Louie’s final run - SPORTING CHANCE by Joaquin M. Henson

Luisito Espinosa is back in the gym, training for a last stab to regain the World Boxing Council (WBC) featherweight title. That’s the word from Hermie Rivera whose son Noel is now managing Espinosa’s affairs.

Hermie said Mike Jara — who once trained former International Boxing Federation (IBF) featherweight champion Hector Lizarraga — has reopened his Star Gym in San Jose, near San Francisco, to accommodate Espinosa.

"Mike’s been inactive a few years," related the California-based Hermie who’s in Manila attending to personal matters. "Louie used to train in his gym many, many years ago and Mike thinks the world of him. My son talked to Mike about reopening the gym and it looks like he’s back in business."

Last month, I bumped into Espinosa in San Francisco. We both watched local boy Orlando Villaflor knock out Mexican journeyman Luis Lizarraga in a Peter Howes show at the Pier 32 waterfront on the Embarcadero. Espinosa was in an all-black outfit and wore a military-style leather jacket, like what one of those Village People popularized. His hair was cropped short.

I asked Espinosa about his plans. He raised his fist and said, "Babalik ako."

Espinosa claimed he was poorly trained for his fight against Augie (Kid Vegas) Sanchez last January. "Kasi, ang ka-training ko mga amateur," he noted. Espinosa looked sharp in the first round, faltered, and was stopped in the fourth. After the fight, Espinosa’s trainer Robert Aguallo said it was time to quit.

Espinosa said he’d like to face Sanchez in a rematch to prove the loss was a fluke.

Noel, a respiratory therapist at Fremont General Hospital, confided that several promoters are offering to finance Espinosa’s ring comeback. One offer was a four-fight package leading to a showdown with World Boxing Association (WBA) junior lightweight champion Joel Casamayor of Cuba. Espinosa, however, said he’s not moving up in weight and will continue fighting in the 126-pound division.

Noel said Espinosa has been dutifully jogging every morning around Lake Merced and before Jara reopened his gym, worked out with kickboxers and martial arts practitioners to sharpen his reflexes.

On Saturday nights, Espinosa relaxes at the Solita Club and Filipino Restaurant in Brentwood, near Daly City where he lives with wife Mariecherie and their children John Louie and Janica. To earn extra money, Espinosa works as a bartender at Solita and brings home about $200 each Saturday. Solita owner Dennis Cailes personally taught Espinosa how to mix drinks. Cailes’ niece Lerma de la Cruz, once a popular songbird here, is the regular entertainer at the club.

"Libangan lang yung pagkaka-bartender ko," said Espinosa. "Hindi ko kinahihiya ‘yun. Decent job din naman at okay ‘yun kinikita ko tuwing Sabado."

More than money, Espinosa said he’s returning to fight for pride. His goal is to bow out a champion.

Noel said he expects Espinosa — now ranked No. 21 by the WBC — to break back into the top 10 and challenge for the title within a year.

"Louie’s hungry again — that’s a good sign," said Noel. "I’ve talked to Mike Javier, who used to be a Philippine boxing team coach, to train Louie. The other Mike (Jara) will also be involved. Louie weighs about 140 now but doesn’t think it’ll be a problem to go down to 126."

Noel, the eldest of Hermie’s six children, inherited his father’s love for the fight game. "Mahilig sa boxing ‘yung anak ko," noted Hermie. "In fact, he writes boxing articles for some magazines. That’s his avocation. His real work is at the General Hospital — after all, he has a biology degree at California State-Hayward and scored 97 percent to rank among the top three in the State Board exam for therapists."

Hermie is understandably proud of his son who has two boys — Grant, 6, and Louis, 4 — with wife Bethany. Noel’s family lives in a two-bedroom house behind Hermie’s own home in Newark, California.

Hermie said Espinosa’s comeback fight will likely be on ESPN TV on Sept. 14.

Last week, Espinosa sent a letter to President Arroyo appealing for help in collecting an unpaid debt of about $130,000 from South Cotabato Gov. Larry DePedro. He fought Carlos Rios in a title defense in Koronadal in 1997 and DePedro signed a promissory note confirming his debt to the fighter as promoter. Despite several attempts to collect from DePedro, the debt remains unpaid to this day.

In that same letter, Espinosa said he is dedicating his "final run" for the world title to the Chief Executive and the Filipino people.

Espinosa, who turns 34 on Tuesday, is considered one of the greatest Filipino fighters ever. He won the WBA bantamweight title in 1989 and defended it twice then captured the WBC crown in 1995 and logged seven successful defenses before losing the diadem to Cesar Soto on a disputed decision four years later.