know that fighters such as him who are quick sooner or later will get a little tired and that’s what I took advantage of.

“My corner told me to knock him down (in the 12^th round). I couldn’t do it on the first try but I kept going.

“I thought he just fell on the last knockdown so I wasn’t sure (if it was a knockdown) . But if they want the rematch we’ll give them the rematch.

“I like the Mexican fighters with balls and I like the way he fights so I would definitely give him the rematch.

“I told him after the fight to smile and he had nothing to say.

“I didn’t really feel like I needed the knockout in that last round, I just wanted to dominate.

“Ellis is a good fighter, but this was mostly about what I was able to do. All credit to God for allowing me to come out with my arm raised up high.

“I’m not thinking about the future right now, just soaking in the moment.”

Rashidi Ellis

“I want the rematch right away. I’m fine (physically).

“I thought I was dictating the fight. I don’t know. I don’t know what happened.

“I totally disagree with the decision. I was winning most of the rounds. Yeah, he had the knockdown but other than that I was winning most of the rounds.”

Andrade Decisions Nicholson in Super Middleweight Debut

Demetrius Andrade made his super middleweight debut and the former two-division was successful as he pounded out a 10-round unanimous decision over Demond Nicholson

In round two, Andrade landed a straight left that was followed by a right hook that sent Nicholson on his rear end. Each seemingly scored knockdowns that referee Malik Waleed missed.

In round 10, Andrade landed right hook to the head that made Nicholson’s glove touch the canvas that was ruled a knockdown.

Andrade landed 145 of 325 punches. Nicholson was just 28 of 231.

Andrade, 167 lbs of Providence, RI won by scores of 100-88 on all cards and is now 32-0. Nicholson, 167.25 lbs of Laurel, MD is 26-5-1.

Demetrius Andrade

“I felt good, I can definitely tell the weight difference but the speed and combinations and the IQ was the plan today and that’s what we did. The weight (was different).”

Charlos, Benavidez vs. Plant winner?

“The only way I can say I’m the best is by fighting the best. Everyone knows that Demond Nicholson is a dog. That’s why we took this fight. He took this fight because he knew I was coming up and he definitely has the animal in him. He showed it today and we’re just boxing – IQ.”

On the 10^th round knockdown:

“That was definitely clean. Nice left. Definitely a knockdown. That left hand. Boom. It was great to be here. I want to thank SHOWTIME for the opportunity and PBC and everyone that came out today. It’s me again baby!

“I thought I would be able to get him out of there in the deep waters, but he’s a tough guy. I think we both cut each other early in the fight, but at the end of the day we do what we have to do. 

“I threw some nice combinations and some nice hard shots, but he came in shape. People get up to fight me. 

“We’re going to look to see who’s available at 168 pounds. I’m just going to get stronger, sharper and faster too.”

Vito Mielnicki stopped Omar Rosales in round four of their eight-round junior middleweight bout.

Mielnicki landed power punches throughout the contest and then unloaded on Rosales on round four and the bout was stopped at 26 seconds.

Mielnicki, 153.2 lbs of Roseland, NJ is now 14-1 with nine knockouts. Rosales, 152.8 lbs of Houston, TX is 9-2-1.

Brandun Lee remained undefeated by stopping Diego Luque in round four of a scheduled eight-round super lightweight bout.

Lee dominated the action and then landed a bevvy of hard punches that forced the corner of Luque to throw in the towel at

Lee, 141.4 lbs of a Quinta, CA is 27-0 with 23 knockouts. Luque, 141.2 lbs of Cordoba, ARG is 21-11-2.

Travon Marshall needed just 48 seconds to obliterate Shawn West in a six-round welterweight bout.

Marshall landed flush and hard power shots from the opening bell until fight was stopped at 48 seconds.

Marshall, 149.8 lbs of Capitol Heights, MD is 7-0 with six knockouts. West, 151.2 lbs of San Antonio, TX is 7-3-1.

Keeshawn Williams won a six-round unanimous decision over Gustavo David Vittori in a welterweight bout.

