Local boxers dealing with their injuries
Thursday evening, November 18, at Club Nokia at L.A. Live in Los Angeles, CA., junior welterweight Carlos Molina (14-0-0) collected a hard fought eight round unanimous decision victory over John Figueroa (7-8-3), a late-substitute for David Rodela (15-3-3). The bout headlined a six-bout “Fight Night Club” card, presented by Golden Boy Promotions.
David Rodela has fought the odds and won.
Since Figueroa had won only once over the past three years, he was considered the best replacement to pad Molina’s record.
Unlike Figueroa, Rodela would have been much more of a challenge. After being involved in a serious auto accident, doctors believed he would never be able to fight again. He scoffed at the notion and made it all the way back. As of late he’s been traveling around the world helping contenders like Manny Pacquiao, Ricky Hatton and even Antonio Margarito in their sparring sessions.
Antonio Orozco poses for a photo after a recent victory at the Four Points by Sheraton Hotel in San Diego. Photo: Jim Wyatt
Antonio Orozco (8-0), another local favorite, was set to go on that same fight card but was forced to drop out. While sparring with hard hitting Freddy Hernandez, Orozco injured his ribs and didn’t discover how serious it was until after working further with club mate Carlos Molina later the same day. Orozco’s manager, Frank Espinoza, then decided it was best to pull Orozco from the Thursday show. With the injury, it’s expected Orozco will be out of the gym for at least three weeks.
Following Tuesday’s successful surgery to repair a fractured right orbital bone at Methodist Hospital in Dallas, Texas, Antonio Margarito’s manager, Sergio Diaz told the press, “The doctor said everything went perfect – no complications of any kind. There’s nothing wrong with his right eye.”
After Margarito asked the doctors, “How soon can I get back to fighting?”, they strongly suggested that he stay away from the gym and not do any physical activities for at least 60 days. Margarito, his wife, coach and manager left Dallas on Wednesday on a flight to Los Angeles.
James Parison (13-1-0, with 4 KOs) will miss his next start after facing that hard headed ex-football jock, Loren Myers. After destroying Myers on November 18th at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Mission Valley, Parison discovered he had minor fracture in his right hand. He was scratched from the December 17th Boxing Show to be held at the Four Points by Sheraton Hotel in San Diego.
