Garcia vs. Duarte Start Time, Full Fight Details!

In a night full of combat action that includes BKFC 56 and UFC Austin, the pro boxing world will also be offering up some action as Ryan Garcia will make his return to the ring to face off against Oscar Duarte in a 140-pound fight live later TONIGHT (Sat., Dec. 2, 2023) inside Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.

What’s Hot:

After kicking off his pro boxing career with 23 straight wins, Garcia is looking to bounce back after suffering his first-ever defeat as a pro at the hands of Gervonta Davis, who defeated “King Ry” via seventh-round knockout (KO) in April of this year (results here). Many weren’t sold on Garcia despite having won the vacant WBC interim Lightweight title, and after failing his first big test it made the doubters feel as if they were right all along. Furthermore, after Garcia said after the fight that he came in with a rib injury, it didn’t exactly endear him to fans. Now, “King Ry” will come into his fight against Duarte with another hindrance, drama with his own promoters in Oscar De La Hoya and Bernard Hopkins. All of that aside, Garcia has talent and all the potential in the world to make a long-lasting name for himself in the sport. He has speed, technique and the looks of a person who can easily be pushed as a face of boxing by the powers that be. Whether or not he can put it all together in the big fights in order to take that next big leap, remains to be seen.

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As for Duarte (26-1-1), he is hoping to shock the boxing world by pulling off one of the biggest upsets while handing Garcia another “L.” He brings with him an impressive 11-fight win streak with 21 knockout wins on his resume and is far from a pushover. The Mexican-born fighter has the chance to really put himself on the map with a win, and he has the tools to do it. He has finished 10 of his last 11 opponents, so the knockout power is ever-present. If he can somehow get an impressive win over Garcia, he can start throwing his name to face the bigger names in the division.

What’s Not:

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22-year old Asa Stevens is another up-and-coming Golden Boy contender who is undefeated at 5-0 in his young combat career. He is just 23 years of age, but he is slowly making the trend upward and is now eyeing another one for the win column against Dominique Griffin, who is coming off two straight losses. He is 1-5-1 in his last seven, so this fight seems like a big mismatch, or a showcase fight for Stevens…or both. These types of bookings just don’t make sense given each fighter’s trajectory.

How The ‘Prelims’ Look:

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In other action, 21-year old sensation Floyd Schefield will take on Ricardo Lopez in a Lightweight fight. Schefield is 15-0 with 11 knockouts, while Lopez is 17-7 with seven finishes on his resume. In the Middleweight division, Shane Mosley Jr. eyes his fourth straight win when he goes toe-to-toe against Joshua Conley, who is coming into the event with two straight defeats.

Gael Cabrera and Alejandro Dominguez are both 2-0 coming into their Super Bantamweight fight, both with one knockout each. Cabrera made his pro debut just this year, while Dominguez will be fighting for the first time in six years. That’s quite a long time to be out of action, so ring rust could play a big factor.

In Lightweight action, Sean Garcia will tango with Joseph Johnson. Garcia is 6-0-1, but he only has one knockout on his resume, so he hasn’t shown he has the power and accuracy to turn his foes’ lights out with frequency. Johnson, meanwhile, made his pro debut a year ago and has collected a 3-1-1 record during his short run.

Who Needs A Win Badly:

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Pachino Hill started his pro boxing career at 6-0-1, but he has since had a terrible time inside the ring, losing three of four coming into his bout against Darius Fulghum, who is a monster with an undefeated record 8-0 with eight knockouts. On paper it doesn’t look very promising for Hill, but that’s why they fight. He needs a win to prevent digging himself into a deeper hole.

Interest Level: 6.5/10

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Let’s keep it real, Garcia desperately needs to avoid his second straight loss. Another setback would be detrimental for his career at such a young age because it will put him a deeper hole that will be tougher to get out of. If you couple that with the beef his has with Golden Boy Promotions and his past mental health issues, it could be rough waters ahead. He is just 25 years of age so the sky is still the limit for “The Flash,” but avoiding his second straight defeat is priority number one at the moment. If he should encounter another setback, then those big-money fights against the likes of Devin Haney, Teofimo Lopez and a rematch against Davis, pretty much are not a reality in the foreseeable future.

Full Fight Card:

Ryan Garcia vs. Oscar Duarte

Floyd Schofield vs. Ricardo Lopez

Shane Mosley Jr. vs. Joshua Conley

Darius Fulghum vs. Pachino Hill

Asa Stevens vs. Dominique Griffin

Gael Cabrera vs. Alejandro Dominguez

Sean Garcia vs. Joseph Johnson

Danilo Diez vs. Jorge Lopez

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