Williams, 146,2 lbs of Lanham, MD won by scores of 60-54 on all cards and is now 11-1-1. Vittori, 145.6 lbs of Argentina is 26-12-1.

Former world champion Lamont Peterson tried to come back after a four-year retirement only to be stopped in round four of a six-round super lightweight bout to unheralded Michael Ogundo.

In round four, Peterson was dropped hard with a right hand. He was in serious trouble when Ogundo followed with a hard flurry that forced Peterson’s corner to wave the towel at 2:05.

Ogund0, 140.2 lbs of Quincy, MA is 17-16 with 14 knockouts. Peterson, 141.6 lbs of Washington, DC is 35-6-1,

Kyrone Davis took an eight-round unanimous decision over Cristian Fabian Rios in a super middleweight contest.

Davis, 163.8 lbs of Wilmington, DE won by scores of 80-72 twice and 79-73 and is now 17-3-1. Rios, 164.4 lbs of Buenos Aries, ARG is 23-16-3.

Jalil Hackett made quick work of Joel Guevara by scoring an opening round of their four-round super welterweight bout,

Hackett dropped Guevara in the opening round with a hard right hand. Hackett was all over Guevara and sent him to the canvas a with a left hook and the fight was stopped at 2:11.

Hackett, 156.2 lbs of Washington, DC is 5-0 with four knockouts. Guevara, 155.8 lbs of Charlston, WV is 4-9-1.

Mia Ellis stopped Karen Dulin in the opening round of their four-round lightweight bout.

Ellis scored two knockdowns and the fight was called after the second knockdown at 1:53.

Ellis, 128.2 lbs of Baltimore is 6-1 with five knockouts. Dulin, 129.8 lbs of Portsmouth, NH is 5-26-1.

Michel Rivera remained undefeated with an eight-round unanimous decision over Jerry Perez in a lightweight bout.

Rivera, 134.6 lbs of Santo Domingo, DR won by scores of 80-71 and 79-72 twice and is now 24-0. Perez, 135 lbs of Oak Hills, CA is 14-2.

Gurgen Hovhannisyan stopped Michael Coffie after round six of their eight round heavyweight bout.

Hovhannisyan pounded Coffie until the bout was stopped after the sixth round.

Hovhannisyan, 275.4 lbs of Yerevan, ARM is 4-0 with four knockouts. Coffie, 297.6 lbs of Kissimmee, FL is 13-3.

Michael Angeletti stopped Jeremy Adorno after round five of their six-round super bantamweight fight.

In round two, Angeletti landed a left that put down Adorno. Seconds later, Angeletti landed a grazing punch that made Adorno’s glove touch the canvas for a second knockdown.

Angeletti continued his dominance and Adorno’s corner stopped the bout after round five.

Angeletti, 124.4 lbs of Spring, TX is 7-0 with six knockouts. Adorno, 125.8 lbs of Allentown, PA is 7-1.

James Evans scored a come-from-behind of the year as he stopped Geovany Bruzon on the the third round of their six-round heavyweight bout.

In round two, Bruzon dropped Evans with a straight left on the jaw. In round three, Evans came out and rocked Bruzon with a big flurry. Evans rocked Bruzon’s head back and landed a big barrage of punches that forced a referee stoppage at 1:18.

Evans, 231.4 lbs of Toledo, OH is now 5-0-1 with five knockouts. Bruzon, 238.1 lbs of Holguin, CUB is 7-2.

Keeshawn Williams won a six-round unanimous decision over Julio Rosa in a welterweight bout.

Williams, 144 lbs of Lanham. MD won by scores of 60-54 and 59-55 twice and is now 10-1-1. Rosa, 141 lbs of Orlando, FL is now 5-2.

Miguel Roman won a four-round unanimous decision over Jose Negrete in a battle of undefeated super bantamweights.

In round two, Roman dropped Negrete with a right hand

Roman, 122.8 lbs of Philadelphia won by scores of 40-35 on all cards and is now 3-0. Negrete, 122 lbs of Hanford, CA is 2-1.

