Garza Return Disappoints Despite His Knockout Win

Jaime Garza’s long-awaited return to the ring was something of a disappointment Monday, even though Garza won his bout by a knockout.

Garza knocked out Arnel Arrozal of the Philippines in the main event at the Irvine Marriott boxing card Monday, but the win hardly proved whether Garza had returned to form.

A former World Boxing Council super-bantamweight champion, Garza was making his first appearance in the ring in more than 14 months, since he last lost the crown.

Garza won an unsatisfying knockout when referee Chuck Hassett stopped the fight at 2:13 of the third round and awarded Garza the knockout after Arrozal did not respond to a flurry of punches that had cornered him.

Moments earlier, Garza had stung Arrozal with a punch that Arrozal later claimed had caught him in the kidney, paralyzing him from the waist down.

Arrozal had complained to the referee at the time of the punch, but the fight continued.

Sensing his opponent’s problems, Garza pounded the hapless Arrozal until the referee finally stopped the fight. The result left both boxers and a sellout crowd of 1,496 somewhat disappointed.

Action in the second and third rounds between Garza and Arrozal had been spirited, promising an interesting 10-round bout, but Arrozal’s injury did not allow Garza to test his skills over a full fight.

Both boxers went into the match weighing 124 pounds.

With the win, Garza raised his record to 42-1 while Arrozal’s fell to 45-15.

On the undercard, Gerraldo Nava of Santa Ana decisioned Billy Betts of San Luis Obispo at 140 pounds. Tony Paisano of Pasadena knocked out Ruben Blackwell of Los Angeles at 160 pounds.

Also, heavyweight David Yonko of Long Beach knocked out Pierre Marchand of San Diego at :54 of the third round. At 130 pounds, Greg Puente of Alhambra and Tony Guido of Los Angeles fought to a technical draw, with the match called at 2:33 of the fourth round of a scheduled six-round fight.

Puente was ahead on points when the fight was stopped because of a head-butt injury to Guido, but California State Athletic Commission rules hold that a boxer cannot lose a fight due to an injury from a head butt. At 132 pounds, Geraro Hernandez of Los Angeles knocked out Terry Baldwin of San Jose at 1:14 of the second round.