Boxing is unforgiving, even when you are a young, hot prospect riding on an unblemished record. One mistake can cost you your fame and career, and Alan Garcia went through the same thing when he forgot the fundamental rule of boxing: don’t underestimate your opponent.

Friday night’s Jaime Munguia vs. Erik Bazinyan undercard sent the fans into a frenzy, as Ricardo Fernandez took Garcia out of the blue with a devastating overhand right during their fight in Arizona. Garcia suffered a crushing defeat as he tumbled on the ropes, after which the referee intervened to stop the action.

Alan Garcia pays with his undefeated record against Ricardo Fernandez

Odds were stacked against Fernandez, as he was coming 15-13 into the fight against Garcia, who had an unbeaten record of 14-0. The fight seemed to pan out exactly as Garcia’s corner had expected it to be. Garcia utilized his dimensions, particularly his reach and strength, to toy with Fernandez in the initial 4 rounds. However, the tables turned in the fifth round when he switched to a southpaw stance, brimming with overconfidence and keeping his left guard down.

Fernandez seized the opening, as he caught Garcia lacking and landed an overhand right near the ropes, dropping him to the canvas. Talking about his performance and after improving his record to 16-13, he said, “I took advantage [of southpaw switch] to land an overhand right. A good overhand right.”

Fernandez added, “I felt it, I felt my knuckle, I felt the excitement. I trained hard for this. I worked for this… I saw his eyes [roll backward], I saw he wasn’t getting up.” Soon the clip of the vicious knockout started doing rounds on the internet and the fans flooded the comment section.

Boxing fans and pros react as misery piles up on Garcia

Rick Glaser suggested the risk of suffering such a defeat might be that Garcia would probably be cut from Top Rank. He wrote, “Devastating KO loss for #AlanGarcia, not only KO’d, but more than likely #TopRank will give him the Pink Slip, cutting the fighter loose from their promotional deal. That’s #Boxing!” Notably, Garcia had recently signed a new long-term promotional deal with Top Rank this March, so hopefully he might still have more opportunities to prove his worth.

Jamel Herring lauded the match-making prowess of the Top Rank, which puts its budding fighters to the test and gauges them accordingly. He penned, “This is why @trboxing has some of the best matchmakers… they’re going to eventually test you and find out what they’re working with… tough break for the kid though.” Interestingly, Munguia also joined the Top Rank after his stint with Golden Boy Promotions, and the stable also boasts other young stars.

A fan believed the knockout could be in contention for the knockout of the year. They argued, “Bruh 😆 KO of the year?” This year has already seen wonderful knockouts by the likes of Gervonta Davis and other stars, and Fernandez’s right hand might give them a run for the money.

Someone pointed out the flow in Garcia’s game plan, as the latter stopped to utilize his size and reach advantage. They claimed, “That’s why you use the jab to keep them at bay.” Garcia had stopped using jabs to maintain the distance and dictate the fight’s pace, which eventually cost him the fight.

Lastly, a comment explained how the lowering of the left guard in the southpaw stance resulted in Garcia’s loss. The comment read, “That’s for not respecting your guard.” As Garcia committed the fundamental error of not keeping his hand up and leaving himself open, Fernandez exploited the gap and punished him.

What do you make of this fight between Ricardo Fernandez and Alan Garcia? Let us know in the comments below.