Escamilla drops Rangel

McALLEN — Gino Escamilla took control early and outfought Gabriel Rangel over six rounds during their main event Friday night at the McAllen Convention Center.

Escamilla won by unanimous decision this time around after decking Rangel in their first encounter in December. Escamilla improved to 5-1-1 as Rangel slipped to 4-3-3.

Judge Freddy Ledesma scored it 60-54 while Judge Manuel Chapa had it 59-56 and Hector Maldonado saw it as 59-55. The Monitor scored it 58-56 in favor of Escamilla.

There were no knockdowns but Escamilla had Rangel on the brink in the second and third rounds. The Laredo super bantamweight staggered Rangel, of Vera Cruz, Mexico, with a right hand and then trapped him against the ropes late in the second and used a right-left combination to stun Rangel one round later. Rangel managed to force Escamilla off balance with a straight left in the third, but Escamilla controlled things with his uppercut and roundhouse rights.

Each fighter brought the crowd of about 2,500 to life as they fought hard in the second, third and fourth rounds. The pace slowed during the final two rounds.

In the most exciting bout, Ignacio Lucio of Pharr won his pro debut with the only knockout of the night. He put Gonzalo Montes of Pharr on the canvas in the second round before finishing him off with five unanswered shots to the head in the fourth.

Although he cut Montes (0-1) below the left eye, Lucio suffered a bloody nose himself.

“I was pretty nervous,” Lucio, 20, said. “I’ve got family and friends from Mexico City, New York City and the Valley (here). That’s what motivated me.”

Lucio fought only three amateur bouts and trained in Mexico City for six months before turning pro.

“I got too anxious and tried to finish him (in the second),” he said. “(In the fourth) he threw his left hand, his power punch, and I dodged it and came back with the right.”

Two of the other three fights were women’s bouts. Elizabeth Villarreal (5-5-2) of San Antonio scored a unanimous decision over Tammy Franks (2-4-1), also of San Antonio in their four-round lightweight match. Also Maribel Zurita of San Antonio and Mayela Perez of

Saltillo, Mexico fought a three-round exhibition.

The pair was scheduled to fight a sanctioned bout, but Perez came in six pounds to light. Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation rules state that a fighter cannot weigh more than three pounds below the 112-pound limit. Each fighter signed a contract in the ring promising to fight again on the next Fists of Fury card in June.

In the other bout, Samuel Gutierrez (3-3) of Saltillo won a unanimous decision over Pedro Silva (1-7) of Rio Hondo in a four-round bantamweight bout. Silva’s only win was over Gutierrez last June.