Bruce Carrington solidified his world-class status by stopping Brian de Gracia in the eighth round of a scheduled 10-round featherweight bout. “Shu-Shu” was the main fighter in Xander Zayas's big decision win over Patrick Teixeira in the main event.
The Brownsville native gauged de Gracia's offensive with electric jab early on, after the latter accepted the challenge three days before. The Panamanian had one of the greatest fighters of all time, Roberto Duran, applauding his compatriot's skills from ringside.
Carrington landed a hard left hook late in the second round and followed up with calculated body attacks that reached de Gracia's thighs in the third. Carrington, who ESPN analyst Mark Kriegel described as “a mix of Brownsville swagger and Olympic pedigree,” sent his opponent to the canvas in the fifth round with a short shot that grazed the back of Breyan's shaking head.
De Gracia had a five-fight KO streak prior to his loss to Edward Vázquez, but has been inactive since that defeat in mid-2023. The pace was beginning to affect the Panamanian de Gracia, with blood trickling from his nose early in the sixth round, and it was Carrington who literally smelled the blood, as he pushed de Gracia back against the ropes at the end of the seventh round to get another count.
There was nothing more the former WBA Fedecentral featherweight champion could do, as Carrington took down his opponent fighting for survival, finishing off the bout with such a flurry of strikes that referee Eric Dalli had to step in at 2-56 in the eighth round.
Carrington was well aware that Naoya Inoue was in the crowd, saying, “There's a reason he came to see me. I'm making noise. I definitely want to make that fight happen soon.”
Carrington improved his record to 12-0 (8 KOs) while de Gracia dropped to 29-4-1 (25 KOs) but may return to try out minor prospects at an upcoming Top Rank show. Unused judges include Ken Ezzo, Max DeLuca and Bernard Bruni.
Bruce, who was named ESPN's Fighter of the Year for 2023, is ranked No. 4 by the WBO. Champion Rafael Espinoza faces Sergio Sanchez on June 21. Below Carrington is Ruben Villa, which will be a good test of whether Carrington can maintain his top spot.
Carrington is ranked 12th by the IBF. Fellow Top Rank fighter Luis Alberto Lopez holds that title. Rey Vargas currently holds the WBC title (almost) and Brandon Figueroa holds the interim title. Carrington is ranked 7th by that organization.
