Friday night marked the triumphant return to the ring of Derrick “Take to the Bank” Webster (15-0, 8 KOs), who methodically broke down Puerto Rican scrapper Julio Garcia (6-6, 3 KOs) over four rounds before hammering him to a TKO stoppage in the 5th round. The official end of the bout came at the 1:19 mark of the frame, with Webster unleashing an assault upon Garcia as the gritty veteran could do nothing but cover up on the ropes in defense.
“He was a power puncher, so I didn’t want to take any risks in the beginning. I definitely wanted to get some rounds in and get some of the rust off me,” Webster said after the victory, which came after a one-year layoff. “As the rounds went on, I started to see his face transform. Once I started giving to the body, I saw him get bent a little bit. Then the one-twos started killing him, and we got him out of there.”
Despite being out of the ring since January of 2013, Webster showed that he matured and grew by great levels over the past year, which included his participation in multiple championship camps.
“I’m happy with my performance,” Webster confirmed. “I gave the crowd what they normally get. The end result was what it always is – a standing ovation. Take it to the Bank, we’re here to stay. 15-0. I have no complaints about tonight.”
In the opening frames of this bout, the elusive Webster made himself a virtually unhittable target for Garcia, sticking his jab in the face of his opposition while also displaying great footwork to avoid any countering attack. The Glassboro, New Jersey, native cautiously approached the hard-hitting Garcia, strategically picking his spots when he let loose his own offense. As the rounds progressed, Webster began to fire in heavier numbers as he dealt some quality combination work. He also found a hole in the defense of Garcia while pumping the jab, starting to follow up with quick faints to the head before firing brutal hooks to the body. By the time the fourth frame came to a close, Webster appeared to be in complete control of the action.
As soon as the fifth round got underway, Webster displayed an immediate killer instinct and went into the frame with a mission to close the show. The undefeated super middleweight began to truly sit on his punches, and the resulting effects were being revealed on the face of Garcia. As he picked up the tempo, the beginning of the end was signaled at the 50-second mark when he froze his left hand out in front of him before unloading a vicious uppercut that snapped back the head of his opposition. Webster never took his foot off the gas pedal, knocking Garcia around the ring until he battered him onto the ropes and began dealing punches from every conceivable angle. Once Garcia covered up and no longer attempted to strike back, the bout was officially waved off just 1:19 into the round.
Webster, head trainer Denny Brown and his team now turn the page into the next chapter of the young prospect’s promising career, with more than a handful of exciting opportunities currently on the table. Stay tuned for all of the latest news regarding those developments, as well as the announcement of his next fight date and opponent in the very near future.
