Garza Shakes Off His Ring Rust and KOs Manning in the Sixth Round at Long Beach

It had been five months since former World Boxing Council super-bantamweight champion Jaime Garza was in the ring. It was one day short of a year since he scored a knockout.

And his Wednesday night opponent at the Spruce Goose in Long Beach, James Manning (28-10, 14 knockouts) of Portland, had never been knocked out.

None of it seemed to matter to Garza, who knocked Manning down with a left hook less than minute into the first round of their scheduled 10-round super-bantamweight main event.

That was the first of three knockdowns suffered by Manning, 122 1/2.

Garza, 124, put him down again at the close of the fourth round and for keeps with a solid right hand 49 seconds into the sixth.

“I worked real hard for this fight,” Garza said. “I had done nothing for four months after my last fight and gotten up to 140 pounds.

“I didn’t think I was going to make it. I was ready to quit before the weigh-in yesterday and head for the snack bar.”

But it was worth the weight.

The victory improved Garza, of Alhambra, to 47-3 with 43 knockouts.