Boxing / Richard Hoffer : Mancini Has Fame and Fortune . . . Why Fight It?

Ray Mancini, the kid who gave the lightweight division a lot of its marquee value, probably left boxing when he left the ring last week.

He’s made $6 million, achieved his championship dream, and laid a groundwork of fame that should keep him in good stead, if not more income, for years to come.

Besides, he could fight Livingstone Bramble, a decidedly limited fighter, 100 times and not beat him.

At just 24, Mancini is perceptibly slowed. More telling, Mancini has shown a horrifying tendency to bleed. It’s enough to know a fighter has guts; we don’t have to actually see them. So goodby, Ray. Been nice having you. Get out and enjoy your money, your fame. Maybe meet a nice girl. See you around.

But what about the division he’s leaving behind, a division that has consistently been the most exciting in boxing the last three years?

Well, it will be OK. There may not be as marketable a package out there as Mancini--he was managed by a former sportswriter, Dave Wolf, who knew a good story when he heard one--but there are plenty of better fighters. The division is in good fists.

Consider those at ringside at the Bramble-Mancini fight. There were Harry Arroyo, the International Boxing Federation’s champion; Tyrone Crawley, the World Boxing Assn.’s top-ranked contender, and Hector Camacho, the former World Boxing Council junior lightweight champion who is moving up in weight.

Camacho, the spangled street urchin, will make some champion, whether Bramble or WBC champion Jose Luis Ramirez, the most money. Even though he’s fought just once since vacating his title last July, Camacho remains the kind of outsized, outrageous sports figure capable of interesting more than just fight fans. He’s a 135-pound Muhammad Ali.

Don King, recognizing as much, hopes to promote a Camacho-Ramirez title fight later this summer. However, it appears that he promised the fighters too much money to make it. HBO says it can’t afford the fight at King’s figures. Look for a renegotiation.

Meanwhile, Bramble is scheduled for a mandatory defense against Crawley, a slick boxer who would probably out-box the counter-punching Bramble for 15 rounds.

Bramble’s people paid Crawley $150,000 to stand aside and let the Mancini rematch go through. They would probably like to pay him more to keep him standing. This is a guy who would give Bramble the most trouble of all.

The undefeated Arroyo, who will defend his IBF title against Robin Blake in a rematch in April, also looms as a presence.

When all the lightweights sort themselves out, one or more will move up five pounds to get at Aaron Pryor in the junior-welterweight division. Then we’ll have some fun.

And where will that leave the lightweight division? Well, there’s WBC junior lightweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez, as talented as any, lurking just four pounds below. Maybe by then, too, Mancini will make a comeback.

Boxing Notes The aforementioned Julio Cesar Chavez will defend his junior lightweight title against three-time challenger Ruben Castillo March 21 at the Forum. Also on that card, co-promoted by Don King, Azumah Nelson will defend his World Boxing Council featherweight title against Marcos Villasana. King also is throwing in a heavyweight fight, although a strange one: James Broad vs. James Tillis. . . . Speaking of heavyweights, look for Mike Weaver, former World Boxing Assn. champion, to go after Pinklon Thomas’ WBC title late this summer. . . . And speaking of lightweights, Livingstone Bramble has this caution for contenders: “It takes a big punch to stun this coconut head.” Incidentally, The Times didn’t see his one-point decision over Ray Mancini the same way the judges did. The Times scored that fight, 145-140, in favor of Bramble. He was the one, you may remember, who had both eyes open and wasn’t bleeding on all the ringsiders.

Still speaking about lightweights: Former WBA champion Art Frias, the guy who gave the title to Mancini in 1982 in one of boxing’s most exciting single rounds, is still coming back. Frias, who lost recently to Kelvin Lampkins, will fight former WBC junior lightweight champion Bazooka Limon at the Olympic Auditorium March 7. Headlining that card is former WBA welterweight champion Pipino Cuevas. He will fight Herman Montes in what is billed as Cuevas’ farewell to boxing. We’ll see. Word is, promoter Bob Arum wants Cuevas for the undercard of his Tommy Hearns-Marvelous Marvin Hagler extravaganza. . . . WBC bantamweight champion Albert Davila, troubled by a bad back, is back in the gym, training for a Miami match against Miguel Lora. Los Angeles stablemate Jaime Garza, who held the WBC junior featherweight title briefly, until Juan Meza unloaded on him in the first round, detaching Garza from consciousness and title, is said to still be moping over his only loss. Reportedly, he has yet to return to the gym since that November fight.

Don Fraser, who normally co-promotes at the Olympic, has tested the Orange County market. Orange County passed. Fraser, named promoter of the year by KO magazine, had to turn away people at the door of the Marriott Hotel in Irvine two weeks ago. He had sold out the 1,500 tickets early in the day and was in the lamentable position of telling would-be customers he couldn’t take their money. “I was crying,” he said. He will go back to Irvine April 21 with Irelis (Cubanito) Perez, a top lightweight, fighting Rocky Alonso. Perez’ only loss in 27 fights was to Hector Camacho. That first Irvine card, in which Bert Lee beat Danny Lopez, made Fraser proud. “Twenty-six rounds and not one knockdown,” he said. “How’s that for match-making.”