In his first WBC welterweight title defence, Ryan Garcia emphatically crushed Conor Benn inside two rounds after a brutal second-round TKO stunned the crowd at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The 28-year old sent Benn to the canvas with a vicious right hand early in the second round that his opponent barely saw.
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While the Briton got to his feet, the fight was all over but the shouting, with Garcia pinning Benn to the ropes with a heavy onslaught before the referee called a halt.
However, the spectacular finish attracted controversy, with commentator Max Kellerman adamant the stoppage came too early.
“I have to say, I thought the stoppage was a tad premature,” Kellerman said on Paramount+.
“This is high-stakes stuff. Benn was showing a lot of toughness and resourcefulness.
“In my view, Ryan may have been robbed of a conclusive ending.”
However, Benn was taken to hospital after the fight, vindicating the decision.
Speaking post-fight, Garcia said his ability to throw haymakers on the right as well as a left would make him even more dangerous in future.
“I’ve always had a right hand, but I always had injuries,” he said.
“This is kind of the first two fights I had no injuries on my right hand.”
Garcia improved to 26-2 with his 21st victory inside the distance and denied Benn, in his first world title bout, a chance to become a world champion like his father, England’s Nigel Benn.
The 28-year-old American was defending his 147-pound (66.7kg) division title for the first time since winning the crown in February with a unanimous decision victory over Mario Barrios.
Benn, a 29-year-old Englishman, is the son of a former middleweight and super middleweight world champion.
He fell to 25-2 after coming off an April unanimous decision victory over American Regis Prograis at London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Both fighters were moving quickly and intensely trading punches from the start until Garcia landed his stunning blow.
Benn rose but was battered for the fight’s final few seconds.
Post-fight, Garcia called out two rival welterweight champions, unbeaten American Devin Haney of the World Boxing Organization and Honduran-American Teofimo Lopez, the World Boxing Association champion.
“Where are you at?” Garcia said.
“It’s unification time.”
With Lopez in the stands watching on, Garcia attempted to call him to the ring, with the WBA champ attempting but failing to get through security.
“Teofimo, get that ass up here,” he said.
“He want to get crazy, we could get crazy,” he said.
“It really don’t matter. I’ll beat your ass now!”