Errol Spence overpowered challenger Danny Garcia in his first fight since surviving a near-fatal rollover car accident to retain his World Boxing Council and International Boxing Federation welterweight titles on Saturday.
Spence, 30, put on a virtuoso performance winning almost every round in a 147-pound homecoming fight at AT&T Stadium in Dallas, Texas.
The undefeated American, who suffered serious injuries after being thrown from his car in the drunk-driving smash, won by unanimous decision, proving he is still the same boxer as before the accident in October 2019.
"The moment is surreal especially coming back from my accident year ago," Spence said. "Be patient with me. This was a comeback fight for me and I had to shake off some cobwebs."
After the fighters felt each other out during the first few rounds, Spence seized control in the middle rounds to win on all three scorecards by scores of 116-112, 116-112 and 117-111.
Spence improved to 27-0 with 21 knockouts while Garcia fell to 36-3, with 21 KOs.
Spence, a southpaw, monopolised Garcia with his jab and relentless pressure, not allowing the challenger to make use of his pre-fight game plan.
"He was breaking him down and taking the fight out of him. His jab is the key to everything," said Spence's trainer Derrick James.
Garcia had one of his best rounds in the second. They got into a heated exchange at the end of the round when Garcia hit Spence after the bell.
Spence hurt Garcia with a couple of punches in the third and by the fourth he was controlling the tempo.
"In training camp I knew I was going to be good. I am back," said Spence.
Garcia, 32, had been hoping to carry some momentum over from his previous two straight wins and become champion again for the first time since 2017.
"He was just a better man tonight. No excuses," said Garcia. "I fought a hard, tough fight. He had a good jab and that was the key to the fight."
Garcia, a counter-puncher, was too conservative to do any serious damage. He spent the majority of fight on the defensive, blocking combinations and stepping sideways to avoid any huge shots.
By the eighth round Garcia was retreating to the ropes desperately trying to land any punches while Spence just kept up the attack.
Garcia's corner told him to go for the big punch but he seemed preoccupied with trying to just stay on his feet and preserve his record of never having been knocked down in his career.
Company name: Farmin
Date started: March 2019
Founder: Dr Ali Al Hammadi
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: AgriTech
Initial investment: None to date
Partners/Incubators: UAE Space Agency/Krypto Labs
Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
Company info
Company name: Entrupy
Co-founders: Vidyuth Srinivasan, co-founder/chief executive, Ashlesh Sharma, co-founder/chief technology officer, Lakshmi Subramanian, co-founder/chief scientist
Based: New York, New York
Sector/About: Entrupy is a hardware-enabled SaaS company whose mission is to protect businesses, borders and consumers from transactions involving counterfeit goods.
Initial investment/Investors: Entrupy secured a $2.6m Series A funding round in 2017. The round was led by Tokyo-based Digital Garage and Daiwa Securities Group's jointly established venture arm, DG Lab Fund I Investment Limited Partnership, along with Zach Coelius.
Total customers: Entrupy’s customers include hundreds of secondary resellers, marketplaces and other retail organisations around the world. They are also testing with shipping companies as well as customs agencies to stop fake items from reaching the market in the first place.
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
