Ruelas Gives His Boxing Foe a Good Ribbing

Gabriel Ruelas had a late-night dinner Tuesday night. He dined heartily on ribs. Unfortunately for Dana Roston of Las Vegas, the ribs on which Ruelas feasted were attached to his body.

Ruelas, an unbeaten junior lightweight from Arleta, pounded Roston unmercifully with a thunderous body attack in a fight at the Country Club in Reseda. Roston finally succumbed to the barrage at 2 minutes 31 seconds of the third round. He went down from a screeching left hook to the side, got up in agony at the count of five and took a thudding right to the other side of the rib cage. He toppled hard to the canvas and the fight was stopped.

Ruelas improved to 20-0 with 12 knockouts; Roston fell to 15-13-2.

Moments before the main event, Rafael Ruelas, Gabriel’s younger brother, also scored a knockout. He, however, had to get off the canvas to do it. Ruelas, 125, was floored in the first round when a left hook from Roberto Rios caught him on the chin. Ruelas struggled to his feet at the count of eight and held off Rios for about a minute before he could counter.

And when he did, Rios fell quickly. Midway through the second round, Ruelas, 14-0 with 12 knockouts, caught Rios, 16-11-1, with a whistling left-right combination to the head. Rios, 121 1/2, went down and got up on one knee, but referee John Thomas would not let him continue.