Ryan Garcia Stops Conor Benn in Two Rounds, Retains WBC Welterweight Title
By Real Combat Media Boxing Editorial Staff
Las Vegas, Nevada, (September 12th, 2026)–Ryan Garcia needed less than two rounds to make his first WBC welterweight title defense look easy, dropping and stopping Conor Benn in front of a sold-out crowd of 18,855 at T-Mobile Arena to headline Zuffa Boxing’s biggest card of the year. The win answered the question hanging over fight week: whether February’s breakout performance against Mario Barrios was the real Garcia or a ceiling. Two rounds against Benn suggested the former.
How the Fight Went
Both fighters came out with energy in Round 1. Benn pushed forward and set the pace early, but Garcia stayed patient behind his counters, timing him with left hooks and a clean uppercut to edge the round. Benn found his best moment early in Round 2 with a left hook of his own, but Garcia answered immediately, hurting him to the body before unloading the shot of the fight: a titanic right hand that dropped Benn hard with almost two minutes left in the round. Benn beat referee Thomas Taylor’s count and tried to continue, but Garcia backed him to the ropes and let his hands go until Taylor stepped in and waved it off at 1:25, closing the show in four minutes and twenty-five seconds of total action. Garcia improves to 26-2 (21 KOs); Benn falls to 25-2 (14 KOs).
Co-Main: Opetaia Adds Another Belt
The legal threat that shadowed fight week never materialized into anything more than noise. Don King’s attempt to block the bout over promotional rights to Noel Mikaelian went nowhere, and Jai Opetaia made the most of it, breaking down the previously unbeaten cruiserweight champion for a ninth-round TKO to add the Zuffa Boxing and Ring Magazine titles to his collection. Opetaia hurt Mikaelian coming out of a clinch, followed up against the ropes, and the referee ruled it a stoppage after Mikaelian was saved only by the ropes holding him up.
Post-Fight: Garcia Explains the Finish, Credits His Faith
In his in-ring interview, Garcia pointed to his faith as a steadying presence before pivoting to the finish itself, describing the right hand that ended it as a weapon he’s always carried, even through past injuries. Some ringside voices felt referee Thomas Taylor’s stoppage came a touch early given Benn’s track record for toughness, but Benn didn’t protest the call.
Performance of the Night bonuses went to Da’Mazion Vanhouter and Oswaldo Molina, while Abel Gonzalez’s come-from-behind decision over Raul Salomon earned Fight of the Night.
Full Fight Card Results
Welterweight (Main Event, WBC World Title): Ryan Garcia (26-2, 21 KOs) def. Conor Benn (25-2, 14 KOs) by TKO, Round 2 (1:25)
Cruiserweight (Zuffa Boxing & Ring Magazine World Titles, Co-Main): Jai Opetaia def. Noel Mikaelian by TKO, Round 9
Lightweight: Andres Cortes def. Mark Magsayo by unanimous decision (97-93, 97-93, 97-93)
Heavyweight: Da’Mazion Vanhouter def. Raphael Akpejiori by first-round KO
Welterweight: Alexis Rocha def. Jose Ramirez by unanimous decision (98-91, 98-91, 97-92)
Super Middleweight: Abel Gonzalez def. Raul Salomon by unanimous decision (77-74, 77-74, 77-74)
Super Welterweight: Vlad Panin def. Dakota Linger by TKO, Round 4 (1:22)
Lightweight: Sean Garcia def. Abraham Morales by majority decision (56-56, 58-54, 58-54)
Lightweight: Oswaldo Molina def. Pablo Rubio by unanimous decision (60-54, 59-55, 59-55)
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