Calling the Erislandy Lara vs. Danny Garcia fight slow would be an understatement. From the opening bell, it was clear that ‘Swift’ Garcia, 36, was feeling the effects of his long layoff. He barely threw anything in the first round, his inactivity showing signs of ring rust. Meanwhile, ‘The American Dream’ Lara, 41, fared no better, with both fighters spending much of the early rounds sizing each other up rather than engaging.

Aside from brief bursts of action, the fight dragged. Garcia showed a spark of life in the 8th round, but the momentum quickly faded, with Lara reasserting control later in the round. Meanwhile, people watching the fight like Claressa Shields and Shawn Porter couldn’t help but voice their thoughts on the lackluster performance.

Father puts an end to Danny Garcia’s problems

The fight crawled to the 9th round, where Garcia’s hesitance—reflecting his gun-shy approach—continued. Lara hadn’t done much earlier in the round either, but just before the bell, he turned up the pressure, landing a series of shots that culminated in a simple straight left hand, sending Garcia to one knee.

Though Garcia made it to his feet when the referee consulted Garcia’s corner, his father, Angel Garcia, sensing the inevitable, called for the fight to be stopped. This awarded Lara a 9th-round technical knockout win as he defended his WBA middleweight title and got his fourth straight KO victory at the age of 41. Lara threw just 63 punches, while Garcia only managed a dismal 23, making this an especially painful sight for the fans in attendance.

Erislandy Lara gets a new challenger

Boxing journalist Dan Rafael announced the decision on X, writing, “Lara drops Garcia in final seconds of 9th, he gets up, round ends, father/trainer Angel stops it in corner. Ends all of our misery. Lara retains title.” Interestingly, Garcia’s father seemed open to helping Garcia get back in the ring if his son desired it. 

WBC heavyweight champion Claressa Shields hopped on X to write, “Damn not the no mas.” Here, Shields is referring to the 1980 fight between Roberto Duran and Sugar Ray Leonard, often known as the ‘No Mas’ fight. In the eighth round, Duran suddenly turned to the referee and said, “No más,” which in Spanish stands for “No more.”

Meanwhile, the unified middleweight champion Janibek Alimkhanuly, 31, took this opportunity to challenge Lara to a fight. The boxer wrote in a couple of posts, “Lara will never fight me. Because he knows what I will do to him in the ring!… Usually champions challenge champions to a fight! Lara doesn’t even have the courage to challenge me to a fight!” Alimkhanuly currently holds the IBF and WBO middleweight titles, and a unification bout with Lara can be an exciting matchup. 

DAZN Boxing’s commentator Sergio Mora joined the conversation to write, “Lara mentally beat down Garcia tonight. When the hunger to fight is not there anymore and the willingness to TRY to find a way to win is gone it might be time to hang them up!” It’s also possible Garcia kept looking for an opening, which, at least to him, never came. 

Veteran boxing matchmaker Rick Glaser wrote, “#DannyGarcia totally shot, in slow motion, he couldn’t get off his punches, knocked down, Angel Garcia pulls the plug & the fight is over, & so is Danny Garcia’s career. That’s it for Danny.” However, Danny does have a boxing promotion, DSG Promotions, so he might not be entirely out of the sport. 

Even former world champion Shawn Porter didn’t feel so good about the fight. “DAMN HATED TO SEE THAT,” Porter wrote. At times, the fight was so extremely lacking action that even the crowd at the T-Mobile Arena started booing the boxers. 

Oscar-nominated actress Rosie Perez reacted to the fight, writing, “cannot believe what just happened! Right now my heart is breaking for @DannySwift ! He just wasn’t there tonight from the start. Props to his father for looking out for him like that. Love you Danny. Hope you’re okay. ❤️❤️❤️.”  Even Danny didn’t seem opposed to the idea, which can only mean he agreed with the decision. 

That being said, it seems Danny Garcia isn’t the only one who should consider stepping away from the sport—at 41, Lara appeared to be doing very little in the ring. While it’s unlikely that Garcia will make a comeback, Lara’s future remains uncertain. Do you think it’s time for both to retire?