Roseland, NJ (July 20, 2022) — GH3 Promotions fighters, super lightweight Joseph Adorno and welterweight Keeshawn Williams will see action this Saturday night in Orlando, Florida at The Caribe Royale Orlando.

Adorno of Allentown, Pennsylvania will take on 48 fight veteran Julio Buitrago in a bout scheduled for six-rounds.

Adorno has a record of 15-1-2 with 13 knockouts. The 23 year-old Adorno is in his sixth year as a professional who won his first 14 bouts which were highlighted by victories over Marco Antonio Ocano (1-0), Kevin Ocano (8-0) and Damian Alejandro Sosa (9-2). Adorno is coming off a first round stoppage over Juan Santiago on May 21st at The Caribe Royale Orlando.

Adorno is managed by Split-T Management

Williams of Lanham, Maryland has a record of 8-1-1 with two knockouts, and will battle 60 fight-veteran Raymond Chacon in a six-round contest.

Williams, 25 years-old, is a five year professional. He has quality wins over Christian Salas (1-0) and Adrian Martinez (1-0). Williams is coming off his first professional setback, when he lost a decision to contender Kenneth Sims Jr, on December 25th, 2021 in Newark, New Jersey 

NEWARK, N.J. (December 24, 2021) – Welterweight contender Kenneth Sims Jr. will take on undefeated prospect Keeshawn Williams in an eight-round showdown that tops FS1 PBC Fight Night and on FOX Deportes Saturday, December 25 as part of a jam-packed Christmas Day lineup from Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.

The FS1 telecast will begin at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT and also features unbeaten super welterweight prospect Travon Marshall (3-0, 2 KOs) in a four/six-round fight against Brian Jones (15-12, 9 KOs), plus a six-round welterweight duel between Newark’s Michael Anderson (21-3-1, 15 KOs) and Mexico’s Noe Lopez (10-4-1, 4 KOs).

Following the FS1 telecast, FOX PBC Fight Night begins at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT with welterweight prospect and New Jersey-native Vito Mielnicki Jr. taking on Nicholas DeLomba in the 10-round main event. The broadcast will also see sensational unbeaten prospect Joey Spencer battling Mexico’s Limberth Ponce for eight-rounds of middleweight action in the co-main event, plus featherweights Rajon Chance and Elon de Jesus duel in a six-round rematch, and unbeaten super welterweight prospect Yoelvis Gomez faces Clay Collard in a six-round attraction.

Tickets for the live event, which is promoted by TGB Promotions, are on sale now and can be purchased through Ticketmaster.com.

The 27-year-old Sims (16-2-1, 5 KOs) returns to the ring for the first time since a career-best victory in May saw him earn a decision over the previously unbeaten Elvis Rodriguez. A Chicago-native, Sims has won four of his last five fights dating back to a 2018 draw against Montana Love.

Fighting out of his native Washington, D.C., Williams (8-0-1, 2 KOs) will look to close out 2021 with a second victory after defeating Antonio Sanchez by unanimous decision in August. The 24-year-old had previously beaten Gaku Takahashi in January 2020 as part of a seven-bout winning streak dating back to a split-draw in his second pro fight.

The non-televised undercard will also include Malik Nelson (1-0, 1 KO) facing Prince Martin (1-0, 1 KO) in a four-round super bantamweight contest. Rounding out the lineup are three fighters making their pro debuts as welterweight Dwyke Flemmings takes on George Gethers (0-2) in a four-round fight, super lightweight Elijah Flores steps in for a four-round attraction against Shannon Hawkins (0-2) and welterweight Vincent Gigante competes in a four-round duel against Robbie Rose (0-1).

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Viewers can live stream the PBC shows on the FOX Sports and FOX NOW apps or at FOXSports.com. In addition, all programs are available on FOX Sports on SiriusXM channel 83 on satellite radios and on the SiriusXM app.

For more information: visit www.premierboxingchampions.com, http://www.foxsports.com/presspass/homepage and www.foxdeportes.com, follow on Twitter @PremierBoxing, @PBConFOX, @FOXSports, @FOXDeportes, @TGBPromotions and @Swanson_Comm or become a fan on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/PremierBoxingChampions, www.facebook.com/foxsports & www.facebook.com/foxdeportes.

