By: Sean Crose
After a yearlong suspension for having a banned substance in his system both before and after his fight with Devin Haney back in 2024, Ryan Garcia finally returned to the ring on Friday night. His opponent was the rugged and outspoken Rolando “Rolly” Romero. The fight, scheduled for a welterweight 12, was the main event of a strange card that took place smack dab in the middle of Times’ Square. The 16-2 Romero and the 24-1 Garcia immediately took to trading jabs in the first. Romero tried working the body, but it appeared the taller Garcia had won the chapter.
A double left hook abruptly sent Garcia to the mat in the second. Garcia quickly got up but it was clear he wasn’t going to glide his way to an easy victory. The pace slowed down a little in the third and things remained close. Each man fought warily in the fourth, though Garcia was able to land some clean, stinging jabs. Romero was the more active of the two fighters in the fifth. Romero focused on the body in the sixth. It was clear in round seven that Romero was giving Garcia real trouble. Still, Garcia may well have edged the round, thanks in large part to his jab.
Both fighters remained cautious of each other’s power in the eighth, though Garcia jabbed well. Romero looked as if he might have been the more active fighter in the ninth. By the tenth it was long past obvious that the fight was being fought at Romero’s pace. Even Garcia’s face betrayed some frustration. The eleventh was punctuated by sharp body shots from Romero. The twelfth and final round was surprising in that Garcia didn’t seem particularly aggressive. The man was simply lackadaisical. Fortunately, there were no shenanigans from the judges, who after the final bell rewarded Romero with a unanimous decision win.
An enormous upset.
