Danny Garcia will fight Shawn Porter for the vacant WBC welterweight championship on September 8, 2018, at the Barclays Center in New York.

Porter was supposed to fight Keith Thurman in a mandatory title bout earlier this year but Thurman could not defend his belt due to an injury so instead, it will be Garcia who will get another crack to win back the belt he lost to Thurman in 2017.

A Master Counterpuncher

Philadelphia’s Danny Garcia won the vacant WBC welterweight title with a unanimous decision victory over Robert Guerrero in 2016 but in his first title defense, he lost the belt via close split decision to Keith Thurman. But with Thurman unable to defend his title against Porter, Garcia hopes to recapture the title that what was once his.

With a record of 34-1 with 20 knockouts, Garcia made his name as the unified light-welterweight champion. Known as Swift, Garcia is a master counter puncher who first burst into fame when he retired Mexican legend Erik Morales after two decisive wins over El Terrible in 2012. In his last fight, Danny Garcia scored a 9^th round TKO of an over the hill Brandon Rios last February. The 30-year-old Garcia stands at 5-8.5 and has a reach of 68.5 inches.

Garcia also owns victories over the likes of Amir Khan, Lamont Peterson, Zab Judah, Lucas Matthysse and Paulie Malignaggi but the wins came at 140 pounds. No doubt Garcia was a beast at light welterweight but at 147, the only top-tier fighter he’s faced has been Thurman and he lost that fight.

Porter’s Pressure

Shawn Porter won the IBF welterweight title with a unanimous decision over Devon Alexander in 2013. After one successful title defense, he lost the belt to Kell Brook the following year. Porter challenged Keith Thurman for the latter’s WBA title in 2016 but he dropped a decision in an exciting contest.

In his last fight, Porter survived a spirited challenge by Adrian Granados to win the secondary WBC silver welterweight title in November 2017. Porter has a record of 28-2-1 with 17 knockouts. The 30-year-old Akron Ohio native dubbed as Showtime stands 5-7 tall and has a reach of 69.5 inches.

Unlike Garcia who began as a 140 pounder, Porter has always been a welterweight and in fact, began his career as a junior middleweight. Like Garcia, he lost to Thurman and he also has a decision loss against Kell Brook. Porter owns wins over the likes of Andre Berto, Adrien Broner, and Paulie Malignaggi.

Counter Puncher vs Pressure Fighter

This one’s too close to call really and the betting odds agree. These are two of the best welterweights in the business and each have a rightful claim to be the victor in this contest. Danny Garcia is a counter puncher while Shawn Porter is pressure fighter.

When it comes to punching power, it’s Danny Garcia who has the advantage here. Not only does Garcia load it up with his right hand, he can hurt opponents with both hands. Having said that though, Shawn Porter is a tough customer who has never been knocked out and whose only knockdown was against Adrien Broner in 2015.

Garcia also has better technique than Porter who tends to fight one way only and that is moving forward. Garcia can move around the ring very well and be an evasive target if he wants to. Against Porter who always comes forward, Garcia fights well while backpedaling. We saw that during his fight against an equally aggressive Lucas Matthysse.

On the other hand, Shawn Porter is the more physical fighter and has the faster hands between the two and in a fight between two fighters who have granite chins, hand speed may be one of the deciding factors, especially if this goes the distance. Shawn likes to double or triple on his jabs and use stutter steps to get inside. While many expect him to get countered by the master counter puncher in Danny Garcia, Porter fans don’t think Garcia can handle the pressure that Porter is going to bring.

Who Wins?

The key here for Garcia is to catch Porter moving forward. Watch for Danny’s vaunted left hook as it does have a legit chance of ending Porter’s night early. We’ve seen Porter get careless with his aggression and Garcia has great boxing IQ to recognize those little mistakes and capitalize on them. If Porter gets caught clean coming in, Garcia is going to get the knockout here.

For Porter, he must put the pressure on Garcia for 12 rounds. In doing so, he’s going to put Garcia in defensive mode and not let him get comfortable with his offense. Garcia is at his best when he is relaxed but if Porter can rattle him with his relentless attack, Showtime is going to win this on points.

Odds Converter

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