# Lupe Pintor

José Guadalupe Pintor Guzmán (born April 13, 1955), better known as Lupe Pintor, is a Mexican former professional boxer who competed from 1974 to 1995. He is a world champion in two weight classes, having held the WBC bantamweight title from 1979 to 1983 and the WBC super bantamweight title from 1985 to 1986.

## Early life and his career

Lupe Pintor was born into a poor, working-class family in Cuajimalpa, just outside Mexico City in 1955 and is alleged to have had an extremely violent relationship with his father, eventually forcing him to run away. He lived for some time on the city streets and began boxing professionally in 1974.
He opened his account with a second-round knockout of Manuel Vázquez and immediately stepped up to ten round bouts, claiming a decision over Francisco Nunez on his next outing. He suffered his first loss three fights later, when he was disqualified against Magarito Lozano, but claimed victory in his next eight bouts, seven by knockout, including wins over notables Juan Díaz, Rocky Mijares and Willie Jespen.
Pintor first boxed future World Bantamweight Champion Alberto Davila on 25 February 1976, losing a decision over ten rounds, then embarked on a winning streak of some twenty-two fights in a row. Amongst the fighters he beat during this period were Gerald Hayes – who later conquered Juan Laporte – and Antonio Becerra, the only man to get the better of Salvador Sánchez as a professional boxer.
He then travelled to Puerto Rico, where he lost a ten-round decision to Leo Cruz – himself a future world champion. Upon returning to Mexico, Pintor lost for the second time in a row, carelessly dropping a decision to journeyman Jose Luis Soto. Another winning streak, comprising five fights in a row, all by way of knockout and he was ready for a shot at the world title.

## World championships

Carlos Zarate was Pintor's stable mate and a fellow Mexican. He was an outstanding champion and continues to be rated one of the very best of all Bantamweights. The records, however, show that Pintor edged a very close and controversial split decision, following a remarkable contest that saw him hit the canvas in round four. But the judges were so at variance when recording their verdict, that (like already stated) the contest remains a matter of controversy today. Naturally, the new world champion's relationship with Zarate – already strained – took another hit and Zarate retired in disgust.
Pintor was a busy champion and he began his reign by engaging in three non-title bouts, beating Aucencio Melendez by a knockout in the first and avenging his loss to Jose Luis Soto before losing a rematch with Manuel Vázquez by a knockout in six. Then he began to defend his title in earnest, retaining it with a knockout in twelve over Alberto Sandoval in Los Angeles and drawing over fifteen with Eijiro Murata in Tokyo.
His next bout ended tragically. He defended against Johnny Owen of Wales in Los Angeles. Many of the fans present and the authors of The Ring's Boxing in The 20th Century, have agreed that the fight should have been stopped during round ten. But it carried on until the close of the twelfth, when Pintor unleashed a savage right-hand, knocking his opponent out cold. Owen failed to regain consciousness, lapsed into a coma and died seven weeks later. This fight was documented in the film Faces of Death II.
Saddened, Pintor – encouraged by Owen's family – resumed his career by avenging his loss to Davila, retaining the title by unanimous decision. He went on to retain the belt against Jose Uziga – again by decision – and Jovito Rengifo, by a knockout in eight. He stopped Hurricane Teru in the fifteenth and final round to close 1981 and began 1982, by retaining the title against Seung-Hoon Lee with an eleventh-round knockout.
Soon after the Lee fight, Pintor vacated his world title and started eyeing the WBC Super Bantamweight crown worn by the great Wilfredo Gómez. Stepping up, he immediately beat former WBA World Bantamweight Champion Jorge Luján and then, on 3 December of that year, he and Gómez met as part of the Carnival of Champions in New Orleans. Showcased on HBO, this duel was subsequently dubbed the division's 'Fight of The Decade' by The Ring magazine. But it did not go Pintor's way. Gómez recorded a fourteenth-round knockout and relinquished his own title five months later.
Pintor was inactive throughout 1983. He returned to the ring a year-and-a-half later as a fully-fledged Super Bantamweight defeating Ruben Solorio on 16 February 1984 and busied himself thereafter trying to get another shot at the world title. his perseverance paid off when he was pitted against Juan 'Kid' Meza, the WBC's Super Bantamweight Champion on 18 August 1985. Pintor floored the defending champion three times on the way to collecting a unanimous decision and celebrated his new status as a double world title holder.
His first defense of this new crown did not go to plan. Traveling to Bangkok to meet Samart Payakaroon, Pintor exceeded the division weight limit and was subsequently stripped of his title at the scales. Payakaroon could still become champion if he defeated Pintor but if Pintor won the title would be declared vacant. Payakaroon pounded Pintor to defeat in five rounds and the ex-champion quit fighting for the next eight years.
Pintor made a comeback of sorts in 1994, but at the comparatively advanced age of thirty-eight, he was long past his best. Winning just twice in seven contests over the next eighteen months, he was finally convinced that it was time to retire.

