Bring on March 4.Welterweight world titleholder Danny Garcia plowed through huge underdog Samuel Vargas with ease, knocking him out in the seventh round of a nontitle fight Saturday at Temple Universitys Liacouras Center in Philadelphia to set up big business next year.The victory in the tune-up fight of the Premier Boxing Champions card in Garcias hometown was the final hurdle before a hugely anticipated world title unification fight against Keith Thurman, who joined the Spike broadcast team, on March 4 at a venue to be determined.Regardless of where the fight takes place, the Thurman-Garcia fight is one of the most eagerly anticipated in boxing and a showdown between two of the best in the deep 147-pound weight division. They did their part to drum up interest with Garcia pummeling the hapless Vargas and then getting into a verbal confrontation and going nose to nose during a joint post-fight interview in the ring.First Garcia (33-0, 19 KOs) had to dispose of Vargas (25-3-1, 13 KOs), and he did so easily in a one-sided destruction.Just before the bell ended the second round, Garcia sent Vargas tumbling to the mat on the end of a powerful right hand. He barely beat the count, getting up just as referee Gary Rosato was about to finish the 10-count.By the third round, Vargas left eye was black and blue and swelling. Garcia continued to pound him round after round and even threw him to the canvas like a rag doll during the seventh round, which drew a stern warning from Rosato.Later in the seventh round, Garcia, 28, blasted Vargas, 27, who is from Colombia and fights out of Toronto, with two left hooks along the ropes and then fired six more hard shots. Vargas was in bad shape, and Rosato jumped in to wave off the fight at 2 minutes, 17 seconds, just as Vargas corner was throwing in the towel.I got beat up in there, Vargas said. It takes a lot of courage to come to North Philadelphia and fight the champ. It just wasnt my night. Ive been hit harder before, but it was the accumulation of punches that got to me.I thought hed be a heavier hitter. Hes a great fighter and a great person for his city. I will be back. This was a great experience.With Vargas dismissed, it didnt take long to bring the hype for March 4. Garcia stormed to the ring ropes and peered down at Thurman at his broadcast position and began to jaw with him.Ive been waiting for this, man, Thurman said. I asked for this fight this year. This is what his team wanted -- they wanted a tune-up. I was ready this year. He got to put on a nice performance for his fans. He got his confidence. He feels strong. He got his daddy [trainer Angel Garcia] in his ear talking and pumping him. This is going to be the third daddys boy that I beat. Believe that.Later, Thurman assessed Garcias performance.Danny looked strong. He always looks strong when hes sitting there flat-footed and letting big hooks go, Thurman said. His opposition was never a threat to him at any point. Danny had a decent victory. They said that he wanted to tune up. Now hes ready to come see me.You have two big punchers on March 4. I dont see how the fight can go 12 rounds. Danny, in my opinion, is someone who has been slightly exposed in the past. I see myself as the best competition that Danny has ever faced. He may see himself as the best fighter Ive faced. But I believe that Danny Garcia is actually going to have a problem with many true welterweights. I think my counters and my power is going to be the ultimate game-changer.Garcia, the former unified junior welterweight world champion, vacated his titles and moved up to welterweight in mid-2015. In January, he easily outpointed Thurman victim Robert Guerrero to win a vacant welterweight title, one of the belts Floyd Mayweather vacated upon his retirement.Garcia had not fought since then and wanted a tune-up fight to get ready for Thurman (27-0, 22 KOs), 27, of Clearwater, Florida.I came here to do what I did today. I havent fought since January. I came to get some good rounds in and knock my opponent out at the end, and thats what I did, Garcia said.When asked about the impending Thurman bout, Garcia whipped his hometown fans into a frenzy.Philly, if you all want to see me whip this guys ass, make some noise, Garcia shouted to the crowd on the open mic.The crowd went wild.Im gonna whup him, Garcia said. Theres not much more to say. He got what he asked for, and now hes going to face a real big dog. March 4 fans can expect what they always get from me. Its going to be fireworks. Im a Philly champion. I have the heart of a champion, and Im coming to win and unify titles.Thurman had entered the ring and was standing just feet away from him when he responded, Im a different caliber. Im not no cherry [picker]. Im no easy pickins, boy.Then they went nose-to-nose, yelling at each other.Danny can talk whatever he wants, and Angel can say whatever he wants, Thurman said. They can talk smack all day, but I know for a fact that everyone who faces Keith Thurman will tell you that Im the hardest puncher theyve faced.To be continued March 4.Hurd hammers DanHot junior middleweight prospect Jarrett Hurd (19-0, 13 KOs) dominated the smaller Jo Jo Dan (35-4, 18 KOs), a longtime