See this story at BrooklynDaily.com.
By Joseph Staszewski
Brooklyn Daily
Brooklyn’s own Zab Judah can’t call himself champion again quite yet.
Instead of handing the current super-lightweight champion his first career defeat, Judah lost the title bout versus 25-year-old Danny Garcia (26–0, 16 KOs) at Barclays Center Saturday in a unanimous decision (11–111, 114–112, 115–112).
“I definitely gave it to Danny and Danny gave it back” the 35-year-old Brownsville native said. “He showed why he’s champion now. I showed people why I was a five-time champion of the world.”
Garcia’s powerful right hand hammered Judah (42–8, 29 KOs) during the middle rounds of the 140-pound fight. Shots to the jaw in the fifth and sixth rounds left Judah’s legs wobbly. But it was a vicious counter punch in the eighth that knocked Judah down and left a large cut under his left eye.
Judah downplayed the knockdown after the fight, blaming it on his stance with his feet too close together, making it easier for him to lose his balance.
He didn’t let Garcia cruise to a win, though. Judah won the final three rounds by hurting his opponent with powerful lefts and brought the hometown crowd of 13,048 to its feet, feeling he was one or two punches away from ending the fight.
“I was on my A-game tonight,” Judah said.
Despite the loss, Golden Boy promoter Oscar De La Hoya believes Judah is still in the championship tier.
“Zab is in the mix,” he said. “He didn’t lose anything. He actually gained by the way he fought.”
Prior to the fight, there was already plenty of animosity between the fighters and their camps. They were kept separate at the weight-in and the prefight press conference. Extra security was called in before the fight in the ring.
The dislike turned into respect after the bout, when Garcia called Judah crafty and the toughest opponent he’s fought so far. Angel Garcia, the champion’s father and trainer, had made disparaging comments about Judah before the fight, but later conceded that Judah was by no means washed up.
“He came back strong in the late rounds,” Angel Garcia said. “He came prepared. He’s been in big fights before.”
Judah vowed to fight again before a Brooklyn audience.
“Of course, you will see me fight again,” Judah said after the fight. “Brooklyn do you all want me to come back? I’ll come back.”
Judah’s fellow Brooklynites starred on the undercard. Danny Jacobs, a Brownsville native and cancer survivor, continues to take out opponents and grow more comfortable in the ring. He earned his third-straight win since being diagnosed with spinal cancer in 2011.
Jacobs, a middleweight, picked up a technical knockout of Keenan Collins when the referee stopped the fight at 2:06 of the fourth round. Jacobs had already knocked him down twice that round. “I feel like I am getting better and better with each fight,” Jacobs said.
Luis Collazo picked up a technical knockout of Miguel Callist at the 1:33 mark of the fifth round of a welterweight bout. Zachary Ochoa beat Calvin Smith by unanimous decision (40–36, 40–36, 40–36) in the super lightweight division. Boyd Melson also took home a unanimous decision victory (60–53, 60–53, 59–54) over Edgar Perez at super middleweight. Collazo says he’s ready for bigger and better things.
“I felt good. I felt strong,” Collazo said. “Now I’m just waiting for these big fights. I want these top guys in the welterweight division.”
Reach reporter Joseph Staszewski at jstaszewski@cnglocal.com. Follow him on twitter @cng_staszewski.