Photos: Xander Zayas wins title by decision against Jorge Garcia

Xander Zayas came out on top in his first bid for a title, facing off against Jorge Garcia at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York. The unbeaten 22-year-old Puerto Rican claimed the vacant WBO super welterweight belt, defeating his Mexican opponent by unanimous decision.

Zayas (22-0, 13 KOs) and Garcia (33-5, 26 KOs) went head-to-head in the main event, live on ESPN. After 12 rounds, the judges scored the fight 116-112, 118-110, and 119-109.

In his post-fight interview, Zayas called out reigning WBC champion Sebastian Fundora, who had previously also held the WBO title. Fundora relinquished the WBO belt in the lead-up to his rematch with Tim Tszyu last Saturday.

“Boxing 101,” Xander Zayas said. “I had to box my way to victory. I knew that if I stood in front of him, I’d be fighting his fight. So, I did everything behind the jab. The jab was the key to victory, and we showed that today.”

“This is a dream come true. This is beautiful. To see my Puerto Rican fans here, this is amazing. I could never dream of anything better than this.”

“Sebastian Fundora just fought last week. My heart is also looking for an opponent. Hey, I’m ready in December.”

Bruce Carrington defeats Mateus Heita to win interim title

In the 12-round co-feature, Bruce Carrington (16-0, 9 KOs) of Brooklyn, NY defeated Namibia’s Mateus Heita (14-2, 9 KOs) by unanimous decision. The judges scored the fight 119-109, 119-109, and 120-109. With the victory, Carrington earned the interim WBC featherweight title.

Post-fight, Carrington called out reigning WBO featherweight champion Rafael Espinoza and current WBC 126-pound champion Stephen Fulton.

“I wanted to show that I can go the full 12 rounds,” Bruce Carrington said. “I showed that championship level through those 12 rounds. I feel good. I feel in shape. I feel sharp and ready for that next level.”

“I’m ready. I’ve been calling out all the champions. They already know. I see [Rafael] Espinoza in the crowd. I want to fight him. I want to fight Nick Ball. I want to fight Stephen Fulton.”

On Zayas vs Garcia undercard

Among other Zayas vs Garcia results, Emiliano Vargas (15-0, 13 KOs) of Oxnard, CA knocked out Ecuador’s Alexander Espinoza (20-4-1, 9 KOs) with an overhand right at super lightweight. The official time was 42 seconds of the first round. Vargas retained his NABF strap.

Atop the prelims, Rohan Polanco (17-0, 10 KOs) of the Dominican Republic defeated Quinton Randall (15-3-1, 3 KOs) of Houston, TX, by unanimous decision at welterweight. After 10 rounds, the judges scored it 100-90, 99-91, and 97-93. Polanco retained his WBO Intercontinental title.

Juanmita Lopez De Jesus (3-0, 2 KOs) defeated fellow Puerto Rican Jorge Gonzalez-Sanchez (5-3, 4 KOs) via second-round TKO at super flyweight. The referee called it a day at 1:14 into the round. On his way to victory, De Jesus sent Gonzalez-Sanchez to the canvas three times.

Dominican Yan Santana (15-0, 12 KOs) defeated Aaron Alameda (30-3, 17 KOs) of Mexico by unanimous decision in a 10-rounder at featherweight. All three judges scored it 100-90.

Steven Navarro (7-0, 5 KOs) of Inglewood, CA, secured a unanimous decision against Cristopher Rios (11-3, 7 KOs) of Lynwood, CA, in an eight-rounder at junior bantamweight. All three scores were 77-75.

In the event opener, Julius Ballo (1-0) of San Diego, CA, made a successful pro boxing debut, earning a unanimous decision over North Carolina’s Brandan Ayala (2-0, 1 KO). The four-round featherweight bout ended with scores of 40-36 across the board.

The Zayas vs Garcia event was the final Top Rank boxing fight card on ESPN.

Amanda Serrano, Rafael Espinoza, Vito Mielnicki Jr., Ali Feliz, Abdullah Mason, among others, were in attendance.