Gomes never knew what hit him

Former world junior lightweight boxing champion Harold Gomes confessed the other night he never saw the punch that Gabriel (Flash) Elorde threw to take away his crown at the Araneta Coliseum in 1960.

He could hardly remember what happened that fateful night except for his frequent trips to the canvas. "I was bouncing up and down like a yoyo," said Gomes who flew in from Rhode Island last Sunday with his family.

Gomes, 70, offered no excuses for the seventh round knockout loss but wondered if the air-conditioning was off because the heat was unbearable.

"There were over 30,000 people in the arena," he said. "Many of them were there since 11 in the morning and brought lunch with them. Someone told me police had to hose down thousands more who couldn’t get in. We fought at night so you can just imagine the body heat from the people who packed the place. It was like an inferno. I had difficulty adjusting to the change of weather. That was in March and I just came from winter in the East Coast."

Gomes said his manager Frankie Travis once told him never to fight southpaws. But Travis negotiated the fight against Elorde, a southpaw, he pointed out. "Southpaws are tough to fight because you don’t know where their punches are coming from," he noted. "Frankie warned me about southpaws. I had this mental block."

What convinced Travis to agree to the fight in Manila was a $25,000 guaranteed purse, the biggest paycheck in Gomes’ boxing career.

Gomes was in Manila about two weeks before the bout and stayed in comfortable quarters at the Araneta compound as guest of impresario J. Amado Araneta.

The announced indoor attendance of 37,600 set a new world record for a boxing match and according to Gomes’ son Scott, was not eclipsed until over 20 years later by the Roberto Duran-Sugar Ray Leonard fight at the New Orleans Superdome.

A few months later, Elorde and Gomes met in a rematch at the San Francisco Cow Palace. The outcome was even more decisive. Elorde demolished Gomes in a single round on national TV.

"It was a disaster," said Gomes. "I was in shock. I think Elorde was in shock, too. I never saw the punch that knocked me out."

Lightning struck twice and Gomes said he couldn’t have lost to a better man. "Elorde was a quiet guy, a good guy and a great champion," continued Gomes. "We became close friends."

Gomes recalled that after the Big Dome bout, Elorde’s wife Laura gave him a handkerchief made of pineapple fiber with an embroidered design of a bahay kubo to bring home to his wife Arlene.

When Laura feted the Gomes family at a dinner in the Elordes’ Sucat home the other night, Arlene brought out the handkerchief she received 44 years ago to show her hosts.

Arlene, son Scott, daughter Karen and 9-year-old grandson Scott James are here with Gomes.

Gomes, who is of Portuguese and Greek descent, grew up in a tough Rhode Island neighborhood and learned to fight in the streets at an early age. He boxed in Boys Club, Catholic Youth Organization and YMCA gyms and after winning a state amateur title, decided to turn pro at barely 18 in 1951. Gomes won his first 21 fights and in 1959, decisioned Paul Jorgensen to win the vacant world 130 pound title.

The junior lightweight division was dormant after Frankie Klick stopped Kid Chocolate to become the last pre-war titlist in 1933. Pancho Villa’s stablemate Elino Flores was the first Filipino to figure in a world junior lightweight title fight in 1923.

Gomes stayed away from the ring in 1961 after losing to Elorde twice to run out his contract with Travis and Sam Richman. Then he signed a contract with Angelo Dundee. He racked up four wins in a row before losing a disputed decision to Johnny Bizzarro. Three knockout setbacks in Europe prompted Gomes to call it quits in 1963 with a record of 50-10, including 24 stoppages.

Gomes said the circumstances surrounding the three losses were discouraging. In Italy, he was billeted in a brothel for three days and thrown in a virtual oven to lose weight for a fight against Valerio Nunez. In England, he was way ahead on points against Frankie Taylor but lost steam and was knocked out on a quick count in the ninth. Three weeks after the Taylor bout, Gomes was stopped by Dave Charnley in the first round, also in England. That was the last straw.

Gomes said he took his last few fights at short notice primarily for the money. "I didn’t want to be remembered as an opponent for somebody coming up," he said. "I wanted to keep my dignity."

Gomes said in his prime, fighting was all that mattered. "I used to take fights to stay in shape," he intimated. "I didn’t care about the money. Once, in 1956, I agreed to fight Segundo Perez for a share of the gate in an open-air show in New Britain. Guess what? It rained. After deducting expenses and all that, I took home just $7 but I knocked Perez out in three rounds."

With his ring earnings, Gomes bought a home for his family and a property where he built a three-family apartment building. He also put up a boxing gym where he trained kids and aspiring pros.

Gomes said he was never embarrassed to work. For a while, he was a trash collector. After retirement, he worked as a collector for Naragansett Electric Co. and a recreation officer for the state Department of Corrections, teaching inmates how to box.

Although it was in the Philippines where he lost his title, Gomes said he will always have a special place in his heart for the country.

"I wouldn’t be here after 44 years if I didn’t have fond memories of the Philippines," said Gomes. "I love the Filipinos. In 1991, Laura stayed in our home when she was in the US for Rolando Bohol’s fight against Junior Jones. I’m still in contact with Bohol and I plan to visit him in Hawaii on the way home from Manila."

Gomes, a referee and judge the last 40 years, has lived a charmed life. He was swept off his feet by his wife who, incidentally, is lefthanded like Elorde. They met in high school and are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary next year. They’re blessed with two wonderful children and a loving grandson. And they’ve got special Filipino friends like the Elordes.