Cepeda: Don’t blame me for Espinosa’s woes

Former Games and Amusements Board (GAB) chairman Dominador Cepeda should not be blamed for the misfortune that Luisito Espinosa suffered after he retained his World Boxing Council (WBC) featherweight title against Argentina’s Carlos Rios in Koronadal, South Cotabato in 1997.

Espinosa stopped Rios via a sensational knockout in the sixth round and went on to retain the title. However, up to this date, the Filipino slugger has yet to receive the balance of his fight purse amounting to $130,000, leading to a court case against the promoters of the title fight.

Now facing civil and criminal cases as a result of the incident are former South Cotabato Gov. Larry de Pedro and boxing promoters Rod Nazario and Lito Mondejar. Espinosa’s camp, however, recently filed an extended charge sheet against Cepeda and Joe Koizumi, who was Espinosa’s manager at the time of the fight.

Cepeda, who appeared in yesterday’s PSA Forum at the Holiday Inn Hotel, said he had nothing to with the non-payment of Espinosa’s purse since it was Koizumi and Espinosa himself who signed the contract worth $150,000 – 30 percent of which would go to the Japanese manager.

"Nobody else was a signatory in the fight contract other than Luisito and Koizumi. Therefore, the GAB is not in any manner responsible. We never dealt with Espinosa. In fact, we never deal with boxers except those with no managers," said the former GAB chief. — Abac Cordero