Franco Misses Chance to Impress but Still Wins

Raul Franco was going to show promoters and Irvine Marriott fans that he ready to move into the upper echelon of the welterweight division. But those hopes were dashed when Franco’s highly touted opponent, Jose Cruz of Guadalajara, Mexico, didn’t have his paperwork in order and was refused entry into the United States.

But Franco, a 22-year-old from Long Beach, made the best of a tough situation by knocking out last-minute stand-in Antonio Gonzalez of Lakeside one minute 50 seconds into the main event’s fourth round before a sellout crowd of 1,415 Thursday night.

“I was very disappointed,” Franco said after hearing Wednesday that Cruz would not be fighting. “I was thinking about not fighting. I wanted to show the people and put my name on the boxing map. It’s just another letdown. Patience. I’ll get there.”

Franco (13-0, eight knockouts) was patient against Gonzalez (3-8-4, three knockouts) for three rounds before unloading on him with a right to the ribs and a left to the liver. Gonzalez went down in a hurry and was counted out by referee Raul Caiz.

“I raised him up with punches to the head and then brought him down with body punches,” Franco said.

Franco said he was somewhat suspicious that Cruz (19-0) had a month to take care of his paperwork but still couldn’t make it past Tijuana.

“He had a contract,” Franco said. “It’s tough to get a fight around here.”

Heavyweight Rueben Alvarez (3-0, three KOs) of Bakersfield recorded the night’s most spectacular knockout when he knocked 44-year-old Al Myles out of the ring. Myles, coming off a 13 1/2-year layoff, knocked down Alvarez in the first round and appeared to be carrying the fight. But he was caught flush on the left side of his face by a Alvarez overhand right. Myles lost his balance and fell out of the ring and onto the lap of a startled woman in the front row.

“She told me to get out of here,” said a groggy Myles, who was finally helped back into the ring about two minutes later. “She thought I was getting in her purse.”

Los Angeles’ Pedro Pena (15-0, eight knockouts), whose bout to defend his U.S. Boxing Assn. junior bantamweight title recently fell out, took out an overmatched Manuel Noyola (4-3-1) of Lakeside midway through the second round.

In a strange semi-main event, Westminster lightweight Yoni Vargas (10-1, five knockouts) won a unanimous six-round decision over a clowning Frankie Lizzaraga (7-9) of San Diego.

Lizzaraga spent much of the bout springing off the ropes like a wrestler and leading with his head.