Super featherweight Lamont Roach 24-1-1 (9) went from contender to champion with a split decision win over Hector Luis ‘El Androide’ Garcia 16-2 (10) to claim the WBA 130-pound belt at the Michelob Ultra Arena at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada on Saturday night.
The 28-year-old Roach from Upper Marlboro, Maryland has been sitting on his number one contender ranking for more than a year as he has waited for his mandatory title shot against Dominican southpaw Garcia, 32.
The fight was a largely technical battle fought at a measured pace with neither boxer attaining the ascendancy for long. With the result hanging in the balance in the championship rounds, Roach wobbled Garcia in the 11th and clipped him with a left hook in the final round that sent the champion to the canvas.
The punch clearly landed to the back of the head, something that was missed by referee Tony Weeks who applied the mandatory eight count.
In the end it was that ruling that saw Roach win his first world championship. Judge Max DeLuca saw the fight for Garcia by one point with a score of 114-113. Judge Tim Cheatham had the same score for Roach. Judge Robert Hoyle also saw it for Roach wth the slightly wider score of 116-111.
“It’s been a long time coming. You all see why the fight didn’t happen when it was supposed to, he’s been ducking this work the whole time. I congratulate him, he’s a great champion, but this is my shit,” Roach said.
“He was playing the cat-and-mouse game, he didn’t really want to fight. I don’t know if he felt the power or anything like that, but he was trying to be a tricky guy. I give my hat off to him, he tried to use his range, but it wasn’t enough.
“The game plan was to break him down. I seen he was a quitter — he ain’t quit tonight, he’s a tough motherfucker, but I was on the way. I was gonna get him out of there one way or another.”
Without the knockdown, Garcia would have retained his title.
“I thought I won the fight, but I respect the judges’ decision,” said Garcia, who was having his first fight back since his ill-advised move up to lightweight to face Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis 29-0 (27) back inn January, a bout he lost by ninth-round knockout.
“If they take into account that last punch that hit me behind the head, then he did win, but other than that, I think I won the fight.”
According to CompuBox there wasn’t a lot of leather landing in the contest, but in the end Roach connected with 118 of 490 punches at 29% compared to 93 of 468 punches at 20% for Garcia.
