Patient Navarro Finally Wins in Eighth

Los Angeles junior featherweight Carlos Navarro didn’t bring the Irvine Marriott crowd to its feet as he did a year ago in his professional debut. And he didn’t end the fight with a flashy knockdown. Navarro did show the boxing world that he can win with workmanlike performances too.

It took him eight rounds, but Navarro finally stopped a gangly but game Carlos Valdez of Phoenix Thursday night at the Marriott and raised his record to a 12-0.

“He was awkward and stubborn,” Navarro said. “I got him early with some good body shots and I knew then that it might take me awhile to take him out.”

While the crowd seemed frustrated by Navarro’s inability to finish off Valdez (8-2), Navarro stayed patient and continued to stay aggressive. He won each round with a little more ease than the last and eventually his vicious body attack began to slow down Valdez.

“Everybody around here knows I’m a power puncher and they expected me to end it early, but I showed how much control I have tonight,” Navarro said.

After the seventh round, Valdez’s trainer, Danny Carbajal, asked Valdez if he wanted to quit. Three minutes later, after his fighter had taken a steady diet of leather to his face, Carbajal told Valdez the fight was over.

“I heard his corner say, ‘It’s not fair to you that you should be taking this much punishment.”

Navarro will fight again next month in El Paso on a card that includes Shane Mosely and Danny Romero on USA Network. Early next year, he expected to fight for the International Boxing Federation title.

In the semi-main event, middleweight Nick Martinez (7-0) of Basset won a unanimous eight-round decision over a defensive-minded Augustine Renteria (9-19-5) of Tucson.

In a scheduled six-round junior featherweight bout, Naoya Hirahara (6-2-1) of Tokyo incited the crowd by jumping on the ring ropes and raising his arms to the ceiling after knocking out Oscar Zamora of Panama City, Fla., with a crunching straight left hand in the fourth round. The crowd booed, but Hirahara didn’t seem to care as he strutted around the ring as if he had won a world title.