DANNY GARCIA did not quite live up to his moniker but nonetheless delivered a swift left hook, as is typical of the once ferocious puncher, to bid farewell to Brooklyn – or rather, leave the door ajar for a final lucrative payday – in ruthless fashion.
Despite the 37-year-old’s fourth-round finish over Daniel Gonzalez being billed as his ‘Farewell to Brooklyn’, the Philadelphian told media members afterwards that he is now only “85 per cent retired,” insisting that “the dollar sign gotta be right” if he is to extend his fighting career any further.
At the same time, though, it would be rather fitting for the two-division world champion to bow out after landing his signature punch – the same shot that has gotten him out of jail on more than one occasion – in his 10th outing at the Barclays Center, New York.
Entering his super-welterweight clash with Gonzalez, 22-5-1 (7 KOs), earlier this morning, Garcia, 38-4 (22 KOs), was coming off a ninth-round stoppage defeat to WBA world middleweight champion Erislandy Lara in September 2024.
This time around, he got off to a far more promising start, stinging his somewhat unremarkable opponent with a series of clubbing right hands in the opening round.
Garcia then went to work on Gonzalez’s body in the second round, aiming to impose his size and strength against the natural 147 pounder.
It was hardly surprising, then, when Garcia, who had consistently been piling on the pressure, floored his man with a crushing left hook in the fourth frame.
At that point, referee Harvey Dock began to issue his count but soon realised that Gonzalez, who appeared out of his depth from start to finish, was quite simply in no position to continue.
Beyond this, it is difficult to envision a world where Garcia suddenly takes the 154lbs division by storm. So instead, it is perhaps best that we keep him out of the conversation when discussing the likes of Sebastian Fundora, Vergil Ortiz Jr, Bakhram Murtazaliev… you know the rest.