### Honors

Pintor was named The Ring magazine Comeback of the Year fighter for 1985.

## After boxing

Pintor opened a boxing school in Mexico City. In 2002, he was invited to Merthyr Tydfil by Johnny Owen's family to help unveil a bronze statue commemorating the boxer's life and career.
In 2008, Pintor reunited with Carlos Zarate and joined Juan Laporte as the three former victims of Wilfredo Gómez showed up at a party dedicated to Gómez for his fiftieth birthday in Puerto Rico.
Pintor, along with Hector Camacho, Hilario Zapata, and several non-boxers, was voted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in December 2015 and inducted in June 2016.

## Professional boxing record

| 72 fights | 56 wins | 14 losses |
| By knockout | 42 | 7 |
| By decision | 14 | 6 |
| By disqualification | 0 | 1 |
| Draws | 2 | 2 |
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
| 72 | Loss | 56–14–2 | Russell Mosley | KO | 2 (10) | Jul 21, 1995 | Tijuana, Mexico | |
| 71 | Loss | 56–13–2 | Rodrigo Cerda | PTS | 10 | Dec 2, 1994 | Houston, Texas, US | |
| 70 | Win | 56–12–2 | Kevin Sedam | TKO | 1 (10), 2:56 | Nov 18, 1994 | International Amphitheatre, Chicago, Illinois, US | |
| 69 | Loss | 55–12–2 | Leonardo Mas | RTD | 8 (12) | Aug 13, 1994 | Jai Alai Fronton, Miami, Florida, US | For WBC FECARBOX super lightweight title |
| 68 | Loss | 55–11–2 | Fernando Caicedo | UD | 12 | Apr 2, 1994 | Jai Alai Fronton, Miami, Florida, US | For WBC FECARBOX lightweight title |
| 67 | Loss | 55–10–2 | Ramon Sanchez | PTS | 10 | Feb 25, 1994 | Mexico | |
| 66 | Win | 55–9–2 | Carmelo Gomez | PTS | 10 | Jan 14, 1994 | Tijuana, Mexico | |
| 65 | Loss | 54–9–2 | Samart Payakaroon | KO | 5 (12), 1:31 | Jan 18, 1986 | Hua Mark Indoor Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand | WBC super bantamweight title at stake only for Payakaroon,Pintor missed weight |
| 64 | Loss | 54–8–2 | Billy White | TKO | 10 (?) | Dec 12, 1985 | Sam Houston Coliseum, Houston, Texas, US | |
| 63 | Win | 54–7–2 | Juan Meza | UD | 12 | Aug 18, 1985 | Palacio de los Deportes, Mexico City, Mexico | Won WBC super bantamweight title |
| 62 | Draw | 53–7–2 | Javier Marquez | SD | 10 | Jun 10, 1985 | Auditorio del Estado, Mexicali, Mexico | |
| 61 | Win | 53–7–1 | Eugenio Morgan | TKO | 2 (10), 2:37 | Apr 19, 1985 | Forum, Inglewood, California, US | |
| 60 | Loss | 52–7–1 | Adriano Arreola | TKO | 7 (10), 3:00 | Jan 17, 1985 | Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US | |
| 59 | Win | 52–6–1 | Ronnie Gary | TKO | 6 (10), 0:47 | Jan 1, 1985 | Toreo de Cuatro Caminos, Mexico City, Mexico | |
| 58 | Win | 51–6–1 | Cleo Garcia | KO | 1 (10), 3:00 | Apr 26, 1984 | Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US | |
| 57 | Win | 50–6–1 | Ruben Solorio | UD | 10 | Feb 16, 1984 | Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US | |
| 56 | Loss | 49–6–1 | Wilfredo Gómez | TKO | 14 (15), 2:44 | Dec 3, 1982 | Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana, US | For WBC and The Ring super bantamweight titles |
