Garcia-Lock Preview!

March 27, 2008

By Francisco Salazar

Boxing once again takes place in the San Gabriel Valley on Friday night with two young fighters hoping to maintain their undefeated records intact.

Unbeaten Super Featherweight Juan Garcia will take on late-replacement Cornelius Lock in the 10 round main event bout at the Industry Hills Expo Center in the City of Industry, CA.

In the co-feature bout, Super Featherweight Alejandro Perez will take on Omar Adorno in an eight round bout.

Both bouts will headline a scheduled 10-bout card, presented by Top Rank. Both fights will be televised on Telefutura’s popular “Solo Boxeo Tecate” series.

Garcia was originally scheduled to take on Dallas, TX-based fighter Jose Hernandez. However, Hernandez was injured during training late last week. Lock stepped in and signed a contract to face Garcia on Tuesday.

Garcia, (14-0, 5 KO’s) from Phoenix, AZ, is coming off a hard-fought six round decision victory over previously-unbeaten Gamalier Rodriguez in January. Garcia was momentarily stunned early in the bout, but came on strong in the later rounds to win the bout.

After making his professional debut three months after the age of 18, Garcia has steadily improved his level of opposition. Lock will be a significant step up in competition, a stronger challenge than what Hernandez would have brought.

After dominating the Arizona fight scene, this will be the third time he will fight in Southern California. This will mark the second time he has fought on a Top Rank card.

Lock, (16-3-1, 9 KO’s) from Detroit, MI, has not fought since a eight round unanimous decision victory over Robert DaLuz in late August.

It was his first fight in almost two years, when he was stopped in the fifth round of a scheduled eight round bout against Featherweight contender Mario Santiago in October of 2005.

After losing his professional debut in June of 2000, Lock went unbeaten in his next 14 bouts over four years. He stepped in competition and was stopped by Cristobal Cruz in October of 2004. Earlier this month, Cruz defeated South African Thomas Mashaba, winning the IBO Featherweight title.

Lock has defeated name fighters in Miguel Angel Munguia, John Nolasco, and Alex “Ali” Baba.

Perez will put his unbeaten record on the line against the veteran Adorno.

Perez, (11-0-1, 6 KO’s) from Salinas, CA, scored a fifth round technical knockout over Jaime Ville on the Manny Pacquiao-Marco Antonio Barrera undercard last October.

Perez is riding a 10-bout winning streak dating back to September of 2004, when he fought to a four round majority decision draw against Felipe Rivas.

The 21 year old Perez is no stranger to fighting in Southern California. Although he has fought in his native Northern California and in Las Vegas, Friday night will be the fourth time he has fought in Southern California.

Adorno, (16-9-1, 10 KO’s) from Morovis, Puerto Rico, has lost his last three bouts in a row, including a second round stoppage defeat at the hands of unbeaten Juan Manuel Lopez in October.

Adorno began his professional career with 12 straight victories until he was stopped after the eighth round at the hands of former world champion Martin Castillo in January of 2001.

Despite his most recent struggles, Adorno has been a solid stepping-stone for young prospects and contenders. Adorno took the bout for eight rounds against Bantamweight standout Abner Mares in February of 2006 and lost a majority decision to contender Cecilio Santos, who most recently challenged for a world title.

Lightweight Jonathan Molina will take on Carlos Madrid in a six round bout.

Molina, (10-0, 8 KO’s) from nearby Covina, CA, stopped veteran Baladan Trevizo in the second round of a scheduled six round bout last month in Montebello, CA. Trevizo never went down to the canvas, but was hurt against the ropes, forcing the referee to stop the bout.

Molina scored his most impressive victory to date in December, when he stopped previously-unbeaten Eddie Brooks in December. After getting outboxed in the opening round, Molina countered Brooks effectively and caught the fast-handed fighter, eventually stopping him in the second round.

He has won his last three bouts in a row by knockout.

Madrid, (8-4-2, 2 KO’s) from El Paso, TX, has not fought since a close six round majority decision loss to Mercito Gesta in August. Prior to that bout, Madrid lost a split-decision to Lightweight prospect Brandon Rios last May.

Madrid began his professional career winning his first six bouts. After losing the next two, he would go unbeaten in his next four bouts.

Madrid’s most notable bouts were a eight round split-decision draw against Mike Gonzalez last January and a six round unanimous decision over Sergio Reyes in August of 2006.

Super Flyweight Leo Santa Cruz will take on hard-hitting Daniel Quevedo in a six round bout.

Santa Cruz, (4-0-1, 2 KO’s) from Lincoln Heights, CA by way of Huetamo, Michoacán, Mexico, knocked out Jose Pacheco in the second round of a scheduled four round bout. He has won his last three bouts in a row.

Quevedo, (7-8-2, 5 KO’s) from Los Angeles, CA by way of Sinaloa, Mexico, is coming off a six round unanimous decision defeat to unbeaten Jonathan Velardez last month.

In a battle of unbeaten, Welterweights Demetrio Soto (1-0, 1 KO) and Mike Ramos (1-0) battle in a four round bout.

Five more bouts are on the card, including hot Bantamweight prospect Charles Huerta.

Tickets are on sale and valued at $100, $50, and $35. Tickets could be purchased on the day of the event or by calling (626) 330-0324.

Doors open at 4PM, with first bell scheduled for 4:15 PM local time.

The Spanish-language Telefutura channel will broadcast the card at 8PM ET/PT. Bernardo Osuna and Ricardo Celis will call the action from ringside.

The Expo Center is an multi-purpose equestrian center that is used for rodeo, indoor football, or karate tournaments. The 5,000-seat venue has been used for boxing before.

The Expo Center is located at 16200 Temple Avenue in the City of Industry, north of the 60 and south of the 10 Freeways.