- Mike Jones vs. Irving Garcia
A little adversity was just what the doctor ordered for Mike Jones, who overcame a slow start, a lump under his right eye and a couple of solid shots to the head before taking apart Irving Garcia in the fifth round of their scheduled 12-round title fight in front of 1,768 fans and a Showtime television audience.
Jones, 146.5 pounds, of Philadelphia, successfully defended his North American Boxing Association (NABA) and North American Boxing Organization (NABO) belts while winning his fifth straight fight in Atlantic City.
Garcia, 146.5, of Vega Baja, Puerto Rico, won the uneventful first round, finding a home for his left jab and generally doing what little work was being done in the first three minutes.
After that, Jones took over, getting more aggressive in round two, firing his own jab along with left hook-right uppercut combinations. Garcia came back to do well through the first two minutes of round three, landing enough shots that Jones developed a small lump beneath his right eye. Later, a looping right from Jones followed by a left hook momentarily had Garcia in some trouble. Still, Garcia receovered to make it a close round.
At no time in the fight was Garcia intimidated and he stood in there with Jones in the fourth round, though Jones' right uppercuts, looping rights and left hooks clearly controlled the action.
Jones opened the fifth with a double-jab, right-hand combination with forced Garcia to the ropes. Later, a series of Jones punches highlighted by three uppercuts and a left hook had Garcia in trouble along the ropes near his own corner. A series of left hooks had Garcia trying to survive when Jones followed with a low left hook which came up to Garcia's black waistband. Referee Randy Neumann ruled it a legal punch and counted out Garcia, who complained he had been hit low. The time was 1.22.
Jones, 27, is now 22-0, 18 K0s. He is ranked No. 2 by both the WBA and WBO, No. 7 by the IBF and WBC and within breathing distance of a world title fight.
Garcia, 31, is now 17-5-3, 8 K0s, with new-found respect after his solid showing.
In other bouts on the card: Lanardo Tyner, 148 pounds, Houston, TX, by way of Detroit, MI, upset Antwone Smith, 145.5, Miami, FL, scoring a knockout at 1.15 of the ninth round. Tyner led 78-74 on two cards and trailed 77-76 on the third, welterweights; Manuel Guzman, 146.5, Lancaster, PA, exchanged first-round knockdowns with Ardick Butler, 148, Philadelphia, PA, then landed an inside right hook which flattened Butler at 2.53 of the second round, welterweights; Ryan Belasco, 137.5, Wilmington, DE, outworked Kevin Carmody, 138.5, Philadelphia, PA, for a unanimous (59-55, 59-55, 60-54) six-round decision, junior welterweights; Steven Martinez, 152.5, Bronx, NY, overcame an unofficial first-round knockdown and wiped out Jason Thompson, 151.5, Brooklyn, NY, and 2.17 of the second round, junior middleweights; Miguel Corcino, 145, Camden, NJ, blitzed Epi Cosme Rodriguez, 145.5, Harrisburg, PA, at 58 seconds of the first round, welterweights; Josh Mercado, 140.5, Cape May, NJ, earned a unanimous (39-37, 39-37, 39-37) four-round decision over Kywayne Hill, 143.5, Philadelphia, PA, junior welterweights; Jason Sosa, 128.5, Camden, NJ, unanimously out-pointed (39-37, 40-36, 40-36) Clinton Bryheim Douglas, 129, Philadelphia, PA, junior lightweights; Anthony Caputo Smith, 179, Kennett Square, PA, stopped Walter Edwards, 173.5, Wilson, NC, at 2.44 of the second round, light-heavyweights.