Marquez Wins Vacant Title by a (Broken) Nose

Featherweight Juan Manuel Marquez of Mexico City won the vacant North American Boxing Organization title Monday night by stopping an awkward Cedric Mingo of Brockton, Mass., after the 10th round in front of an announced crowd of 2,611 at the Pond.

Marquez (19-1) had a hard time hitting the wiry Mingo, but he began landing his right hand on Mingo’s head in the later rounds.

Marquez finally put Mingo down with a short right uppercut in the 10th. After the round Mingo, whose nose was broken by the right-hand uppercut, told referee Marty Denkin he couldn’t continue.

“He caught me with a right and I heard my nose crack all the way to the back of my head,” said Mingo (22-8). “I wanted to fight. I’m not a quitter. He will be a champion someday. I’m not ashamed to have Marquez on my record.”

Mingo had problems seeing out of his left eye, which was nearly swollen shut from the sixth round on. But Marquez had his problems too. He started the night thinking Mingo was right-handed.

“They never told me he was a left-hander,” Marquez said. “The first four rounds were difficult.”

Mingo didn’t land many punches, but he did frustrate Marquez and make the quiet Pond crowd antsy for action.

“I hurt him with the right hand but I never really connected solid until the 10th round,” Marquez said.

Marquez, who is hoping to get a world title shot within the year, said he would like another chance to entertain the Pond crowd.

“We hope not to fight against another left-hander next time,” said Nacho Beristain, Marquez’s manager. “We promise to put on a better show.”

The semi-main event wasn’t exactly a showstopper either. Undefeated Nestor Garza of Mexico City punished an overmatched Juan Manuel Chavez of Mexico City for seven rounds before referee Robert Byrd mercifully stopped the bout at 1 minute 4 seconds of the eighth.

Garza (26-0, 22 knockouts) sent Chavez (19-17-1) down twice in the fourth round with body punches and twice more in the seventh on hard combinations to the head.

But the harder Chavez got hit, the more he fought back.

“He’s the first guy that has taken all my punishment,” Garza said. “I was trying to do anything possible to get him out. I hit him with everything I had.”

On the undercard, junior middleweight Dwayne Williams (5-0) of Los Angeles won a five-round split decision over Fidel Hernandez (7-1) of Phoenix, who had lost to Williams twice as an amateur. Junior featherweight David Vazquez (11-2-1) of Blythe drew with Virgilio Palmo (11-1) of Mexico City.

Heavyweight Khoren Indjiam (4-4) of North Hollywood won a unanimous four-round decision over Adam Flores (1-1) of Oxnard.