BROOKLYN– Former two division world champion Danny “Swift” Garcia (36-2, 21KO) cruised past fellow welterweight Ivan “The Killer Redkach (23-5-1, 18KO), earning a twelve round unanimous decision (118-110, 117-111×2) in the main event of a PBC-Showtime card from the Barclays Center. 

Philadelphia’s Garcia, who was fighting for the first time since April 2019, started slow, opting to fight a reserved and calculated fight.  But by the fourth, Garcia completed his data download and began pressuring the southpaw Redkach, letting his hands go.

Garcia, 31, continued to walk down the Redkach in the fifth and buzzed him with a huge right cross — the best punch of the fight up to that point — just as the round drew to a close.  

By the time the sixth rolled around, Redkach, whose power didn’t phase Garcia, was out of answers.  So Garcia carried on, peppering Redkach with sizzling right crosses and left hooks that came from all angles.  

As the bell signaled to start round eight, Garcia, smelling blood in the water walked across the ring to meet Redkach near Redkach’s corner, from which he barely moved after getting off his stool.  Garcia continued to best Redkach when the Ukranian decided to sink his teeth into Garcia’s shoulder during a clinch. This went unnoticed by referee Benjy Esteves, but Garcia knew it, and relayed the message.  

By the end of the same round, Redkach returned to his corner with dark red blood trickling down his bright red face to go along with his bright yellow and green hair.

Redkach deserves credit, though, for never giving up throughout the fight.  Even when it was clear to those on the other side of the ropes that all hope was lost, Redkach never stopped believing in himself.  Of course, Garcia made him pay for that belief, but it guided Redkach to the final bell.  

Tonight marked the eight time Garcia has fought at the Barclays Center, the Philadelphian’s home away from home.  Garcia’s second fight with Hall of Famer Erik Morales headlined the Barclays Center’s inaugural boxing event in 2014. 

Redkach is now 0-2 at the Barclays Center.  He was outpointed by current IBF Super Featherweight champion Tevin Farmer in 2016.  

A few months ago, it looked as if Garcia was in line for a big fight and hefty paycheck as he was slated to face unified welterweight champion Errol Spence, Jr. in 2020.  However, after Spence was injured in a single car crash, those tentative plans fell through and Garcia was forced to elsewhere. Now, with the win against Redkach, Garcia is again hoping to land a big fight and bigger payday, either against a healthy Spence or future Hall of Famer Manny Pacquiao.

After the fight, Garcia spoke about what could be next for him, “Either or (Spence or Pacquiao) either of those fights I would like to have. My style looks great with both fighters.”

When rating his performance tonight, the Philadelphia-native said, “I’m not gonna lie, I felt good, but I didn’t feel my best. I did lose a lot of weight for this fight, so maybe that played a factor. From a long layoff, and just losing so much weight. I lost about 25 pounds in eight weeks.”

And on the eight round shoulder bite, Garcia told Showtime’s Jim Gray, “He bit me. He said ‘Mike Tyson’ when he bit me. I said ‘Ref, he bit me.’ I thought I needed stitches or something. That’s my first time ever getting bit in a fight. Things happen though. I’ve been in a street fight before, so I did it all.”

Redkach also spoke afterwards, stating, “This was a very good experience for me. He never had me hurt and I was able to learn a lot. I’m thankful to be in this position that my team put me in and I’m going to keep growing from here.

“I’m going to get back in the gym and get stronger and better. I’m thankful for the experience against Danny Garcia. I’m going to be back and be much better.”

Hurd Drops Santana Late En Route To Wide UD 

In his first fight since losing his junior middleweight titles to Julian Williams last May, “Swift” Jarrett Hurd (24-1, 16KO) got back into the win column, sending veteran Francisco “Chia” Santana (25-8-1, 12KO) to the canvas once en route to a ten round unanimous decision (99-90×2, 97-92).  

