CHULA VISTA Joshua Marks was trapped in a corner. He was taking in punch after punch Friday night.
It appeared Marks, known as "Superman," was about to be knocked out. That was until the scrappy fighter found a way to squeeze out of his predicament and turn on a flurry of punches of his own against Oscar Godoy.
Marks used a storm of combinations with hooks and uppercuts to pound a bloodied Godoy into the same corner in which Marks had been pinned just seconds before the fight was stopped.
Referee Danny Sandoval had to step in and stop Marks from continuing to pound Godoy (4-1, 2 KOs) in the seventh round. Marks (8-3, 8 KOs) had completed the comeback in a fight scheduled for eight rounds at the Gonzalez Sports Academy in Eastlake.
"I knew he had never gone for more than four rounds, so, I let him unload. I knew I was going to come out of that. I knew my body shots would stop him, he was tired," Marks said afterward.
The ending of that fight delighted the crowd of about 800 in what could easily fit more than a thousand spectators taking up more than half of the sports center's 29,000 square feet.
The Marks-Godoy bout followed another anticipated fight. Emmanuel Robles and Adrian Vargas walked out of the Sports Academy with a majority draw. Judges scored the bout: 39-37, 38-38, 38-38.
"I thought the fight was closer and that I had at least won three of the four rounds," said Robles, of Imperial Beach and a product of the Old School Boxing gym in El Cajon. "I think I was robbed in that sense."
Both fighters remain unbeaten and will probably meet again at some point.
"It's a local rivalry, so I'm sure we'll do it again," Robles said. "But it won't be until we have moved on to chase a California title or something."
Vargas said he wants a rematch sooner than later. Asked what he could have done differently against Robles, Vargas said he would have not put much attention to a cut in the middle of his forehead.
"That's what really messed me up," Vargas said.
Asked what he could have done differently against Vargas (6-0-1, 3 KOs), Robles (4-0-1, 2 KOs) said he should have pressed more to avoid Vargas's power punches.
It was no surprise these fighters were going to come out looking to punish each other. And for the most part, it was Vargas causing some damage during the first two rounds, to the ropes. Vargas, who suffered a mild cut above his right eye as a result of an incidental head butt, did it again in the second round. He landed two more power right-hand punches to the face, stunning Robles.
At least that's what it looked like.
Robles responded in the third round with powerful combos of his own, recovering from his outing in the first two rounds.
With his corner urging him to "throw, throw," Vargas pressured Robles in the fourth and final round. He controlled the pace of the round despite Robles trying to find an opening to land his notable powerful left-hand punches.
But Robles made it a fight despite Vargas making a fast start.
"I had a lot against me," Robles said. "I'm trying to win a round and the crowd is yelling 'Adrian, Adrian'. That's a lot to deal with"
Robles dealt with Vargas's power early on.
Vargas, of National City, landed a punishing right hook to Robles's right ear in the first round, sending the National Police Athletic League's 141-pound champion as an amateur.
This was the second time these fighters met. Vargas beat Robles in 2008 when both were teen-agers marching toward a pro career.
"This fight was a lot closer than the last one," Robles said. "I was able to give him more of a challenge."
And Vargas landed some effective ones. Robles did the same late in the fight, the co-main event of a card featuring five bouts.
The event was the first at the Sports Academy for the Jorge Marron Productions and Bobby D. Presents group, owned by promoter and restaurant owner Bobby D'Philippis. It was the first sporting event at the center founded by Boston Red Sox first baseman and former Padres standout Adrian Gonzalez and his family.
And it was a way to display local talent and a handful of fan favorites.
Pablo Armenta, another crowd favorite, didn't see much of a challenge in his opponent Friday. He stopped Omar Sanchez 1 minute, 25 seconds into the second round using a handful of right hooks to the head. He sent Sanchez to the canvas twice before referee Sandoval stopped the fight.
Armenta (7-1-1), of South San Diego, dominated the first round using quick combinations and movement to avoid Sanchez's jabs and right hook. Armenta's win by TKO is his third in his young professional career. Sanchez (6-1-1, 2 KOs) is still looking for his first victory.
In a brawl between bantamweights, Raymundo Chacon, of Northridge, beat Pablo Copul of Mérida, Mexico by unanimous decision. All three judges scored the fight 40-36. Chacon (3-1, 0 KOs), used his speed and agility to out box Copul (3-2, 4 KOs), who attempted to speed up the pace of the fight. But Chacon's powerful combinations were too much for Copul, who left the ring with a noticeable laceration above his left eye.
There was no blood shed in a welterweight bout between Gabriel Medina, of Hemet, and Luis Sanchez, of Fairfield, but there was enough fire power to please the crowd despite what was mostly a one-sided bout.
Medina beat Sanchez by majority decision in his pro debut. Medina used a series of punishing hooks and uppercuts in each round to slow Sanchez (0-7, KOs), who came out firing a flurry of punches in the last two rounds trying to knock out Medina.
South Bay fighters Adrian Vargas, left, and Emmanuel Robles squared off against each other, and will do so again. Photo by Paul Gallegos
ivan.orozco@sandiegored.com
