Mario Barrios puts his WBC welterweight boxing world championship on the line Saturday in a headline fight against challenger Ryan Garcia at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
It is an action-packed card broadcast on DAZN pay-per-view and we’ll bring all the updates, highlights, commentary, and analysis through the main card.
The Ring Magazine event, a co-promotion involving Golden Boy Promotions and TGB Promotions, was rocked earlier today, though, as Richardson Hitchins was forced to withdraw from his super lightweight IBF title defense against Oscar Duarte, citing illness. Duarte representative Oscar de la Hoya, though, didn’t buy that as an excuse, and said it was “fishy,” as if Hitchins had lost the nerve to box his fighter. Whether that’s true remains to be seen but the Golden Boy fighter plans to lobby the IBF to book an immediate rematch.
Elsewhere, Gary Antuanne Rusell takes on Andy Hiraoka at super lightweight, Frank Martin fights Nahi Albright, also at super lightweight, and Bektemir Melizukiev collides with Sena Agbeko in a super middleweight fight. To kick things off, Amari Jones puts his unbeaten record on the line when the prospect-contender looks to outclass Luis Arias at middleweight.
Keep refreshing this page for all the action! Lets freaking go, people!
Bektemir Melizukiev vs Sena Agbeko — super middleweight
We await Melizukiev and Agbeka’s ring walks.
Amari Jones vs Luis Arias — middleweight
The unrelenting pressure from Amari Jones proved to be too much for Luis Arias in the opening three rounds as the middleweight prospect put extraordinary pressure on his more experienced opponent, landing incredibly powerful punches again and again.
Jones showed no respect for Arias’s power, who was by no means a sitting duck, as he had his moments, but those moments were few and far between. Jones was dominant in the second round, catching him with a left hook, and had Arias again on the canvas in fifth as he gave a merciless beatdown to try and force the referee Harvey Dock’s hand.
Ultimately, Arias’s corner had seen enough and withdrew him from the fight while he sat on his stool, after five rounds and before the sixth. With the win, another finish for the Golden Boy stud, he advances his pro record to 16-0 (14 KOs).
“I did a helluva job,” Jones said after his win. “Arias has only been stopped once. He was shaky, but his corner made him stop the fight.”
“I want to cement myself as a prospect and contender, and I think I did that tonight.”
Frank Martin vs Nahir Albright — super lightweight
Gary Antuanne Russell vs Andy Hiraoka — super lightweight
Mario Barrios vs Ryan Garcia — WBC welterweight championship