By Arne K. Lang
Top Rank was in the Phoenix metroplex tonight with a 10-bout card topped by a pair of intriguing co-features. In the six early fights, the “A-side” performed as expected, winning all six with relatively little trouble. TSS West Coast bureau chief David Avila is in the building. Check back later for Avila’s summaries ofm Valdez-Wilson, Valle-Estrada, and the two 10-round bouts topping the undercard.
Richard Torrez Jr
Tokyo silver medalist Richard Torrez Jr, the pride of Tulare, CA, needed less than a round to dismiss 41-year-old North Carolina trial horse Donald Haynesworth. A high-octane swarmer, Torrez Jr has now won all nine of his pro fights inside the distance, all but two within the first two rounds. Tonight, he bulled Haynesworth into a corner and unleased a fusillade of punches and with nothing coming back, referee Raul Caiz Jr waived it off at the 2:19 mark.
Haynesworth, who entered the contest with an 18-9-1 record, was stopped for the sixth time.
Other Bouts
Sergio Leon Rodriguez, a local man, improved to 11-0-1 (8) with a wide 6-round unanimous decision over Sanny Duversome. The judges had it 60-54 and 59-55 twice.
A stocky, short-armed middleweight who is something of a plodder, Rodiguez doesn’t appear to have much of an upside despite a strong start to his pro career. A 33-year-old Floridian, Duversomme (`12-7-2) lost for the seventh time in his last eight starts. His lone victory inside that window came against an opponent who had only one win in his last 20 assignments.
Nineteen-year-old Emiliano Vargas, the youngest and best of Fernando Vargas’s three fighting sons, pitched a shutout over Nelson Hampton in a 6-round lightweight bout, improving his record to 9-0 (7), Hampton, from Donna, Texas, seldom took a forward step and was out-punched by a wide margin. His record declined to 10-9.
New Top Rank signee Alan Garcia, a 21-year-old lightweight from Ulysses, Kansas, scored a second-round stoppage of Gonzalo Fuenzalida. Garcia (12-0, 10 KOs) ended the match at the 1:58 mark of round two with a barrage of punches climaxed by a short right to Fuenzalida’s soft midsection. Garcia, who is trained by Gloria Alvarado – who also handles Yokasta Valle -- advanced to 12-0 (10 KOs). Fuenzalida, a Las Vegas-based Chilean, was stopped for the fourth time as his ledger dipped to 12-4.
SoCal junior welterweight Art Barrera Jr, a protégé of Robert Garcia, scored a one-punch, second-round knockout over Keven Soto of Dallas, improving his ledger to 4-0 (4 KOs). The 18-year-old Barrera packs a mean left hook. None of his opponents lasted beyond the second-round. Soto was 5-1 (3) heading in.
In the opener, a scheduled six-rounder at 140 pounds, SoCal’s Ricardo Ruvalcaba (12-0-1) scored a fifth-round TKO over Texas campaigner Avner Hernandez (4-4).
Photo credit: Mikey Williams / Top Rank via Getty Images
Top Rank was in the Phoenix metroplex tonight with a 10-bout card topped by a pair of intriguing co-features. In the six early fights, the “A-side” performed as expected, winning all six with relatively little trouble. TSS West Coast bureau chief David Avila is in the building. Check back later for Avila’s summaries ofm Valdez-Wilson, Valle-Estrada, and the two 10-round bouts topping the undercard.
Richard Torrez Jr
Tokyo silver medalist Richard Torrez Jr, the pride of Tulare, CA, needed less than a round to dismiss 41-year-old North Carolina trial horse Donald Haynesworth. A high-octane swarmer, Torrez Jr has now won all nine of his pro fights inside the distance, all but two within the first two rounds. Tonight, he bulled Haynesworth into a corner and unleased a fusillade of punches and with nothing coming back, referee Raul Caiz Jr waived it off at the 2:19 mark.
Haynesworth, who entered the contest with an 18-9-1 record, was stopped for the sixth time.
Other Bouts
Sergio Leon Rodriguez, a local man, improved to 11-0-1 (8) with a wide 6-round unanimous decision over Sanny Duversome. The judges had it 60-54 and 59-55 twice.
A stocky, short-armed middleweight who is something of a plodder, Rodiguez doesn’t appear to have much of an upside despite a strong start to his pro career. A 33-year-old Floridian, Duversomme (`12-7-2) lost for the seventh time in his last eight starts. His lone victory inside that window came against an opponent who had only one win in his last 20 assignments.
Nineteen-year-old Emiliano Vargas, the youngest and best of Fernando Vargas’s three fighting sons, pitched a shutout over Nelson Hampton in a 6-round lightweight bout, improving his record to 9-0 (7), Hampton, from Donna, Texas, seldom took a forward step and was out-punched by a wide margin. His record declined to 10-9.
New Top Rank signee Alan Garcia, a 21-year-old lightweight from Ulysses, Kansas, scored a second-round stoppage of Gonzalo Fuenzalida. Garcia (12-0, 10 KOs) ended the match at the 1:58 mark of round two with a barrage of punches climaxed by a short right to Fuenzalida’s soft midsection. Garcia, who is trained by Gloria Alvarado – who also handles Yokasta Valle -- advanced to 12-0 (10 KOs). Fuenzalida, a Las Vegas-based Chilean, was stopped for the fourth time as his ledger dipped to 12-4.
SoCal junior welterweight Art Barrera Jr, a protégé of Robert Garcia, scored a one-punch, second-round knockout over Keven Soto of Dallas, improving his ledger to 4-0 (4 KOs). The 18-year-old Barrera packs a mean left hook. None of his opponents lasted beyond the second-round. Soto was 5-1 (3) heading in.
In the opener, a scheduled six-rounder at 140 pounds, SoCal’s Ricardo Ruvalcaba (12-0-1) scored a fifth-round TKO over Texas campaigner Avner Hernandez (4-4).
Photo credit: Mikey Williams / Top Rank via Getty Images
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