Pipino Cuevas
Born
Pipino Isidro Cuevas González

(1957-12-27) 27 December 1957
Santo Tomás de los Plátanos, Mexico
Other namesPipino
Statistics
Weight(s)Welterweight
Height5 ft 8 in (173 cm)
StanceOrthodox
Boxing record
Total fights50
Wins35
Wins by KO31
Losses15

Pipino Isidro Cuevas González (born December 27, 1957) is a Mexican former professional boxer who competed from 1971 to 1989. He held the WBA welterweight title from 1976 to 1980.

Cuevas was inducted into both the International Boxing Hall of Fame, and the World Boxing Hall of Fame.

Professional career

Cuevas turned professional at age 14; he won only seven of his first twelve bouts but eventually put together an eight bout winning streak before losing to Andy Price. On 17 July 1976, he received a shot at the WBA welterweight title against champion Ángel Espada. Cuevas pulled off an upset victory by knocking Espada to the canvas three times in the second round. At age 18, he was the youngest welterweight champion in history.[1] In his first defense, he traveled to Japan and defeated hometown fighter Shoji Tsujimoto by knockout.

One of the greatest wins of his career was against Argentinian Miguel Angel Campanino, who boasted an impressive record (84-4-4), including a thirty-two fight winning streak. Once again, Pipino disposed of his challenger before the end of the second round.

On 8 June 1977, he faced veteran Clyde Gray of Canada who had only been stopped twice in his entire career which included fifty-eight wins. Yet again, Cuevas pulled off another second round knock out. A few months later, Cuevas returned to the ring for a rematch against Espada. This time Cuevas defeated Espada in the eleventh round after he sustained a broken jaw. On 4 March 1978, he disposed of Harold Weston in the ninth round after Weston also sustained a broken jaw like Cuevas' previous challenger. Cuevas then defeated former champion Billy Backus in one round. On 9 September 1978, he defeated hometown favorite Pete Ranzany (40-2-1) in Sacramento, California via a second-round knockout. He defeated Scott Clark (28-1-0) in another second-round knockout. Cuevas next title defense went the distance in a unanimous decision win against the durable Randy Shields (33-5-1). On 8 December 1979, he faced Espada for a third time, stopping him in the tenth round. Cuevas then defeated South African national champion Harold Volbrecht by fifth-round knockout.

Cuevas finally lost his title in 1980 to the undefeated and up-and-coming hometown hero Thomas Hearns in Detroit. The much taller and lankier Hearns was able to use his reach to his advantage as he kept Cuevas at a distance and knocked him out in the second round. Cuevas' talent began to decline after that loss; the most notable opponent he faced was Roberto Durán, who stopped him in the fourth round in the spring of 1983. He also lost to former world title challenger Jun Sok-Hwang and future or former world champions Jorge Vaca and Lupe Aquino before finally retiring in 1989.

Pipino Cuevas fought during a period when an unusual number of accomplished welterweights were active: Sugar Ray Leonard, Wilfred Benítez, Carlos Palomino, Thomas Hearns, and Roberto Durán, although his reign had nearly come to an end as Leonard, Benítez, Hearns, and Durán emerged as welterweight champions. Cuevas successfully defended his welterweight title eleven times against ten different boxers over a four-year span. During his reign as champion, Cuevas fought the best opposition available to him. In total, the opponents he faced throughout his career had a combined record of 505-70-29.[2][3] In 2003, The Ring listed Cuevas as number thirty-one on their list of the 100 greatest punchers of all time. In 2002, Cuevas became a member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

Retirement

Cuevas is the owner of a restaurant and a security company in Mexico City. At one point of his career, he was also the owner of a famous sports and luxury car collection, and he was one of the first boxers to sport a golden tooth. Most people probably know him for his nickname Pipino, which is far more used to refer to him than Jose by fight commentators and magazine writers.

He ran into trouble with the law in 2001 when he was accused of racketeering in Mexico, in connection with a Mexican mayor. But he was declared innocent in 2002.

His record as a boxer was of 35 wins and 15 losses, with 31 wins by knockout.

