Zab Judah and Danny Garcia’s contest on April 27th had none of the glitter, confetti, or sirens that compose a typical Vegas main event; it was composed solely with spit of talk, sweat, and blood that exceeded all expectations at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. The night was electric, and had convincingly brought back the sense of home and support that truly builds up fighters, and is largely ignored in the typical Vegas venue. The fans seemed to carry the fighters on their chants, not allowing them to quit at any given time. Both men stepped into the first round steaming with conviction, destiny, and purpose, and came out of the 12th transformed into better fighters than they’ve ever been.

I’ve never given Danny much attention, but gave him a lot of respect for being a humble son of Philadelphia with good habits and single-minded determination in the ring. From afar, he looks to play the part of the brawler in the ring, cutting off paths, and using hooks to corral his victims for combos. But upon closer look, Danny is underrated in having great eyes and patience, as he actually places his punches carefully, which forgives his lack of an active jab, and his slow hand speed. I believe he is blessed with great puncher’s intelligence that is incredibly eager to learn, and it was very evident that he was already in the process of escalating his game to new heights after seeing the Super Zab’s magic last night.

Zab Judah. This guy. To me, he was that guy who didn’t get the memo that we aren’t wearing gold chains anymore. Bruh, the NWA is broken up bruh. Bruh, it’s not 1995 anymore bruh. Proved me wrong, as he stood up against his 35 years and Danny Swift with an unflinching stance and merciless straight lefts. He was a magician, shaking off hard rights from Danny like oil and connecting  first in an exchange consistently through the later rounds. He bled from his heart for the Brooklyn crowd in attendance, and it was an awesome night for a guy that I thought was a clown, in his trailer washing off his persona to collect a paycheck. He stood for his city that night, and showed he deserved to be remembered despite newer fighters rolling over him in the past years. He certainly redeemed himself compared to the likes of Amir Khan the prince of fake. Though he lost to a well-prepared and wise-beyond-his-years Danny Garcia, I believe this fight’s highlights should be one of those climaxes in YouTube greatest hits made for Super Zab. If he wanted to prove something, he definitely did in the ring with Danny.

Danny pulled it off, and is definitely evolving the right way in his 25 fights. I hope his matchmaking sustains the right pace as Danny grows, and I definitely am looking forward for the next contender for Camp Garcia.