Espinosa out to win back lost glory, wife

A pending court case, a troubled marriage and the hard, painful fact that he’s about to turn 37 just won’t keep Luisito Espinosa from fighting.

According to Hermie Rivera, the boxing promoter and noted fight analyst, Espinosa, a former world champion, has been given a big shot at reigning IBF featherweight champion Janos Nagy of South Africa.

The fight, tentatively scheduled Sept. 11 in Budapest, Hungary, will once again give Espinosa a chance to prove that he still packs the same old punch that made him world champion almost a decade ago.

"I don’t know about the significance of the date of the fight, being 9/11 which we all know is the day the World Trade Center in New York was attacked, and the birthday of former President Ferdinand Marcos," said Rivera.

"But for Luisito, it’s another chance for him to regain his ring glory and probably the affection of his wife Marie Cherrie who has left him for greener pasture. Luisito can hit two birds with one stone in this fight," said Rivera.

The fight, according to Rivera, is being backed and promoted by a group of millionaires in South Africa.

"The purse, therefore, will not be a problem. How much Louie is going to get, where and when the fight would be held is not a problem here. The problem is if Luisito can secure a parole visa from the United States," Rivera explained.

Since his ill-fated title fight against Argentina’s Carlos Rios on Dec. 6, 1997 in Koronadal, South Cotabato, of which he has yet to receive his guaranteed purse of $150,000 from the promoters, Luisito had gone to the US.

Espinosa, who turns 37 on June 26, filed a case against the fight promoters in May of 1998. But the case has dragged on until now. The STAR won’t tackle any details about the case which is pending before a Manila court.