Ruelas Stops Valdez After Three Rounds : Boxing: He uses repeated left hooks to win the featherweight bout. Zamudio scores a unanimous decision over Chong.

After only nine minutes of the scheduled 12-round featherweight fight at the Forum Monday night, referee Chuck Hassett and ringside doctor Bernard Schwartz had seen enough.

And Tommy Valdez had felt enough, offering only a sigh of relief as he sat on his stool and was informed that the fight was over seconds before the fourth round was to begin.

Rafael Ruelas of Arleta ran his record to 23-0 and got his 20th knockout by defeating Valdez, who fell to 31-6-1. The 23-year-old from Tijuana had posted 22 knockouts in a five-year career, but never had a chance against the heavy-handed Ruelas, 19.

The victory brought the 5-foot-11, 126-pound Ruelas the International Boxing Council Americas featherweight championship and might have set him up for a shot at the North American Boxing Federation championship.

“Now, I know Rafael is ready for anyone,” said trainer Joe Goossen, who has worked with Ruelas since the thread-thin 12-year-old boy knocked on the door of the Ten Goose boxing gym in North Hollywood in 1984.

“I thought he showed a near-perfect performance against a tough, veteran guy. Now, bring on anyone. Let them have a taste of this kid.”

Valdez got much more than a taste.

In the first round he rocked Ruelas with two solid punches early, but quickly was pounded by a pair of Ruelas’ left hooks that set the tone for the rest of the fight.

In the second, Ruelas came out boldly and staggered Valdez early with three hooks, the first two to the body and the third to the jaw. In the ensuing two minutes he unloaded hooks in rapid succession, nearly all of them finding Valdez.

The third round brought an even more steady flow of hooks from Ruelas.

“Just too many punches,” Hassett said. “Too many.”

Even Ruelas was a bit surprised at the number of hooks he landed.

“With this guy’s record, I figured he would be tougher than this,’ Ruelas said. “I figured after about a dozen of those left hooks that he’d adjust. But he never did.”

In another bout, Ysaisas Zamudio (21-3) of Blythe withstood beatings in the 11th and 12th rounds and retained his NABF flyweight championship with a unanimous 12-round decision over Jesus Chong (14-2) of Tucson.