Tonight marked Hurd’s first fight with head trainer Kay Koroma. Hurd, 29, parted ways with longtime trainer Ernesto Rodgriguez shortly after his loss to Williams.  Coming into the Santana fight Hurd promised viewers they would see a more defensive-minded fighter, and mentioned he wouldn’t mind winning wide on the scorecards once, as opposed to seemingly always finding himself in back-and-forth, “Fight of the Year” type slugfests.   

True to his word, through the first four rounds, the Maryland native Hurd wasn’t willing to engage in a firefight with California’s Santana, who dutifully marched forward trying to get inside Hurd’s reach to get off his punches.  Rather, Hurd was content with snapping jabs Santana’s direction, while also peppering in some straight rights and uppercuts to keep Santana guessing. 

But in the fifth, Hurd reverted back to old form, stood his ground, and challenged the 33 year-old Santana.  Having already tasted Chia’s power, a visibly bigger Hurd willingly exchanged with the much smaller Santana, landing flush straight rights, before unleashing two jaw-shattering right uppercuts.  

In the sixth Hurd began by continuing to dig in and exchange with Santana, but immediately went back to fighting the “defensive” style he spoke about pre-fight, inviting a chorus of boos from the Brooklyn crowd.  

Perhaps feeling a need to redeem himself, Hurd switched it up once more in the tenth and final round and fought that classic “Hurd”-style, leaning and imposing his bigger frame on Santana, while firing off sneaky uppercuts and huge hooks.  And sure enough, just as the clapper sounded to signal ten seconds remaining in the fight, Hurd connected with a vicious right uppercut that dropped Santana to his knees. The hard-nosed veteran, who has only been stopped once in his 34 fight career, beat referee Arthur Mercante Jr.’s ten count just as the final bell chimed.  

After his loss to Williams in May, Hurd declined to exercise his immediate rematch clause, thus pursuing a different avenue to get back to the top of the junior middleweight division.  Williams went on to lose the titles he won from Hurd to Jeison Rosario in Atlantic City earlier this month.   

Santana has now lost four of his last five contests.  

On his defensive style, Hurd said afterward, “We came out here and did what we wanted to do. The crowd didn’t love it, but you gotta understand, I got the unanimous decision and I did what I wanted to do.”

He continued, “There was definitely no frustration. We didn’t want to go toe to toe and we didn’t want to make this a risky fight. 

“We want the belts. We want the best. I’m not exactly sure what’s going to be the next move, but we want the belts.”

On the late knockdown, Santana said, “In the last round I wanted to come forward and close it hard, but I got a little bit careless for a second. In boxing you have to stay focused for every second of every round. He caught me with a good shot. 

“I just wanted to keep coming forward and give it my all. I know I was frustrating him at times, but it was a tall task and I don’t make any excuses.”

Fulton Works His Way Past Khegai, Scores UD 

In a battle between two previously unbeaten junior featherweights, highly touted Philadelphia prospect Stephen “Cool Boy Steph” Fulton (18-0, 8KO) scored a twelve round unanimous decision (117-111×2, 116-112) over Ukraine’s Arnold “Arni” Khegai (16-1-1, 10KO), resulting in Khegai’s first pro loss.  

In the early goings, the 25 year-old Fulton kept his jab in Khegai’s face, keeping the smaller fighter at a safe distance.  When Khegai was able to work his way past Fulton’s jab, the Philly native showed little desire to trade with the Ukranian and happily clinched time and again.  

But the pressure kept coming from the Los Angeles transplant, Khegai, who methodically marched forward in round three as he did the previous two rounds.  Except in this round, the 27 year-old began to close the gap a bit easier, scoring with hooks to Fulton’s body, while also finding a home for his right hand.   

As the third round wound to a close, Fulton again initiated a clinch.  But instead of obliging, a fed up Khegai body slammed Fulton to the canvas, earning a stern warning from referee Steve Willis.  

In the fourth, Khegai kept the heat on and towards the end of the round, Fulton made a mistake that might have tilted a close round Khegai’s way.  As the bell neared, with his back against a neutral corner, Fulton invited Khegai to fire away. Khegai did just that, and landed three big rights before Fulton’s failed attempt at spinning out of the corner with hopes to pin and punish Khegai.

