This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Twenty months after he was shot in both feet outside a Walmart in West Valley City by a complete stranger, West Jordan's Jose Haro is the USBA super featherweight boxing champion.
Haro, 30, defeated California's Daniel Franco, 25, in a nationally televised fight on Saturday night at the WinnaVegas Casino Arena in Sloan, Iowa.
The win as a decided underdog means Haro, who improved to 14-1-1 in his professional boxing career, is eligible to fight for the WBC and WBA featherweight title belts.
Haro dominated almost every round of the fight on CBS Sports Network, despite Franco having a 4-inch height advantage.
Haro had Franco in trouble in several rounds, and knocked down the 5-foot-9 boxer early in the eighth round. After Franco adamantly said "yes, sir," when the referee asked him if he wanted to continue, Haro quickly moved in and attacked with several body blows.
Two minutes and 43 seconds into the eighth round, Haro delivered an overhand right that caught Franco flush on the chin and dropped him to the canvas as the referee stopped the fight before even attempting to start a 10-count.
"To be honest with you, I haven't fought for a whole year, so I was very nervous coming in," Haro said.
It didn't show.
Haro's wife, Yesenia, delivered the couple's fifth child last month and watched the fight with family members back in Utah.
Haro thanked his wife for her support in the post-fight news conference, saying he wouldn't be able to pursue his boxing career and work full time as a salesman for Pepsi-Cola if it weren't for her sacrificing her career as a dental assistant to raise their children.
"I would also like to thank Daniel Franco for the opportunity to fight him. It's been hard for me to get fights," Haro said.