Boxing : Lupe Pintor Appears to Have Lost His Appetite, at Least for Fighting

Requiem for a bantamweight: Lupe Pintor, a popular and deserving champion, has evidently eaten himself out of a career. Fighting at 126 pounds for the first time last week, after a hard life of making 118, Pintor was sadly slow and vulnerable.

Adrian Arreola, a solid young boxer, had no trouble finding Pintor at the Olympic Auditorium, and rocked him from Round 1. Even Pintor, his eye swollen shut, seemed grateful when the fight was stopped at the end of seven rounds.

So, nothing is forever, not greatness and not, especially, 118 pounds. At that weight, as the bantamweight king for nearly four years, the implausibly cheerful Pintor was as indomitable as they come. He successfully defended his title eight times, winning five by knockout. Only Wilfredo Gomez was able to stop him, just barely, and that was at 122 pounds.

Pintor, 28, may or may not come back. These Mexican legends tend to keep getting showcased, their appeal undiminished by any noticeable decline in performance. He is not likely, however, to get back to where he once was--118 pounds and as happy and carefree a slugger as ever lived.

Promoter Don King apparently wants to move into the Forum for some shows and get a few of his largely inactive title holders a little work. Although Forum promoter John Jackson said there has been no agreement, it appears that King could move in as soon as March 19--that’s a date being bandied about--to give Julio Cesar Chavez, his new World Boxing Council junior lightweight champion, a defense against Ruben Castillo.

There is also talk of a fight between former junior lightweight champion Roger Mayweather and Mario (Azabache) Martinez on the undercard. And maybe a fight featuring Marcos Villasana. And other title fights through the year.

That is interesting since Chavez, Martinez and Villasana are all products of the Olympic Auditorium, where King also has co-promoted. Said Don Fraser of the Olympic, who used to think he was King’s friend, “Maybe we’re not classy enough for him anymore.”

Should Martinez and Villasana leave the Olympic to fight at the Forum, however, expect some bad feelings. They are from manager Ricardo Maldonado’s stable, which has found riches at the Olympic through co-promoter Rogelio Robles, the so-called Mexican connection. Don’t look for Maldonado to make any hasty career moves here.

The Forum’s Jackson says, however, that he would love to have some title shows there, and King obviously is a man who can deliver champions, if not contenders. Likely prospects for Forum work are Juan Mesa and Jose Ramirez, two champions with promotional ties to King.

Boxing Notes

WBC bantamweight champion Albert Davila, who has made just one defense since winning his title 17 months ago, is back in the gym and training for a long-scheduled fight with Miguel Lora, March 8, in Miami. Davila has been bothered by what he calls a slipped disk, which causes pain in his leg. He says he is finally able to run again, thanks to a chiropractor. . . . Also back in the ring is popular ring announcer Jimmy Lennon. After a 41-day stay in a hospital bed, he is once again the busiest man on canvas.

The Olympic Auditorium, which pulled in a nice $88,995 for Lupe Pintor’s demolition Thursday night, will go again Feb. 7 with that other faded Mexican legend, former welterweight champion Pipino Cuevas. The bout with Herman Montes originally had been scheduled for last November and then again for Jan. 31. The Olympic’s Don Fraser said Cuevas is claiming illness again. Maybe he saw what happened to Pintor. It’s been nearly five years since Cuevas let his title go to Thomas Hearns, and about seven months since his last fight, a loss to Jun Sok Hwang at the Olympic. . . . The Olympic will have featherweights Adrian Arreola and Marcos Villasana March 7. . . . Fraser will start shows at the Marriott Hotel in Irvine Feb. 11 with a junior middleweight bout between Bert Lee of Anaheim and Danny (Magic) Lopez of Orange. For confusion’s sake, the original Danny Lopez, the Little Red who held the featherweight title several years ago, will be making his debut as fight manager. Not Magic’s, thank goodness.

Former World Boxing Assn. junior welterweight champion Aaron Pyror is in training here, but not in any of the usual haunts. He’s training in a movie studio in Culver City, one rigged up by promotional backer Sylvester Stallone. Pryor, who has become the International Boxing Federation champion since coming back from a very brief retirement, will defend his new title on network TV against Gary Hinton. . . . Not training here any longer is former heavyweight contender Randall (Tex) Cobb. He had been scheduled for a fight at the Country Club in Reseda Tuesday, but pulled out. Supposedly Cobb has signed with Don King to fight former WBA champion Michael Dokes, the winner to fight Gerry Cooney. You might wait a little bit before you send for tickets.

Today, Donald Curry will defend his WBA welterweight title against Colin Jones. Curry, undefeated, will be fighting closer to Welshman Jones’ home than his own, since the fight is in Birmingham, England. Jones had earlier fought for the WBC portion of the welterweight title after Sugar Ray Leonard had vacated both. But he first drew with Milton McCroy and then lost to him. . . . Also today, former junior lightweight champion Hector Camacho will resume his career after an eight-month layoff. He’ll be fighting lightweight Louie Burke. It’s possible that Camacho, if successful, will fight Jose Ramirez for the WBC lightweight title. . . . The U.S. Olympic boxers, now turned pro, will no longer be appearing in a group, as they did in their professional debut last year. But they’re still grouping up, to an extent. Sunday, before the Super Bowl, three of them will have their second fights. Pernell Whitaker, Evander Holyfield and Meldrick Taylor will all be fighting out of Atlantic City.