Spence downs Garcia to retain IBF welterweight title

DALLAS Errol Spence Jr. solidified his status as one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world with 12-round masterclass performance over challenger Mikey Garcia on Saturday.

The 29-year-old Spence easily beat Garcia by a unanimous decision to retain his International Boxing Federation title in a welterweight homecoming bout in front of 47,500 fans.Spence dominated Garcia throughout with a stinging jab and a barrage of combinations and his hometown crowd at the AT&T Stadium in Dallas, Texas cheered wildly as he used his size and reach advantage to put on a boxing clinic.

“My motivation was fighting in front of my hometown crowd,” Spence said. “This is where I started it from a pup. From the amateurs all the way up. “This is my core fan base. I felt good and I wanted to put on a great performance.”

The fight was hyped as a showdown of two unbeaten boxers but it didn’t turn out that way with one judge scoring it 120-107 for Spence. The other two had it 120-108 and 120-108.Garcia never landed more than 10 punches in a single round. Spence landed 375 total punches to just 75 for Garcia, who was fighting for the first time as a welterweight after moving up two divisions.