Ryan Garcia suffered a shock defeat by Rolly Romero on Friday night as boxing took over Times Square in New York City.
Garcia was beaten by his fellow American via unanimous decision after he got floored in the second round.
The event marked the return to the ring for Garcia, who arrived in a Batmobile, after his victory over Devin Haney in Brooklyn was overturned to a no-contest after he tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs and was suspended for a year.
Both Haney and Teofimo Lopez won their matches earlier on Friday night in boxing’s trip to Times Square, easily handling a scene they had never experienced in the ring.
Haney, returning to the ring for the first time since his fight with Garcia last April 20, scored a dominant unanimous decision over Jose Ramirez in a matchup of former 140-pound champions.
Earlier, Lopez defended the belt he has in the junior welterweight championship with a unanimous decision over Arnold Barboza Jr.
Ryan Garcia suffered a shock loss to Rolly Romero on Friday as boxing took over Times Square
Romero poses for a photo after defeating Garcia in their WBA Welterweight title fight
Boxing took over Times Square on Friday night but Garcia suffered a shock defeat
Thousands of boxing fans descended on the iconic landmark to savor the unique atmosphere
On a crazy night for boxing in one of the world’s most famous landmarks, ring girls who hold up signs with the number of the upcoming round were replaced by actors imitating celebrities such as Michael Jackson, Hulk Hogan and Snoop Dogg.
Fighters were delivered from the hotel a couple of blocks away by cars, with Lopez arriving in a traditional yellow taxicab and Garcia coming in Batman’s vehicle. The cars had to stop at traffic lights in between before pulling up outside the ring for the fighters to take a shortened ring walk.
Boxers such as Mike Tyson, Terence Crawford and Shakur Stevenson had seats outside the ring along with New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns and – this being Times Square – a couple of people wearing Elmo costumes. A drummer performed earlier in the night while waiting for the next bout to begin.
Turki Alalshikh, the head of Riyadh Season and the General Entertainment Authority of Saudi Arabia, wanted something unique for Ring Magazine’s first boxing card in America after purchasing it last year.
Thus began the plan to fight in Times Square, bypassing Madison Square Garden and Barclays Center for the trip to New York.
Seventh Avenue remained open to traffic – with cars being held only briefly when the fighters’ cars crossed over – with orange fencing blocking the view of fans standing across the street wondering what was happening inside.
Those who did have ringside access – and it was unclear how many did or how they got it – could pass the time between bouts reading the ticker that scrolled along the outside of ABC’s Times Square studios just above the ring.
More to follow.
