Lamont Roach Jr. became the new World Boxing Association (WBA) super featherweight champion by defeating Hector Garcia by split decision this Saturday night at the Michelob Ultra Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The American came from less to more in the fight and in the end got cards of 116-111, 114-113 and 113-114 to defeat a strong opponent against whom he had to fight hard all 12 rounds.

The first rounds were quite complicated for Roach, who could not find a way to be effective against Garcia. Although he would go to the boxing ring and try to connect with the Dominican, he was met with a good counter attack and good combinations from the former champion. 

However, Roach was patient and kept working until he found ways to hurt Garcia’s humanity and gain ground. He even switched to southpaw guard at times and it was effective, to the point that he managed to put Garcia down in round 11 and then knock him down in round 12.

The new champion now has a record of 24 wins, 1 loss, 1 draw and 9 knockouts. For his part, the Dominican left his record at 16 wins, 2 losses and 10 knockouts.