Garcia in fine form as he handily outpoints Benavidez in junior middleweight debut

Demirezen wins slugfest with Kownacki; Russell notches controversial TKO over Barthelemy

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If you didn’t know Danny Garcia had been out of the ring for 19 months you wouldn’t have realized it watching his sharp performance against Jose Benavidez Jr. on Saturday night.

Making his debut at junior middleweight, former welterweight and junior welterweight world titlist Garcia more or less did as he pleased in what appeared to be a one-sided domination of Benavidez in the main event of a Showtime-televised Premier Boxing Champions tripleheader at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, where Garcia improved to 9-1.

But the result did not come without a typical scoring controversy. While judge Tony Paolillo (117-111) and Glenn Feldman (116-112) had Garcia winning, Waleska Roldan stunningly had it 114-114, finding a way to give the largely inactive and ineffective Benavidez six rounds. Fight Freaks Unite had Garcia winning 118-110 in his first bout since losing a unanimous decision challenging unified welterweight titlist Errol Spence Jr. in December 2020.

After the loss to Spence, Garcia took the longest break of his career to, as he said before the fight, recharge his batteries, spend time with his young family, enjoy all the money he has earned and rekindle his love for boxing.

After the fight, Garcia got emotional in the ring during his Showtime interview with Jim Gray and said he also went through some mental health issues.

“I did take a break going through mental things. Things went dark,” Garcia said, as he began to cry. “I went through anxiety, deep depression, just trying to be strong.

“It was the pressure of life, being a good dad. (I’m) just letting it out right now because it was stuck inside. It rained on me for a year and a half and the only way to do better is to fight and I’m a fighter. If you battle anxiety and depression, you can get out of it. That’s what I did today. I fought. I still battle some days. I have dark days, but I try my best to stay positive. But I feel good. I gave the fans a good fight tonight.”

He credited the support of his ever-present father and trainer, Angel Garcia, for helping him see his way through.

“He was there with me the whole way. I’m nothing without this man,” Garcia said of his father. “I thank him every day.”

Garcia, who was sharp from the outset, dominated the fight with a relentless body attack, combination punching and a steady, stiff jab while Benavidez struggled to land effectively.

Garcia (37-3, 21 KOs), 34, of Philadelphia, landed many good right hands, including a clean one that seemed to buzz Benavidez in the seventh round.

Round after round, Garcia continued to do as he pleased while Benavidez only occasionally landed anything cleanly.

Rarely, did he throw combinations. He did land a crisp right hand that got Garcia’s attention in the ninth round, which was his best of the fight and a round all three judges gave him. Other than in that round, however, Benavidez had few answers for Garcia’s steady onslaught.

Before the 12th round, Benavidez’s father and trainer, Jose Benavidez Sr., implored his son to step it up. “It’s the last round! Go for it!” But Benavidez didn’t do anything of the sort and Garcia closed him out with no difficulty in a lopsided final round during which Garcia confidently raised his right arm and encouraged the pro-Garcia crowd to cheer for him.

According to CompuBox, Garcia landed 233 of 746 punches (31 percent) — including connecting with a career-high 153 body shots — while Benavidez landed 117 of 600 punches (20 percent). Garcia also outlanded him in every round and landed double-digit punches in every round except for the first, when he connected with nine blows.

Benavidez (27-2-1, 18 KOs), 30, of Phoenix, a one-time can’t-miss prospect, whose career was derailed when he was shot in the leg in 2016, dropped to 0-2-1 in his last three fights. He suffered a one-sided 12th-round knockout loss challenging welterweight titlist Terence Crawford in October 2018. A nearly three-year layoff followed until a generous 10-round draw with journeyman Francisco Torres in a November middleweight bout.

“I’m happy with my performance. I feel like I did good,” Benavidez said. “I’m fighting in his backyard, one of the best. I took his punches like they were nothing. I thought I won the fight. But it is what it is. A loss makes you stronger.”

Garcia’s path to a title shot is blocked because undisputed champion Jermell Charlo has all four belts and is likely headed to mandatory defenses in at least his next two fights, leaving Garcia to look elsewhere for a meaningful bout.

Former junior middleweight titlist Tony Harrison was ringside and said he would like to fight Garcia next but Garcia was not so interested. He has other ideas.

“I’d like the rematch with Keith Thurman. He took my ‘0,’” Garcia said of losing his first bout to Thurman by split decision in a welterweight unification fight, also at Barclays Center, in March 2017.

If he can’t get a rematch with Thurman, he has another name in mind.

“I’ll take (Erislandy) Lara for the (WBA secondary) middleweight title at 155 pounds,” Garcia said.

Whomever Garcia faces next, he seemed at ease back in the ring, having learned how to deal with his mental health.

“In order to be Danny Garcia again I had to be back in the ring to do what I love, to be a fighter,” Garcia said. “People ask me everyday, ‘You make good money in boxing, why do you still fight?’ I feel like I’m a fighter, this is what I do, same way Warren Buffett is 90 years old and still making money in stocks.

“I’m a fighter. So, this is what I love to do and hopefully I don’t become a meme with my crying face like Michael Jordan.”

Demirezen outslugs Kownacki

In the heavyweight co-feature, Ali Eren Demirezen scored the most significant win of his career as he pounded out a unanimous decision against big crowd favorite Adam Kownacki in the all-action fight most expected.

Demirezen won 97-93, 97-93 and 96-94 to hand Brooklyn’s Kownacki his third consecutive defeat and probably permanently derail his dream of becoming the first Polish heavyweight champion.

