Brit Forum's Mexican Tribute Thread......**Pipino Cuevas**

My iPhone is having a homosexual moment: what are those two vids? :good

 

Which fight? The first one is incredible! Good choice mush :thumbsup

 

I can see it's the first just from the still :good

 

Yep, a whole lot. I've got way too much to get through on DVD, let alone the 1+TB HD I've packed out....and the rest!!!

 

José "Pipino" Cuevas ​

WBA welterweight champion 1976-1980 ​

Real name José Isidro Cuevas González
Nickname Pipino
Height 5 ft 8 in
Birth date 27th December 1957
Birth place Santo Tomás de los Plátanos, Mexico

Boxing record: 35(31)-15

Jose 'Pipino' Cuevas is a hugely popular & hard hitting Mexican legend. He became the youngest ever welterweight world champion aged just 18 & held the title for 4 years. He defended the title 11 times (including a record 8 successive KOs) until losing to Thomas 'The Hitman' Hearns.

His reckless, wild-swinging & big punching style drew comparisons with Rocky Graziano & Ike Williams, all-out attack with little or no consideration given to defense. His success owed nothing to subtle skills, fast hands or good movement but armed with a concussive left-hook he broke bones, he broke fighters & at his peak was a fearsome & ferocious opponent for anyone in his division.

Cuevas turned professional at 14, he won only 7 of his first 12 bouts but eventually put together an 8 bout winning streak & rose up the rankings. On July 17, 1976, the 22-year old Cuevas (19-6) received a shot at the Puerto Rican WBA welterweight champion Ángel Espada (36-7-4). A heavy underdog Cuevas pulled off an upset victory by knocking Espada to the canvas three times in the second round to win via KO.

After a 1st title defense against respected contender Tsujimoto (KO 6) came Pipino's most celebrated win against veteran Argentinian Miguel Angel Campanino who boasted an impressive record (84-4-4), including a 32 fight winning streak. Campanino was confident of victory, he had never been stopped & all his losses had come via injury or disputed decision. Once again the underdog, Pipino disposed of his challenger before the end of the second round.

He made 8 further defenses of his title with only 1 fight, against the tough Randy Shields going the distance. In a rematch with Espada he won again, this time via TKO (12) after breaking his opponents jaw. His next defense against Harold Weston ended in similar fashion, a TKO (9) also due to a broken jaw.

His performances were on the decline when he faced the young Thomas Hearns. In a stylistic nightmare for the short, stocky & crude champ versus the tall, fast & skilled challenger Pipino was completely out of his depth. Hearns won his first world title via a brutal 2nd round KO. Hearns later said that the right hand he hit Cuevas with was the hardest he ever landed.


After losing his title Cuevas' career went on a downward spiral & he lost as often as he won. The highlight of his career post-Hearns was fighting the great Roberto Duran in 1983, but Duran won via KO in the 4th. He retired in 1989 with a record of 50 fights 35(31)-15(6).

Cuevas is a member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame & ranked 31st on the Ring magazines 100 greatest ever punchers. The rise & fall of his career was swift & brutal, as was his entertaining style of fighting. An absolute legend & one of my all time favourites, may I present to you ESB, Jose 'Pipino' Cuevas.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-oZW2kMPsBg[/ame]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPPoPliaxiM[/ame]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nOpSrXLnItg[/ame]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Rk-yaPdT0w[/ame]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DjDZbHfjFw0[/ame]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c44bNoGQEQI&feature=related[/ame]

 

After Napoles' prime finally ended and led to him losing his title to Brit' John H.Stracey and retiring, two offensively minded Mexicans, young slugger Pipino Cuevas and methodical pressure fighter/boxer puncher Carlos Palomino, grabbed half of the Welterweight title each and cleared out the division until the emergence of the below middlewieght 'Fab 4'; Benitez, Hearns, Leonard and Duran.

With Cuevas, he had a window. He was learning on the job, at nineteen years old, and a month after losing a decision to promising Andy Price he decimated Angel Espedas for the WBA title in the fight you've already seen Pike. In that window, he defended his title like, 12 times or summat Four years later, Hearns smashed him into oblivion.

He was a destroyer at a certain level, and feasted on a lot of guys Napoles beat in his title reign, like Gray, Backus, and good enough contenders like Ranzany, Shields and Volbrecht, as well as pummeling Espedas a couple more times.

His defences weren't all that strong IMO. Some guys were past their best or club fighters, one of them a green looking kid! Cuevas was a wrecking ball though, and leaves most of them flat out, and the rest looking they've just been hit by a car :rofl

17 year old Cuevas nearly kills some guy
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jYHrGEkPrA[/ame]

21 year old prospect Clark never fought again
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzgMjg61aJ4[/ame]

Gray wanted nuttin' to do with him
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lCZM-sdD5rg&feature=related[/ame]

Look how ****ed this guy was
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPPoPliaxiM[/ame]

Cuevas' punches HURT!
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CnNLzd7I5A[/ame]

After Hearns
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rk3fDZmzCGc[/ame]

Cuevas past his best getting laid out. Still very entertaining and brutal!
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CiB72qKDiLg[/ame]

Between '76-'78, fellow Mexican Carlos Palomino was WBC champ'. One of the great 'why didn't they fight' but Palomino also did some stellar work. Technically able boxer puncher and quite a tidy operator most known for his devastating body punches. Benitez put on a masterclass to take Carlos' title from him, and Duran nullified and outfought him when he moved up to Welter, but Palomino was, IMO, better than Cuevas and had a better title reign.

Broke John H. Stracey to take the title. Devastating body shots
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwpSeeBQHAk[/ame]

Brutally knocked out Dave 'Boy' Green before Leonard did
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nWmSm8Ev4J4[/ame]

Like Pipino, fought a previous contender for Napoles' crown, the tough Muniz, who Palomino finally puts a fight ending beating on in the 15th.
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yL3D-78faxE[/ame]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHuKci30oWo&feature=related[/ame]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xT_4eA5NQ88&feature=related[/ame]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwzsOGmWBRM&feature=related[/ame]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTu_z-gV52g&feature=related[/ame]

Palomino was never stopped.

Two quality Mexican welters.

 

:| Mo beat me whilst I was working ;-)

 

Sorry, but LP asked me to copy my bit from the encyclopedia :-(

Some lovely clips in your bit though, I hadnt seen the Garcia fight before

Palomino needs an encyclopedia post :deal

 

:rofl

Well, nevermind, two minds on the case now :deal

And a bit of Palomino as well, who I really like coincidentally, surprised I didn't put anything of him in here before.

 

Pipino was a cold-eyed, stonefaced killer. A do or die gunslinger who could punch bricks out of walls.

Palomino was absolute nails & a high quality technician with outstanding body punches.

H2H I think Palomino takes a hard fought decision over 15, possibly stops Cuevas late.