Ryan Garcia Stops Conor Benn in Two Rounds – Full Fight Results

Ryan Garcia needed less than five minutes to settle his feud with Conor Benn, dropping the British challenger in the second round before forcing the stoppage. That explosive finish grabbed the headlines in Las Vegas, while Jai Opetaia broke down Norair Mikaeljan and several unbeaten records disappeared further down the card.

Ryan Garcia Stops Conor Benn in Two Rounds

Ryan Garcia (26-2-0) retained the WBC world welterweight title by stopping Conor Benn (25-2-0) in the second round. Referee Thomas Taylor ended the contest at 1:25 after Benn had been knocked down.

After all the arguments, predictions and concern surrounding Benn’s return to 147 pounds, the actual fight was brutally brief. Benn never had time to turn it into the sustained pressure battle he would have wanted. Garcia found the decisive breakthrough in round two and closed the show before the challenger could recover.

Garcia had weighed in at 145½ pounds, with Benn at 146, but the small difference on the scales meant little once the punches started landing. A second-round TKO is about as emphatic as title defences get. Garcia handled business, while Benn’s first world-title challenge ended almost before it had properly begun.

Jai Opetaia Breaks Down Norair Mikaeljan

Jai Opetaia (31-0-0) stopped Norair Mikaeljan (28-4-0) by ninth-round TKO at 1:30. Mikaeljan was ruled down during the round before referee Harvey Dock called it off.

This was a much more measured demolition. Opetaia was ahead 79-73 on all three scorecards through eight rounds, so there was no doubt about who had been controlling the contest. He then removed the judges from the equation in the ninth and kept his unbeaten record intact. No surprise result, but another fairly loud statement from the Australian cruiserweight.

Key Fights

Andres Cortes (26-0-0) preserved his unbeaten record by unanimously outpointing Mark Magsayo (29-3-0) over 10 rounds. All three judges scored it 97-93 for Cortes. Beating an experienced former world champion by identical margins is a serious result, and a bit of an upset considering the experience Magsayo brought into the ring.

Alexis Rocha (27-2-1) handed Jose Carlos Ramirez (29-4-0) another defeat with a unanimous decision over 10 rounds. Rocha won by scores of 98-91, 98-91 and 97-92, with Ramirez also going down in round nine. Those cards tell their own story.

Undercard

Abel Gonzalez (9-0-0) recovered from being knocked down in the opening round to beat Raul Salomon (16-5-1) by unanimous decision over eight rounds. All three judges returned scores of 77-74. Gonzalez had to work for that unbeaten record.

Heavyweight prospect Da’Mazion Vanhouter (13-0-0) made short work of Raphael Akpejiori (19-4-0), scoring a first-round knockout at 1:58. Akpejiori went down twice before the contest ended. Quick, destructive and impossible to ignore.

Vlad Panin (25-2-0) halted Dakota Linger (17-8-3) by TKO in the fourth round at 1:22. Panin had already swept the opening three rounds 30-27 on every scorecard before securing the stoppage.

Oswaldo Molina (10-0-0) won the battle of unbeaten super-featherweights, outpointing Pablo Rubio (15-1-0) by unanimous decision over six rounds. The scores were 60-54, 59-55 and 59-55, leaving little argument about the winner.

Sean Garcia (8-1-1) closed out a successful night for the Garcia family by taking a six-round majority decision over Abraham Morales (4-2-0). Morales was dropped in round three, although Garcia lost a point for holding in the fifth. Two judges scored it 58-54 for Garcia, while the third had it level at 56-56.

Garcia supplied the sudden finish, Opetaia supplied the steady punishment, and Cortes and Rocha picked up two of the night’s most useful wins. Benn will have a long journey home after a very short fight.

Prelims Live Stream