It took some time, but finally Lemoore's Elvis Franco can call himself a winner. Personally, I couldn't be prouder of the Lemoore mixed martial artist. And it's not just because he is a teammate of mine of Lemoore-based Team Ochoa, but because I know the guy has had his share of adversity.

In July 2007, Franco entered the Palace Fighting Championship ring after three years of training and took on Anaheim's Scott Brommage.

In the fight Franco suffered a pretty devastating setback, both with a submission loss, but also with his pride. He was heeled in the eye by accident, as Brommage secured an ankle lock and Franco was forced to tap.

Then in February of 2008, Franco was selected to be the punching bag for Hector Alatorre's much anticipated MMA debut.

The same Alatorre that the Tachi Palace Hotel and Casino made famous among fight fans on the West Coast.

In a strange fight, a draw was declared, as Franco won the first round and Alatorre had a point deducted before Alatorre won the next two rounds.

The score was finally settled last Friday in Visalia.

And it looked like Franco was on his way to a loss.

Both looked tired and sluggish after cutting weight for the 135-pound fight.

I know Franco lost 15 pounds the day of weigh-ins, as I cut the weight with him.

The weight cut took its toll.

But somehow, late in the second round, Franco pulled off a pretty slick submission. He snuck his arm under Alatorre's neck and secured a guillotine choke for his first pro win.

It was a pretty big win for a guy who was supposed to lose to the "Pride of Tulare."

A big win for Team Ochoa, too, and for me after I lost about 15 pounds myself on Thursday helping Franco cut his weight.

Also in action on Friday was former Hanford High wrestling standout Robert Trujillo, who made his MMA debut.

Trujillo opened the 9-fight PureCombat card with a technical knockout of Porterville's George Albanez, who entered the fight with a decisive experience edge and a 4-1 pro record.

Trujillo did what I thought he would, taking Albanez down and pounding out a win.

It was just another gutsy performance by a Team Ochoa member.

Palace Fighting Championship President Christian Printup announced Monday that Visalia's Doug Marshall will fight Merced's Phil Collins.

Marshall is the former World Extreme Cagefighting Light Heavyweight champ and opened his career with fights in Lemoore at the Palace.

Collins carries a 6-3 record into the catch-weight fight of 195 pounds. Collins held the No. 1 contender spot for the PFC World Middleweight title and was slated for a September bout with champ Nate Loughran, but according to Printup relinquished the spot in order to fight Marshall on July 18 at PFC 9.

I think it's a good matchup.

Tickets for the show are now on sale and can be purchased at tickets.com or charge by phone at 1-800-225-2277. Tickets can also be purchased at the Tachi Palace Hotel and Casino Gift Shop and will also be available soon at The Sentinel front desk.

(June 10, 2008)