fringe welterweight contender and late replacement coming off a 14-month layoff, en route to a sixth-round knockout in the co-feature.Hurd, 26, of Accokeek, Maryland, laid a beating on Dan, 35, a former welterweight world title challenger from Romania and living in Montreal. He bashed Dan, a southpaw, repeatedly with heavy right hands. A terrible right hand way below the belt in the third round took a lot of starch out of Dan, who went down to the mat and was in agony. Although Hurds punches were powerful, Dan, who looked much smaller, could not inflict any damage with his shots.In the sixth round, Hurd badly rocked Dan with a right hand and then landed several more punches, which prompted trainer Howard Grant to throw in the towel and referee Benjy Esteves Jr. to wave off the fight at 1 minute, 6 seconds.He was wobbly and shaky, Hurd said. I probably would have taken him out in the next round. We knew he was a crafty southpaw. We wanted to take our time because we didnt know how he would come out. We felt him out at first. We didnt think hed come in as much. I thought hed try to move around. But he brought the fight a little closer than I expected.This does a lot for me. These fights Im getting are bringing me closer to the belt. Hopefully, this moves me up the rankings. There are a lot of great fighters in this division, and whoever I can get in there with, Ill be ready for.Dan chalked up the result to the massive size difference.The weight was a big difference. I took the fight on short notice, but Im a natural 147-pounder, and I dont struggle to make that, Dan said. Hes a tough guy. I gave him some good shots, and I took some good shots. At the end of the day, this is boxing. I couldnt do enough to get the win.In the opener of the triple-header, lightweight Javier Fortuna (31-1-1, 22 KOs), a former junior lightweight world titleholder from the Dominican Republic, won a spirited unanimous decision against Omar Douglas (17-1, 12 KOs) by scores of 96-93, 96-93 and 95-94. Fortuna, 27, overcame a knockdown on a clean left hook to the chin by Douglas, 25, of Wilmington, Delaware, during a back-and-forth exchange in the first round.He got me cold in the first round. I wasnt surprised that he came out sharp, Fortuna said. I worked very hard to come back and win almost every round. I didnt feel the punch from the knockdown very long. It was easy to recover.Every time that I was aggressive, I tried to follow it up with more punches. I knew in the final round that I had to finish it well to make sure I won the fight with no questions. The decision is done, so theres nothing else to say. I felt like I won almost every round after the first one.Douglas said he felt he won.He put it all on the line, and so did I. I knocked him down based on reflexes. The left hook was there for me, Douglas said. I worked hard in there, and I did my part. I feel like I won the fight. The decision was absurd. He held me the whole fight. I definitely want a rematch. Hes a former world champion. I gave it my all, but I just didnt get the decision.Douglas is unlikely to get a rematch -- at least not right away. Instead, Fortuna is likely headed to a rematch with secondary world titleholder Jason Sosa, who upset Fortuna by 11th-round knockout in June. Sosa (20-1-4, 15 KOs), of Camden, New Jersey, retained his belt earlier Saturday by unanimous decision against Stephen Smith in Monte Carlo and now owes Fortuna a contractually obligated rematch.I want Jason Sosa next, Fortuna said. That is a very big fight, and beating him this time would push my career up fast. Ed Delahanty Jersey . It was Kerbers third final of the year after losing to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia in Monterrey in April and to Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic in Tokyo two weeks ago. The 10th-ranked German improved her record in finals to 3-5. Pat Neshek Jersey . Only three players drafted by NHL clubs were included on the Czech selection camp roster on Wednesday. Those players were Dallas Stars 2012 first-rounder Radek Faksa, Winnipeg Jets 2013 fourth-rounder Jan Kostalek and Phoenix Coyotes 2012 seventh-rounder Marek Langhamer. https://www.cheapphilliesjerseys.us/247n-cliff-lee-jersey-phillies.html . The 15th-ranked Canadian men lost the opening two games of their European tour: 19-15 to No. 17 Georgia and 21-20 to No. Dan Baker Jersey . Traditional contenders Brazil, Greece and Turkey drew the other three spots to complete the 24-team field for this summers tournament in Spain, basketball governing body FIBA announced Saturday at its meeting in Barcelona. Tim McCarver Jersey . Barcelonas entertaining victory ensured the defending Spanish champions retained their share of the league lead with Atletico Madrid two rounds ahead of their meeting in the capital. Real Madrid needed a late goal by substitute Jese Rodriguez to earn a 3-2 victory at Valencia to stay in third place and three points behind its title rivals. Dustin Brown looked at the core of the Los Angeles Kings, and his decision was easy. He wanted to stay long-term, and he wanted to get the deal done himself. Brown did just that, signing for eight years and US$47 million, ensuring that this