Errol Spence Beats Danny Garcia Via Decision, Retains Welterweight Titles

Errol Spence Jr. erased any concerns that he might be a diminished fighter in his first match following a terrifying car crash last October. Simply put, "The Truth" looked as good ever, displaying excellent power, precision and timing en route to a unanimous-decision win over former champion Danny Garcia at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. 

The cards were 117-111, 116-112, 116-112, per the Fox Sports pay-per-view broadcast.  

ESPN's Max Kellerman and sportswriter Rafe Bartholomew reacted to Spence's performance:

Spence (27-0, 21 KOs), who retained his WBC and IBF welterweight titles with the win, showed little rust despite a 14-month layoff from the ring. His jab cracked like a whip all night, putting pressure on Garcia and allowing him to follow up with power punches to the head and body.

Garcia (36-3, 21 KOs), who has now lost three welterweight world title fights in the last three years, struggled to get into a rhythm for long stretches of the fight. The Philadelphia-born challenger did have his moments throwing in between Spence's punches and digging into the body, but he faded as the match carried on. Spence controlled most of the later rounds with a constant stream of combination punching.

Spence felt he can be even better next time he steps in the ring, per The Athletic's Lance Pugmire:

After a couple of warm-up rounds, which saw Spence dig in at the body and Garcia wait patiently to counter, the two fighters let loose in the third round. Spence landed the first big punch of the night midway through the frame, a cracking left hand that drew a big cheer from the home-state crowd. 

Garcia looked stunned for a second, but re-grouped and managed to land a couple of sweeping right hands. However, Sporting News' Andreas Hale felt he wasn't doing enough to sway the judges: 

Spence continued to ratchet up the pressure in the fourth round, stalking Garcia around the ring and probing for openings with his jab. It was an effective strategy, even if he did find himself in trouble at times. Swift nailed him with back-to-back right hands at one point, one landing upstairs, the other down. 

ESPN's Steve Kim noted the rounds were close:

A thudding left hand from Spence bounced off Garcia's skull in the fifth, a flashpoint in the round, but the latter fighter proved his mettle by refusing to back down. 

The simple, effective jab work from Spence started to cause significant swelling on Garcia's left eye. This seemed to embolden the southpaw, as he began to throw more punches straight down the alley that got through Garcia's guard.

By the eighth round, Spence was in complete control, per boxing journalist Dan Rafael: 

Fox Sports PBC showed some of the 30-year-old champion's best work from that frame:

There was a minor resurgence from Garcia in the 10th round, but he couldn't find punch he needed to turn the tide of the fight. He was never really out of the match, but he lost most of the biggest exchanges. 

With Saturday's performance, Spence has proven he's should still be considered one of the top pound-for-pound fighters in the sport. He's now beaten Garcia, Mikey Garcia and Shawn Porter in his last three fights. Fans will be clamoring for him to finally get a fight against either Terence Crawford, the WBO welterweight champion, or perhaps the legendary Manny Pacquiao, who holds the WBA belt.

The Crawford fight would likely be preferred, as both men are undefeated and considered by many to be among the best of this current era of boxing.