| 55 | Win | 49–5–1 | Jorge Luján | UD | 10 | Sep 23, 1982 | Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US | |
| 54 | Win | 48–5–1 | Lee Seung-hoon | TKO | 11 (15), 0:43 | Jun 3, 1982 | Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US | Retained WBC bantamweight title |
| 53 | Win | 47–5–1 | Hurricane Teru | KO | 15 (15), 2:02 | Sep 22, 1981 | Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium, Nagoya, Japan | Retained WBC bantamweight title |
| 52 | Win | 46–5–1 | Jovito Rengifo | TKO | 8 (15), 1:21 | Jul 26, 1981 | Showboat Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada, US | Retained WBC bantamweight title |
| 51 | Win | 45–5–1 | Jose Felix Uziga | UD | 15 | Feb 22, 1981 | Sam Houston Coliseum, Houston, Texas, US | Retained WBC bantamweight title |
| 50 | Win | 44–5–1 | Alberto Dávila | MD | 15 | Dec 19, 1980 | Caesars Palace, Sports Pavilion, Paradise, Nevada, US | Retained WBC bantamweight title |
| 49 | Win | 43–5–1 | Johnny Owen | KO | 12 (15), 2:35 | Sep 19, 1980 | Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US | Retained WBC bantamweight title; Owen died of injuries sustained from the fight. |
| 48 | Draw | 42–5–1 | Eijiro Murata | SD | 15 | Jun 11, 1980 | Nippon Budokan, Tokyo, Japan | Retained WBC bantamweight title |
| 47 | Win | 42–5 | Alberto Sandoval | TKO | 12 (15) | Feb 9, 1980 | Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US | Retained WBC bantamweight title |
| 46 | Loss | 41–5 | Manuel Vazquez | RTD | 5 (10), 3:00 | Dec 29, 1979 | Gimnasio del Estado, Hermosillo, Mexico | |
| 45 | Win | 41–4 | Jose Luis Soto | PTS | 10 | Oct 29, 1979 | Ciudad Obregón, Mexico | |
| 44 | Win | 40–4 | Torito Melendez | KO | 1 (?) | Oct 5, 1979 | Reynosa, Mexico | |
| 43 | Win | 39–4 | Carlos Zárate Serna | SD | 15 | Jun 3, 1979 | Caesars Palace, Sports Pavilion, Paradise, Nevada, US | Won WBC bantamweight title |
| 42 | Win | 38–4 | Rodrigo Gonzalez | TKO | 3 (10), 2:42 | May 1, 1979 | Sam Houston Coliseum, Houston, Texas, US | |
| 41 | Win | 37–4 | Livio Nolasco | TKO | 6 (10), 2:16 | Mar 10, 1979 | Forum, Inglewood, California, US | |
| 40 | Win | 36–4 | Agustin Vega | KO | 3 (?) | Nov 11, 1978 | Matamoros, Mexico | |
| 39 | Win | 35–4 | Roger Buchelli | KO | 2 (10), 2:59 | Sep 26, 1978 | Houston, Texas, US | |
| 38 | Win | 34–4 | Richard Rozelle | KO | 5 (10), 0:10 | Jul 18, 1978 | Civic Center, Houston, Texas, US | |
| 37 | Loss | 33–4 | Jose Luis Soto | PTS | 10 | Jun 30, 1978 | Culiacán, Mexico | |
| 36 | Loss | 33–3 | Leonardo Cruz | PTS | 10 | Apr 22, 1978 | Coliseo Roberto Clemente, San Juan, Puerto Rico | |
| 35 | Win | 33–2 | Antonio Becerra | PTS | 10 | Mar 31, 1978 | Mazatlán, Mexico | |
| 34 | Win | 32–2 | Gerald Hayes | UD | 10 | Feb 25, 1978 | Forum, Inglewood, California, US | |
| 33 | Win | 31–2 | Davey Vasquez | KO | 2 (10), 2:05 | Jan 30, 1978 | Municipal Auditorium, San Antonio, Texas, US | |
| 32 | Win | 30–2 | Joaquin Gonzalez | KO | 2 (10) | Dec 18, 1977 | Auditorio Matamoros, Matamoros, Mexico | |
| 31 | Win | 29–2 | Baby Kid Chocolate | KO | 2 (10), 2:58 | Nov 8, 1977 | Municipal Auditorium, San Antonio, Texas, US | |