Stanley Cup-champion Kings team would have its captain around through the 2021-22 season. The right-winger joined goaltender Jonathan Quick, defencemen Drew Doughty and Slava Voynov and forwards Mike Richards and Jeff Carter as players signed for at least the next six seasons. "We werent built to win the Cup one year and then disappear," Brown said. "Now its kind of all come into place in the sense that were all going to be going through this together." That was Dean Lombardis goal when he took over as general manager in 2006. He acquired Richards and Carter and their contracts that run through 2020 and 2022, respectively, then tried to build on the first title in franchise history by keeping Quick around through 2023 and Doughty and Voynov through 2019. Signing Brown to this contract was just "part of the process." "It wasnt only building it, but trying to keep it together and then fit it under the cap," Lombardi said on a conference call Thursday. "Youre never done. It wasnt just about becoming a good team. It was doing these type of things so that you could, in the end, build a culture, have an identity." Brown is, in many ways, the Kings identity. The 28-year-old right-wingers aggressive forecheck led the way during the 2012 Stanley Cup run, when he was a point-a-game player. When Brown dealt with a knee injury and managed just three goals and an assist in 18 playoff games this past spring, the banged-up Kings couldnt get past the Chicago Blackhawks in the Western Conference final. "He freely admits at times during his past season where, as the leader of this team, hes got to do more," Lombardi said. "Thats a sign of growth. Hes not there looking (like), Well, Im the captain, I should be getting all this money, Im great. Hes looking at it and saying, Ive got to be better here if were going to do this again." With the hope that the Kings could win it all again, Brown decided to represent himself in contract negotiations, citing a comfort level with the only NHL organization he has known. If he had an agent working on it, Brown said, talks probably would still be ongoing. Instead, Lombardi and Brown spoke in person and on the phone and hammered out a deal that counts $5.875 million against the salary cap beginning in 2014-15. "I really like the fact that the discussion was as much about the team and the cap and how it works from a team perspective as it was about what he thought he was worth," Lombardi said. "That shows hes working with the team." Brown did his hommework, getting comparables from the NHL Players Association and analyzing his value.ddddddddddddBut he also knew full well "theres only so much money to go around." "Within the cap I think we have an opportunity to keep this team together," Brown said. "That was part of my decision in wanting to stay is I believe we have a chance to win." The Kings have undergone some changes since they won in 2012, losing defenceman Rob Scuderi and left-winger Dustin Penner in free agency, acquiring defenceman Robyn Regehr and trading backup goalie Jonathan Bernier to the Toronto Maple Leafs. But the bulk of those who hoisted the Cup will be around for the foreseeable future. That includes Anze Kopitar, whos signed for three more seasons, and Jarret Stoll and Justin Williams, who are signed through the next two. "Its not only that our core is locked up," Brown said. "You look at our core and were all relatively within the same age group within a group of three or four years, and I think thats important." Its important to Lombardi to make sure his young stars didnt even get to unrestricted free agency. In a cap world where players are "moving around like musical chairs," he understands the value of continuity. "You kind of beat that part of the system which basically encourages players to move around and not have that attachment to a team," Lombardi said. "Thats what the system essentially does. Youre trying to, I guess, confront that. When youre able to keep your players locked up and fit them under the cap, thats part of the job." Naturally some things are going to change. Ron Hextall left to join the Philadelphia Flyers front office, so Lombardi hired long-time defenceman Rob Blake as assistant general manager. Its a "compliment" that success makes those in the organization more attractive to other teams, so Lombardi was prepared. "I was fortunate to have a guy like this right in our own back yard," Lombardi said of Blake. And fortunate to have a captain in Brown who wanted to sign a deal that takes him to the age of 37. The contract has a partial no-trade clause, according to Lombardi, who expressed no concern over it not working out. In signing Brown for eight years, Quick for 10, Doughty for eight and Voynov for six, Lombardi and the Kings are accepting risk. Injuries can happen to anyone, he said, but theres even more that goes into locking up a core group for so long. "Youve got to really trust the character of your players that theyre inherently competitive and theyre not going to get complacent," Lombardi said. "Whether its Doughty or Kopitar or Quick or Richards or Carter and now Browny, I am a 100 per cent that there is not going to be complacency in these kids." ' ' '