Ryan Garcia retained his WBC welterweight title with a second-round knockout of Conor Benn at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on 13 September 2026, ending the Essex fighter's return to the division with a decisive right hook.
Garcia, 28, dropped Benn in round two with the flush shot before stopping him during a sustained attack. It was the first defence of Garcia's WBC welterweight championship and took his record to 26 wins from 28 professional contests.
The result brought a difficult night for Benn, 29, who was fighting at welterweight for the first time in more than four years. He was stopped for the first time in his 27th pro fight and suffered the second defeat of his 10-year professional career.
Benn, the son of Nigel Benn, had come into the bout facing a champion who had said he would stop him inside five rounds. Garcia said the challenger had followed the approach he expected.
“It went kind of exactly how I imagined it. He was going to try and put pressure on me straight away. He was banking on the idea I may just start folding early on and maybe get tired. You can't jump in like that. It's not the move.”
Benn was taken to hospital after the fight in what was understood to be a precautionary measure. The exact nature of the hospital visit and any injuries were unknown.
Garcia used the victory to underline his intention to remain at the weight. He told DAZN: “147lb is my division. I'm here, you can trust me as a champion”
He is now targeting a world championship unification with Teofimo Lopez. No further bouts before any potential meeting with Lopez have been confirmed.
Comments (0)