Professional boxing record

50 fights 35 wins 15 losses
By knockout 31 6
By decision 4 9
No. Result Record Opponent Type Round Date Location Notes
50 Loss 35–15 Lupe Aquino KO 2 (10) 25 Sep 1989 Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico
49 Win 35–14 Martín Martínez KO 1 (10) 31 Jul 1989 Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico
48 Win 34–14 Francisco Carballo KO 4 (10) 29 May 1989 Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico
47 Win 33–14 Daniel Valenzuela KO 6 (10) 25 Jul 1987 Mexico City, Mexico
46 Loss 32–14 Jorge Vaca KO 2 (10) 19 Dec 1986 Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico
45 Loss 32–13 Lorenzo Luis García MD 10 4 Oct 1986 Salta, Salta, Argentina
44 Win 32–12 Luis Mateo TKO 3 (10) 25 Jul 1986 UIC Pavilion, Chicago, Illinois, US
43 Loss 31–12 Steve Little MD 10 3 Mar 1986 Sacramento, California, US
42 Win 31–11 Felipe Vaca UD 4 25 Feb 1986 Forum, Inglewood, California, US
41 Loss 30–11 Herman Montes KO 3 (10) 7 Mar 1985 Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US
40 Loss 30–10 Jun-Suk Hwang MD 10 12 Jul 1984 Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US
39 Win 30–9 Mauricio Bravo TKO 1 (10) 1 Mar 1984 Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US
38 Loss 29–9 Roberto Durán TKO 4 (12) 29 Jan 1983 Sports Arena, Los Angeles, California, US
37 Loss 29–8 Roger Stafford UD 10 7 Nov 1981 Hacienda Hotel, Las Vegas, Nevada, US The Ring magazine Upset of the Year
36 Win 29–7 Jørgen Hansen TKO 1 (10) 25 Jun 1981 Astrodome, Houston, Texas, US
35 Win 28–7 Bernardo Prada KO 2 (10) 7 Feb 1981 Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US
34 Loss 27–7 Thomas Hearns TKO 2 (15) 2 Aug 1980 Joe Louis Arena, Detroit, Michigan, US Lost WBA welterweight title
33 Win 27–6 Harold Volbrecht KO 5 (15) 6 Apr 1980 Astro Arena, Houston, Texas, US Retained WBA welterweight title
32 Win 26–6 Ángel Espada TKO 10 (15) 8 Dec 1979 Sports Arena, Los Angeles, California, US Retained WBA welterweight title
31 Win 25–6 Randy Shields UD 15 30 Jul 1979 International Amphitheatre, Chicago, Illinois, US Retained WBA welterweight title
30 Win 24–6 Scott Clark TKO 2 (15) 29 Jan 1979 Forum, Inglewood, California, US Retained WBA welterweight title
29 Win 23–6 Pete Ranzany TKO 2 (15) 9 Sep 1978 Hughes Arena, Sacramento, California, US Retained WBA welterweight title
28 Win 22–6 Billy Backus TKO 2 (15) 20 May 1978 Forum, Inglewood, California, US Retained WBA welterweight title
27 Win 21–6 Harold Weston TKO 9 (15) 4 Mar 1978 Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US Retained WBA welterweight title
26 Win 20–6 Ángel Espada TKO 12 (15) 19 Nov 1977 Coliseo Roberto Clemente, San Juan, Puerto Rico Retained WBA welterweight title
25 Win 19–6 Clyde Gray KO 2 (15) 6 Aug 1977 Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US Retained WBA welterweight title
24 Win 18–6 Miguel Ángel Campanino KO 2 (15) 12 Mar 1977 Arena Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico Retained WBA welterweight title
23 Win 17–6 Shoji Tsujimoto KO 6 (15) 27 Oct 1976 Jissen Rinri Hall, Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan Retained WBA welterweight title
22 Win 16–6 Ángel Espada TKO 2 (15) 17 Jul 1976 Plaza de Toros Calafia, Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico Won WBA welterweight title
21 Loss 15–6 Andy Price UD 10 2 Jun 1976 Sports Arena, Los Angeles, California, US
20 Win 15–5 Rafael Piamonte KO 1 (10) 3 Apr 1976 Plaza de Toros Calafia, Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico
19 Win 14–5 José Palacios KO 10 (12) 27 Sep 1975 Arena Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico Won Mexico welterweight title
18 Win 13–5 Carlos Obregón UD 10 12 Jul 1975 Palacio de los Deportes, Mexico City, Mexico
17 Win 12–5 Rubén Vázquez Zamora UD 10 25 Jan 1975 Arena Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico
16 Win 11–5 Sammy García KO 3 (10) 26 Oct 1974 Mexico City, Mexico
15 Win 10–5 José Luis Pena KO 1 (10) 21 Aug 1974 Arena Coliseo, Mexico City, Mexico
14 Win 9–5 Sugar Sanders TKO 1 (10) 12 Jun 1974 Mexico City, Mexico
13 Win 8–5 Salvador Ruvalcaba KO 1 (10) 11 May 1974 Mexico City, Mexico
12 Loss 7–5 Eleazar Delgado MD 10 24 Nov 1973 Mexico City, Mexico
11 Win 7–4 Octavio Amparan TKO 7 (10) 6 Oct 1973 Arena Coliseo, Mexico City, Mexico
10 Win 6–4 José Figueroa TKO 3 (10) 4 Aug 1973 Mexico City, Mexico
9 Loss 5–4 Memo Cruz UD 10 13 May 1973 Mexico City, Mexico
8 Win 5–3 Sergio Alejo KO 4 (8) 1 Mar 1973 Mexico City, Mexico
7 Win 4–3 Raúl Martínez KO 1 (8) 7 Dec 1972 Mexico City, Mexico
6 Loss 3–3 Juan Pablo Oropeza MD 8 19 Aug 1972 Campeche, Campeche, Mexico
5 Win 3–2 Pancho Benítez TKO 2 (8) 22 Jun 1972 Mexico City, Mexico
4 Win 2–2 Rielero Rodríguez TKO 2 (6) 24 May 1972 Culiacan, Sinaloa, Mexico
3 Loss 1–2 Mario Roman MD 6 4 Mar 1972 Mexico City, Mexico
2 Win 1–1 José Arias TKO 4 (6) 1 Jan 1972 Mexico City, Mexico
1 Loss 0–1 Alfredo Castro KO 2 (4) 14 Nov 1971 Mexico City, Mexico

See also

References

  1. ↑ "10: Best left hookers - Page 9 of 10". 17 July 2013.
  2. ↑ Remembering the Career of Pipino Cuevas Archived 2008-05-27 at the Wayback Machine
  3. ↑ HBO: Boxing: Features: Best Of: THE BEST WELTERWEIGHT PUNCHERS EVER
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