Kownacki (20-3, 15 KOs), 33, appeared to be on his way to a world title shot until suffering upset back-to-back knockout losses to Robert Helenius by fourth-round stoppage in 2020 and a sixth-round loss this past October in which Kownacki suffered a broken left orbit bone.

Kownacki was trying to rebound from those defeats against 2016 Turkish Olympian Demirezen (17-1, 12 KOs), 32, who won his sixth fight in a row.

“I overcame adversity,” Demirezen said through an interpreter. “We were both equally aggressive. I promised everyone a win, and that’s what the people got. I beat him in his hometown. I want to be an inspiration and a role model for Turkish youngsters that were watching tonight. I hope I made them proud.

“I truly love fighting in the U.S. and I love New York, so I said before you will see me more on Showtime and PBC.”

According to CompuBox, Demirezen landed 256 of 915 punches (28 percent) and Kownacki landed 276 of 851 (32 percent). Kownacki’s stats were skewed by his overwhelming activity in the first two rounds. Overall, they combined to throw 1,766 punches, the second-highest total in any heavyweight fight tracked by CompuBox in its 37-year history.

In his 11th fight at Barclays Center, Kownacki looked very sharp in the first two rounds as he set a surprisingly fast pace, throwing more than 100 punches in each round and connecting regularly, especially with his right hand.

In the third round, however, as Kownacki’s pace slowed, Demirezen picked his up as he took control. He hurt Kownacki with a right hand at the end of the sixth round and by the ninth round Kownacki seemed exhausted as Demirezen lined him up for right hands.

Kownacki, who suffered a cut over his left eye that required stitches after the fight, went for a knockout in the final round and landed some heavy shots but Demirezen fended him off and won the last two rounds on all three scorecards to seal the victory.

“I’m a bit rusty. I think he was getting off first in the exchanges,” Kownacki said. “I was out of the ring since last October. Camp was good but I don’t know. I was letting him get off first. I wasn’t moving my feet. I went back to the old me instead of the first few rounds when I was doing good.”

Before the fight, Kownacki said a loss might end his career. And now?

“I have two kids. I’ll have a long talk with my wife to see what I want to do,” Kownacki said. “I’ve had so many fights here, so many great memories. I don’t want to go out like a loser. I would like another fight to leave my fans with a win.”

Russell stops Barthelemy

In the opener, fast-rising junior welterweight contender Gary Antuanne Russell scored a controversial sixth-round knockout of former junior lightweight and lightweight world titlist Rances Barthelemy that marred an otherwise competitive and exciting fight.

There was good action throughout the fight as Russell, a southpaw, pressed the action and Barthelemy counter punched him.

In the sixth round the fight came to a surprising conclusion shortly after Russell (16-0, 16 KOs), 25, a 2016 U.S. Olympian from Capitol Heights, Maryland, dropped Barthelemy to his rear end with a leaping right hook.

Barthelemy (29-2-1, 15 KOs), 36, a Cuba native fighting out of Las Vegas, easily beat the count and walked toward referee Shada Murdaugh. But moments later Murdaugh waved off the fight at 50 seconds, eliciting immediate and animated complaints from Barthelemy and trainer Orlando Cuellar.

“No, they shouldn’t have stopped it,” Barthelemy said through an interpreter. “I felt good. It was a good shot, I’m not denying that, but they shouldn’t have stopped it. I got up and told him I was fine and good to go. Of course, I want the rematch with a different referee.

“This is the most bitter loss of my career. I’m destroyed. Don’t get me wrong, this wasn’t Russell’s fault at all. I’m a veteran, and I had been through something like that plenty of times in my career. The referee treated me like a rookie instead of the two-time world champion I am.”

Cuellar added, “I’m unhappy! This was a good fight these fans paid good money to see. How can you take this opportunity away? He’s been down before and gotten up. He’s fought on. You’re supposed to give your fighter every opportunity to continue. The referee took away the chance for both to show their character, for Rances to continue and for Gary Antuanne to show his character by fighting on in a hard fight. You robbed the fans. We want a rematch but with a different referee.”

Russell, the younger brother of former featherweight titlist and his current trainer Gary Russell Jr., led 49-46, 49-46 and 48-47 at the time of the stoppage. It was his first bout since the death of his father and trainer, Gary Russell Sr., in May after a long illness.

“I want to tell my father up above I did it for him,” Russell said. “We’re going to keep it going for pops. He raised us to be men and well-rounded men. Being thorough means to be prepared and he prepared us for boxing and for life outside of boxing. I thank my father and I did what I had to do.”

As for the stoppage, Russell added, “I know Rances is a high-grade, class athlete and he wanted to continue. Emotions were high. Whether we are bruised or beaten, as a warrior, you always want to continue, but the referee was doing his job, and if he was allowed to continue it would have been the same outcome.  I would have gotten him.

“In the sixth round I had him backing up. I knew he was looking for his right cross and I caught him backing up and I shot my hook and put him down. He was buzzed but he wanted to keep going. He’s a warrior.”

Derevyanchenko cruises

In the final preliminary bout before the start of the main card, three-time world title challenger Sergiy Derevyanchenko (14-4, 10 KOs), 36, a Ukraine native fighting out of Brooklyn, shook off a three-fight losing streak to cruise to a one-sided decision over Joshua Conley (17-4-1, 11 KOs), 30, of Montclair, California, in a middleweight bout.

Two judges scored it 99-91 and one had it 98-92.

Derevyanchenko was coming off a majority 10-round decision loss to contender Carlos Adames in December. Before that he dropped decisions in middleweight title fights to Jermall Charlo and Gennadiy Golovkin (heavily disputed). In 2018, Derevyanchenko lost a split decision in a middleweight title fight to Daniel Jacobs.

Photos: Amanda Westcott/Showtime

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