It was a career-best win for Garcia (25-2, 20 KOs), who delivered an all-around solid performance to capture the WBC welterweight crown while headlining “The Ring: High Stakes” show at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Garcia’s longtime promoter Oscar De La Hoya was thoroughly impressed with Garcia’s victory as well.

“I can't stop smiling. I am so proud of him because it's his first world title and I know how much that means for a young fighter,” De La Hoya told reporters. “I saw a composed and focused Ryan that knew he had to win. Therefore, we saw a complete Ryan that was well trained and was determined to win that world title.

“He did great. He was landing the cleaner shots. It was a masterclass. Ryan grew exponentially. Ryan's speed was too much for Mario. I was not surprised Mario got up from the knockdown. Barrios is a tough son of a gun. At times, when Ryan was throwing the combinations he was getting a little reckless. So it's like, get your composure, go back to your jab, have fun, and that's exactly what he was doing. It's a thinking man's game, and if you stick to your game plan, you're going to come out victorious.”

While many expected Garcia to separate himself from Barrios with his lethal left hook, it was a rock-solid right hand that kept Barrios at bay for most of the bout.

With the win, Garcia most likely will move on to fights against either WBO welterweight champion Devin Haney or The Ring and WBO junior welterweight champion Shakur Stevenson.

“I would like to see that fight, actually, with Devin. It will be bigger than the first time around,” said De La Hoya. “I love the Stevenson fight. There are so many options for Ryan now. Everyone wants to fight him and dethrone the pretty boy. Now that he has a world title, everyone is after him. We'll let Ryan rest, recoup, and make his decision.

“Imagine how he's going to look in his next fight? The next performance is going to be even better.”

As Garcia relished victory at the post-fight press conference, he went out of his way to express gratitude toward De La Hoya after years of feuding with him.

“I want to thank Golden Boy Promotions,” said Garcia. “I know people like to put us together as beef. I guess it sells, but I don't hold grudges and I always want to keep positivity. I just want to say thank you for all that you have done in my career, and I appreciate you.”