By Daniel Gonzalez,

Carson, CA – After a dominating performance over the very tough Chicago native, Adrian Granados (20-7-2, 14 KOs), Saturday night at the Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson California, former two-division champion Danny “Swift” Garcia (35-2, 21 KOs) had a message to the already stacked and talented welterweight division.  Looking into the camera of the Premier Boxing Champion cameras that were broadcasting on FOX, he proclaimed,  “I’m Back!”

He followed that by stating in his post-fight interview, “When Danny Garcia is at his best, no one can beat him…I got a little comfortable in the past and didn’t give that extra mile but I put in my 110 percent and this is what you get when you get 110 percent of Danny Garcia, one of the best fighters in the world.”

After suffering 2 very close losses in his last 3 fights (Keith Thurman and Shawn Porter), Danny Garcia appeared to be at crossroads in his career coming into this fight with Granados.  According to both Garcia himself and boxing analysts, he needed to make a statement to get himself back into world title contention talks in the welterweight division.  That is exactly what he did Saturday night.

His explosive power was the story in the fight, as he floored Granados 3 times in the contest and handed him first knockout loss in 28 fight professional career.  Due to Granados toughness and competitive spirit, referee Thomas Taylor was forced to step in and stop the fight in the 7th round when Garcia had Granados pinned against the ropes and was unloading a series of dangerous shots.

According to Compubox stats, Garcia outlanded Granados 159 to 79. He also displayed greater defensive skill and limited Granados to landing just 19 percent of his punches thrown.  It appeared that Garcia’s conditioning and change in nutrition energized him.  The left hook, which he was known for during his rise to champion and his title defenses, seemed to have the power it once did.

He floored Granados with a perfectly placed counter left hook midway through the second round.  Although Granados got up quickly, Garcia put him down again with a counter right and eventually outskilled and  broke him down.

With this win, Garcia puts himself in position to explore countless options in the welterwight division.  He appears to want to share the ring with the Filipino legend Manny Paquiao and seems poised to avenge the losses he suffered at the hands of both Keith Thurman and Shawn Porter.

When asked what he wanted next in his post-fight interview, the Philadelphia native responded by saying, “I hope I didn’t scare Manny Pacquiao away…I’d love a rematch with Shawn Porter or Keith Thurman, or a fight with Errol Spence Jr. I’m back!”  All of these match ups are intriguing ones, as Garcia is a dangerous opponent for any of the current world title holders.

Daniel Gonzalez is a Senior Boxing Writer. Dan writes for many publications including Boxing Action Magazine, www.BoxingAction24.com and www.SideStepBoxing.com

Photo courtesy of  Premier Boxing Champions