Gervonta Davis delivered a stunning body shot in the seventh round, causing Ryan Garcia to stumble backwards and then drop to his knees, ending one of the most anticipated boxing matches in recent history with a 1:44 knockout. in a lightweight bout on Saturday night. .

Davis improved to 29-0, with all but two of his wins coming by takedown. It was the first loss for Garcia, who won 19 of his first 23 fights by KO.

Davis also sent Garcia to the canvas with a roundabout in the second round, and he spent most of the rest of the fight working the body. The strategy worked for Davis, a 28-year-old from Baltimore who put himself in position to succeed Canelo Alvarez as the face of the game.

Garcia, a 24-year-old who lives in Los Angeles, managed to land two hard right hands to Davis’ face in the sixth round. But then Tank Davis came back in the seventh with a left that, at first, didn’t seem to hurt Garcia much as he dropped back. But then he went down to a knee that led referee Thomas Taylor to call off the fight.

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Gervonta Davis in the green and purple boxer shorts reacts after defeating Ryan Garcia in the black boxer shorts by seventh-round knockout during their middleweight bout at T-Mobile Arena on April 22, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Al Bello/Getty Images)

This fight between lightweight challengers had the feel of a grand event, drawing celebrities such as Julius Erving, Damian Lillard and Mark Wahlberg, as well as former champions Mike Tyson, Sugar Ray Leonard and Manny Pacquiao.

It remains to be seen what kind of lasting impact this fight will have on the sport beyond Saturday, but both fighters, even as they argued all week, recognized its importance when they agreed to fight. They are two boxers in their prime willing to go head to head rather than carefully pick other opponents to enhance their resumes.

They are also represented by rival promoters. Mayweather Promotions represents Davis and Golden Boy Promotions manages Garcia.

Even the promoters argued before the fight, with Golden Boy’s Oscar De La Hoya claiming that Mayweather’s Leonard Ellerbe and his camp protected Davis by insisting that certain clauses be written into the contract. Ellerbe responded that, as the dominant faction, they had the right to ask for certain stipulations.

Gervonta Davis knocks out Ryan Garcia

Gervonta Davis in a green and purple boxer shorts knocks out Ryan Garcia in a black boxer shorts in the second round during their middleweight bout at T-Mobile Arena on April 22, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Al Bello/Getty Images)

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Davis, at minus-250 on FanDuel Sportsbook and minus-210 on BetMGM, was a heavy betting favorite.

Davis’ win could set up a showdown with undefeated Devin Haney, who holds all four major championship belts in the division. Haney faces former champion Vasiliy Lomachenko in May, also in Las Vegas.

In the co-main event, David Morrell Jr. made quick work of Yamaguchi Falcao, knocking him out at 2:22 of the first round to retain his WBA super middleweight championship. Morrell improved to 9-0, with all but one of his fights KO’d. Falcao, who remained on the canvas for about three minutes, has a 24-2-1 record.

Gervonta Davis

Gervonta Davis in the green and purple boxer shorts reacts after defeating Ryan Garcia in the black boxer shorts by seventh-round knockout during their middleweight bout at T-Mobile Arena on April 22, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Al Bello/Getty Images)

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Morrell called this «the best moment of my career» and said he wants to take on two-time WBC super middleweight champion David Benavidez.

«I don’t want any other guy at 168 pounds, just Benavidez,» Morrell said. «I respect Benavidez and his team, but inside the ring I don’t respect anything.»