Undefeated Fighters Set to Meet in Irvine
Next Thursday’s main event at the Irvine Marriott might be one of the better matchups in the 12-year history of the monthly “Battle in the Ballroom” show.
Undefeated Carlos Navarro of Los Angeles will face undefeated Marcos Licona of Westminster for the California super bantamweight title. Navarro (10-0, nine knockouts), a former U.S. amateur champion, and Licona (10-0-1, four knockouts) are two of the top prospects in the super bantamweight division.
Matchmaker Jerry Bilderrain originally scheduled Long Beach welterweight Raul Franco for Thursday’s main event, but he began looking for another bout when Franco announced he wasn’t ready to fight this month. Navarro, 21, and Licona, 22, will be making their main event debuts.
Navarro, a 5-foot-7 southpaw, compiled a 132-12 record as an amateur. Licona, a 5-5 right-hander, did not fight much in the amateurs and has fought eight of his 11 pro bouts at the Marriott.
“This is a tremendous fight because these are two highly thought-of prospects, and now they’re meeting,” Marriott promoter Roy Englebrecht said.
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