The Avila Perspective, Chapter 41: Andrew Cancio, Welterweight Wars and More

It was hail the conquering hero.

WBA featherweight titlist Andrew Cancio returned to his roots at Blythe, California, a small desert town located near the Colorado River; the same river that serves as the Arizona border and also supplies most of the drinking water for Southern California.

Now you can add Cancio to its list of significant contributions.

Before a crowd of more than 1,000 Blythians, the ceremonial key to the city was presented to Cancio on Tuesday. He’s the first of many prizefighting predecessors to finally win a world title. Despite being a town of 20,000 inhabitants including seasonal workers, its denizens are pretty ambitious.

“It was very exciting to return home to Blythe to be honored by Mayor Reynolds and have my promoter Oscar De La Hoya present my world championship belt,” said Cancio, who now lives in Ventura but still considers Blythe his home. “It was great to be among my family, friends and supporters to share this special occasion with them.”

Blythe is a small town filled with ambitious citizens.

When I was at UCLA I met a few students from Blythe. Pound for pound they were anybody’s equal and packed with ambition, drive and smarts. It was one of the reasons that I made the 200-mile trek to Blythe back in the early 2000s to meet Cancio, who at the time was an amateur standout.

Cancio wasn’t the only boxer to venture out of the desert into the urban arena battles. Others had preceded like David Vasquez a hard-nosed fighter who sparred with champions such as Naseem Hamed, Acelino Freitas and anybody needing a guy with a rock chin. And then there’s Blythe’s Ysaias Zamudio who went to Japan and fought Yuri Arbachakov for the world flyweight title and then challenged Diego Morales for the world title at super flyweight.

One thing that distinguished Cancio from others is his popularity. If he fought anywhere in Southern California a caravan of fans would follow. In his last fight many of those in attendance were repeat ardent followers and when he knocked out Puerto Rico’s Alberto Machado, an explosion of euphoria followed. It was like all 20,000 residents had suddenly performed the unthinkable and despite the odds captured the world title. Their celebration was spontaneous and infectious. Fantasy Springs Casino that night was filled with smiling faces.

Blythe will never forget the moment.

If they had been closer to their home town I could easily imagine them carrying Cancio around on their shoulders and holding parades as seen in the 1944 film “Hail the Conquering Hero” by Preston Sturges about a small town soldier returning from World War II to cheers and speeches.

Life imitates art and in this case life imitates prizefighting.

“I’ve always been a fighter, but now I’m a world champion. It feels cool to be able to bring this back home. This was my old stomping grounds, where I used to train. I’m so grateful for the fans I had before, and I’m so grateful for the fans I have now. I’m grateful for all of this,” said Cancio.

No matter what happens tomorrow he remains Blythe’s conquering hero.

Ryan’s Song

Another desert town hero Ryan “The Flash” Garcia sold out Fantasy Springs Casino last Saturday and proceeded to win by knockout. It might be contagious.

Raised in the high desert town of Victorville, population about 120,000, Garcia has quickly become the idol of thousands if not millions if you go by his social media accounts.

Behind eye-popping speed and venomous punches Garcia has blasted through nearly everyone put in front of him. Now that he trains with Team Canelo he seems to have hit a learning curve and is more conscious of defensive tactics and patience.

Against Puerto Rico’s Jose Lopez, a fighter with similar height, Garcia carefully spotted and developed an attack to dispatch the Boricua in less than three rounds. It’s on to the next level for Garcia who wants a world title shot now.

But the matchmakers for Golden Boy Promotions know he needs time to fully grasp the defensive tactics taught by Eddy Reynoso and Jose Reynoso, the masterminds behind Saul “Canelo” Alvarez’s success. But it’s reasonable to assume he will get a world title shot if he continues his current success. His fandom is growing.

Pico Rivera

A boxing card at the Pico Rivera Sports Arena takes place this Saturday April 6. Red Boxing Promotions presents a lengthy string of bouts beginning at 6 p.m. One of the prospects included is Ireland’s Stephen McKenna the 22-year-old brother of Aaron “The Silencer” McKenna. The older brother will be making his professional debut in a super lightweight match with Trey Branch.

The Southern California boxing promotion company has had a few boxing cards and drew raves for their production. This event will be outdoors so be prepared for a little cool night air.

For more information call (562) 695-0747.

Loma’s coming

Vasyl “High Tech” Lomachenko defends the WBO and WBA lightweight titles against England’s Anthony Crolla next week on Friday April 12 at the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles.

It’s an unusual time to put a marquee fighter like Lomachenko on a Friday night, but in the past, Los Angeles had big fights on Thursdays at the old Olympic Auditorium on many occasions.

Buy your tickets now. Lomachenko is one of the best fighters pound for pound in the world and it’s a good opportunity to see him in action against a pretty good fighter in Crolla, a former champion who lost to Jorge Linares by decision.

It’s an ingenious idea by Top Rank to put the boxing card on a Friday in the heart of Los Angeles.

Photo credit: Brandon Magpantay / Hogan Photos / Golden Boy Promotions

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