Fulton halted Khegai’s momentum with a solid fifth round and started off the sixth by working diligently to Khegai’s body.  But the Ukranian just kept coming and eventually backed Fulton into a corner where he unloaded chopping rights that proved to be the round’s memorable blows.  

Fulton rallied with a big seventh that saw him hold his ground and become more aggressive.  The Philly fighter ceased retreating, and instead, dug in and let his hands fly, forcing Khegai to retreat for the first time in the contest.  Fulton kept his foot on the gas in the eighth, and continued to come forward and land on a tiring Khegai.  

By the tenth, it looked like Fulton had completely flipped the script, as the Philly fighter was now the one walking Khegai into a corner before unloading.

But the stubborn Ukranian wouldn’t go quietly, and in the eleventh, Khegai dug deep and once again pressed the action, bullying Fulton into a corner before landing big rights.  

At the end of twelve, all three judges scored the contest in favor of Fulton:  117-111×2, 116-112. 15Rounds.com scored the bout 116-112, Fulton.  

Keeshawn Williams Outslugs Gaku Takahashi En Route To UD 

In an eight round all-action welterweight affair, Keeshawn “The Next Big Thing” Williams (7-0-1, 2KO) bested Gaku Takahashi (16-11-1, 8KO), defeating him via unanimous decision (80-72, 79-73, 78-74).  

The fight certainly didn’t lack offense, as both fighters traded and landed their fare share of leather round after round.  However, it became clear early on that the 22 year-old Williams punches were heavier and thrown more precisely than Takashi’s, whose fists flew wide and were delivered with less pop.  

As the fight bore on, Williams punches took their toll on the 32 year-old Takashi, whose face brightened, while a cut opened over his left eye. 

But Takashi never stopped engaging, never backed up, and survived the full eight rounds.  

When the final bell sounded, though, Takahashi stood dazed and winded.  He was cognizant enough to exchange a slap of the gloves with Williams, but was too foggy to know which corner to return to.  Fortunately, Takahashi cleared a brief medical assessment administered by NYSAC Chief Medical Officer Dr. Nitin Sethi, and was able to gather his bearings.

It was the third fight at the Barclays Center for the District Heights, MD product, Williams.  He previously TKO’d Mario Navarro last August and drew with Dennis Okoth in 2018.  

Takahashi, who fought just once in 2019, has now dropped four straight and hasn’t won since scoring a KO in Mexico in 2017. 

Lorenzo Simpson UDs Antonio Louis Hernandez 

In the first of three fights to be streamed on Showtime’s Youtube page, 19 year-old Lorenzo “Truck” Simpson (7-0, 4KO) grinded out and earned a six round unanimous decision (59-55×3) over fellow middleweight Antonio Louis Hernandez (2-11-1).  

It wasn’t as easy a night at the office for Simpson as the wide scorecards might suggest, but the Baltimore-born southpaw continually did enough round after round to edge his counterpart.  

Credit Hernandez, who’s more skilled than his record suggests, for not allowing Simpson to fight the fight he wanted to, making it more difficult than anticipated.

XXL Torres Lands Big, Scores KO2 Over Witkopf

In the first of seven fights from the Barclays Center, heavyweight prospect Steven “XXL” Torres (2-0, 2KO) brought the thunder, scoring a second round one-punch KO over Dakota Witkopf (1-2, 1KO).  

Less than halfway through the round two, a visibly winded Witkopf walked into a perfectly thrown Torres straight right that collapsed him to the mat where doctors soon crowded his sprawled body.  Upon hitting the canvas the referee waved off the contest, officially halting it at the 1:28 mark of round two.  

Prior to the knockout, Witkopf, who has a Mixed Martial Arts background, held his own and may have won the first round.  The 24 year-old Williamsville, NY native peppered Torres early in the fight left hands that landed without obstruction. 

Tonight was the second time the 6’7” Torres fought at the Barclays Center and his second early KO in as many as pro bouts.  The 21 year-old from Reading, PA scored a first round stoppage in his debut last month.  

