Vargas Stops Marshall

Fernando Vargas beat Tony Marshall by technical knockout in a junior-middleweight bout Friday night in 38-degree weather at Tucson.

Referee Bobby Ferrara ruled Marshall (36-12-6) had suffered too much punishment to continue after the seventh round and stopped the fight.

Vargas (24-2) bounced off his chair, raising his hands in triumph. Marshall’s corner pleaded to allow the fight to continue, to no avail.

The fight took place before 4,900 in an open-air amphitheater next to an Indian casino.

Marshall initially thought the fight ended too quickly but later thanked Ferrara for looking out for his safety.

Vargas, of Oxnard, was fighting on the five-year anniversary of his first IBF title-clinching fight over Yory Boy Campas in Atlantic City on Dec. 12, 1998.

Vargas sent Marshall staggering to the canvas in the second round when he connected on a left-right combination and followed up with a right as Marshall left himself unprotected.

“Tony Marshall was very game,” Vargas said. “I had him going. There’s been times when I get overly excited when I hurt somebody. My trainer always tells me to be intelligent.”

Vargas cut Marshall over his left eye in the seventh. But Marshall later caught Vargas with a couple of blows that reopened a gash near Vargas’ left eye.

Jim McCurdy

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Figure Skating

Despite a rare fall, world champion Evgeni Plushenko won the short program at the Grand Prix finals in Colorado Springs, Colo.

Helped greatly by the new points judging system being used in this series, Plushenko overcame a hard crash on his opening combination jump.

He had 78.25 points to beat Emanuel Sandhu of Canada, who had 75.55. American Michael Weiss was third with 73.33 points.

The World Skating Federation, organized earlier this year to challenge the International Skating Union as figure skating’s governing body, filed a lawsuit over “anti-competitive conduct” by the ISU. The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in New York, cites the ISU and its president, Ottavio Cinquanta, with improperly maintaining “a monopoly over the sport of international figure skating.”

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Swimming

American-born Milorad Cavic of Serbia and Montenegro broke the world 100-meter butterfly record, and the Netherlands women twice broke the 200-meter freestyle mark at the European Short Course championships in Dublin, Ireland.

Cavic, 19, was born in Anaheim and swims for UC Berkeley and his parents’ Serbian homeland.

His time of 50.02 seconds was 0.08 faster than the mark set by Thomas Rupprath of Germany on Jan. 27, 2002. Rupprath was second in 50.43.

The Dutch team of Hinkelien Schreuder, Annabel Kosten, Chantal Groot and Marleen Veldhuis had a time of 1 minute 38.13 seconds, 0.08 better than Sweden’s mark at the European championships three years ago. In the afternoon final,

Veldhuis’ anchor leg of 23.50 for 50 meters helped them finish in 1:37.52.

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Motor Racing

The Indy Racing League will cut engine horsepower to reduce speeds next season, a move spurred by the death of driver Tony Renna and serious injuries to former Indianapolis 500 winner Kenny Brack.

Starting with the Indianapolis 500 in May, the IRL engines will be reduced from 3.5 liters displacement to 3.0 liters, cutting horsepower about 10% and reducing speeds by about 10 mph, IRL Vice President John Griffin said.

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Miscellany

Butch Goring, the former King star who coached the New York Islanders and Boston Bruins, has been fired as coach of the German Hockey League’s Krefeld Penguins. After winning its first German league title last season under Goring, Krefeld is 13-15 halfway through the season.... Pat Yates scored on a header in the second overtime period to give the Indiana men’s soccer team a 1-0 victory over Santa Clara in the NCAA Division I semifinals at Columbus, Ohio. In the other semifinal, Sebastian Alvarado-Ralph scored on a penalty kick in the 35th minute to give St. John’s a 1-0 victory over Maryland.

Passings

Earl Gillespie, the radio voice of the Milwaukee Braves during the team’s championship seasons in the 1950s, died Friday of respiratory failure in West Allis, Wis. He was 81.