Garcia’s 2nd Fight Has More Punch to It

Maybe this fight should have been counted as Alex Garcia’s professional debut.

Garcia, the San Fernando boxer who was the national amateur super-heavyweight champion, won his first pro fight earlier this month against an overweight and underqualified pepperoni-stick maker from Portland.

Tuesday night at the Country Club in Reseda, Garcia decisioned a tougher Richard Harrell of Los Angeles to stay unbeaten at 2-0.

Harrell, 193, didn’t land too many hard blows, but his footwork and counterpunching seemed to keep the 218-pound Garcia slightly off-balance during most of the four-round bout.

“It would have gone smoother but he had good movement and I was stiff,” Garcia said after winning the unanimous decision.

Harrell came into the fight with an advertised record of 4-2. Actually, he was 1-6-1. And he’d fought only once in the past two years, losing a decision.

There were some who wondered if Harrell wasn’t another Cliff Melbourne, the 0-6 bar fighter Garcia knocked out Feb. 6.

But Harrell fought well and was hurt only once, going down from an uppercut at the bell to end the third round. In that instance, Garcia was able to move Harrell into the ropes and keep his opponent still.

Featherweight Dino Garza of Granada Hills, also fighting in his second professional bout, knocked out Rueben Maldonado of Puerto Rico (0-6) at 2:59 of the second round.

In another featured fight, Los Angeles’ Robert (Bad Man) Lewis (5-2-3) decisioned Oscar Ornelas of the City of Commerce (1-3-2) in a six-round lightweight bout.