NEW YORK (January 22, 2020) – SHOWTIME Sports will live stream three undercard bouts featuring a trio of undefeated up-and-coming prospects as part of exciting undercard action on Saturday, January 25, from Barclays Center, the home of BROOKLYN BOXING™, in a Premier Boxing Champions event headlined by two-division world champion Danny “Swift” García.

Prior to the SHOWTIME telecast, undefeated super lightweight prospect Patrick Harris (18-0, 9 KOs), of Washington, D.C., will take on Clay Burns (8-6-2, 4 KOs) of Alexandria, La., in the live stream offering on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING COUNTDOWN at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT. In another eight-round attraction, Keeshawn Williams (6-0-1, 2 KOs) of District Heights, Md., will face Gaku Takahashi (16-10-1, 8 KOs) of Yuburi, Japan. In a six-round opening bout of the streaming coverage, Baltimore native and Calvin Ford-trained undefeated middleweight prospect Lorenzo “Truck” Simpson will take on Kansas City’s Antonio Louis Hernandez.

SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING COUNTDOWN streams live online on the SHOWTIME Sports YouTube channel and SHOWTIME Boxing Facebook page leading into the SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING telecast at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT on SHOWTIME.

The event is headlined by two-division world champion Garcia as he returns to the ring to take on hard-hitting slugger Ivan “El Terrible” Redkach in a 12-round WBC welterweight title eliminator. In the co-feature, former unified 154-pound champion “Swift” Jarrett Hurd returns against all-action Francisco “Chia” Santana in a 10-round super welterweight contest, plus sensational super bantamweight Stephen “Cool Boy Steph” Fulton will face undefeated Arnold Khegai in a 12-round WBO Super Bantamweight title eliminator to open the telecast.

SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING COUNTDOWN is hosted by Brian Campbell and Luke Thomas providing preview and analysis of that evening’s SHOWTIME telecast. Ray Flores will call the live undercard play-by-play action from ringside alongside Hall of Fame analyst Steve Farhood.

Tickets for the event, which is promoted by TGB Promotions and DSG Promotions, are on-sale now and can be purchased at ticketmaster.com and barclayscenter.com. Tickets also can be purchased at the American Express Box Office at Barclays Center. Group discounts are available by calling 844-BKLYN-GP. The Fulton vs. Khegai bout is promoted in association with Salita Promotions.

The 25-year-old Harris turned professional after a highly-successfully amateur career in 2014 and has steadily increased his level of opposition while building his undefeated resume. The nephew of former two-division world champion Lamont Peterson and his brother Anthony, Harris comes from a boxing family. His father, Patrice “Boogie” Harris., is a well-known trainer at Headbangers Gym in Washington, D.C. The slick southpaw was active in 2019, fighting four times. He is coming off a TKO victory over Joaquim Carneiro in November and in March, he won via shutout decision in an event that was headlined by his uncles.

Williams, a 22-year-old rising prospect out of Maryland, has won five consecutive bouts since a split draw in just his second pro fight. Williams will return to Barclays Center for his second straight fight, after he dismantled Mario Alberto Perez Navarro in a first-round TKO on the undercard of Adam Kownacki vs. Chris Arreola in August.

The 19-year-old southpaw Simpson has been an active young pro since his debut in December of 2018 as he picked up five victories in 2019. A stablemate of undefeated two-time super featherweight and current WBA Lightweight Title holder Gervonta Davis, Simpson was a 12-time National Champion and six-time Silver Glove Champion as an amateur. He honed his skills at the Upton Boxing Center in West Baltimore under the watchful eye of his trainer Ford.

Rounding out the undercard attractions are Staten Island’s Kenny Robles (7-1, 3 KOs) in an eight-round super lightweight fight against Patterson, New Jersey’s Rickey Edwards (12-4, 3 KOs), heavyweight prospect Steven Torres (1-0, 1 KO) from Reading, Pennsylvania taking on Williamsville, New York’s Dakota Witkopf (1-1, 1 KO) in a four-round bout and the pro debut of East Orange, New Jersey’s Rajon Chance in a four-round super bantamweight duel versus Rockville, Maryland’s Akihiro Nakamura (1-0).

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