Zayas, 22, becomes youngest active world champion

Xander Zayas, 22, won the vacant WBO light middleweight title with unanimous points victory over Mexico’s Jorge Garcia Perez, making him the youngest active world champion in boxing since the age of 22.

By margins of 116-112, 118-110, and 119-109, Zayas won by dominant points at New York’s Madison Square Garden on Saturday.

Zayas, who turned professional at age 17, said, “This is a dream come true. It’s beautiful, I thought. This is amazing to see my Puerto Rican supporters here. Nothing could possibly compare to this in my dreams.

Unbeaten Zayas, who has won all 22 of his professional fights, took the stage with powerful body-pounding strikes.

Garcia and Zayas met in a thrilling sixth round, but the latter was unable to maintain that pressure because Zayas was able to show his class and dominate the subsequent rounds, making it only his fifth defeat in his 38th fight.

Zayas continued, “I had to box my way to victory.” I was aware that if I stood in front of him, I would fight. I did everything in the background of the jab. We demonstrated that the jab was the key to victory.