| 30 | Win | 28–2 | Tony Rocha | KO | 4 (10), 0:33 | Oct 8, 1977 | Forum, Inglewood, California, US | |
| 29 | Win | 27–2 | Andres Torres | TKO | 4 (10), 0:59 | Aug 20, 1977 | Forum, Inglewood, California, US | |
| 28 | Win | 26–2 | Ramon Guillen | KO | 1 (?) | Jul 2, 1977 | Mexico City, Mexico | |
| 27 | Win | 25–2 | Eduardo Limon | KO | 1 (?) | Jun 17, 1977 | Reynosa, Mexico | |
| 26 | Win | 24–2 | Tranquita Brown | KO | 1 (?) | May 20, 1977 | Ciudad Madera, Mexico | |
| 25 | Win | 23–2 | Gabby Cantera | KO | 7 (?), 2:41 | Apr 12, 1977 | Municipal Auditorium, San Antonio, Texas, US | |
| 24 | Win | 22–2 | Orlando Amores | KO | 1 (?) | Mar 11, 1977 | Culiacán, Mexico | |
| 23 | Win | 21–2 | Evaristo Perez | KO | 1 (?) | Feb 26, 1977 | Mexico City, Mexico | |
| 22 | Win | 20–2 | Babe San Martin | TKO | 7 (10) | Jan 29, 1977 | Reynosa, Mexico | |
| 21 | Win | 19–2 | Jose Angel Cazares | KO | 1 (10) | Jan 1, 1977 | Plaza de Toros, Torreón, Mexico | |
| 20 | Win | 18–2 | Nacho Beltran | KO | 3 (?) | Nov 13, 1976 | Estadio General Ángel Flores, Culiacán, Mexico | |
| 19 | Win | 17–2 | Jose Antonio Rosa | TKO | 6 (10), 1:23 | Oct 2, 1976 | Sports Arena, Los Angeles, California, US | |
| 18 | Win | 16–2 | Samuel Machorro | PTS | 10 | Aug 1, 1976 | Arena Coliseo, Mexico City, Mexico | |
| 17 | Win | 15–2 | Manuel Killer | KO | 2 (10) | Jun 26, 1976 | Plaza de Toros Calafia, Mexicali, Mexico | |
| 16 | Win | 14–2 | Gallito Castro | KO | 1 (?) | Jun 2, 1976 | Tijuana, Mexico | |
| 15 | Win | 13–2 | Jose Luis Cruz | TKO | 9 (10) | Mar 27, 1976 | Plaza de Toros Monumental, Monterrey, Mexico | |
| 14 | Loss | 12–2 | Alberto Dávila | UD | 10 | Feb 25, 1976 | Forum, Inglewood, California, US | |
| 13 | Win | 12–1 | Catalino Flores | KO | 2 (10), 1:27 | Dec 4, 1975 | Forum, Inglewood, California, US | |
| 12 | Win | 11–1 | Alvaro Lopez | KO | 2 (10) | Oct 11, 1975 | Auditorio Benito Juárez, Guadalajara, Mexico | |
| 11 | Win | 10–1 | Willie Jensen | KO | 7 (10), 0:58 | Sep 20, 1975 | Forum, Inglewood, California, US | |
| 10 | Win | 9–1 | Roberto Alvarez | KO | 1 (10) | Jul 25, 1975 | Arena Coliseo, Guadalajara, Mexico | |
| 9 | Win | 8–1 | Rocky Mijares | TKO | 6 (10) | Apr 16, 1975 | Plaza de Toros, Torreón, Mexico | |
| 8 | Win | 7–1 | Andres Reyes | PTS | 10 | Mar 10, 1975 | Victoria de Durango, Mexico | |
| 7 | Win | 6–1 | Martin Valencia | KO | 6 (?) | Feb 19, 1975 | Mexico City, Mexico | |
| 6 | Win | 5–1 | Juan Diaz | KO | 2 (10) | Dec 21, 1974 | Arena Coliseo, Mexico City, Mexico | |
| 5 | Loss | 4–1 | Magallo Lozada | DQ | 4 (?) | Oct 16, 1974 | Mexico City, Mexico | |
| 4 | Win | 4–0 | Salvador Martinez | PTS | 10 | Sep 10, 1974 | Mexico City, Mexico | |
| 3 | Win | 3–0 | Manuel Castanedas | TKO | 4 (?) | Jul 24, 1974 | Tijuana, Mexico | |
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | Francisco Javier Nunez | UD | 10 | May 7, 1974 | Arena Tijuana 72, Tijuana, Mexico | |
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Manuel Vazquez | KO | 2 (10) | Mar 26, 1974 | Arena Tijuana 72, Tijuana, Mexico | |