Winning Ugly, Gastineau Stops Baker in 2nd Round

Former NFL star Mark Gastineau stopped pudgy Jimmy Baker--he weighed 27 pounds more than he did four months ago--at 1:09 of the second round Tuesday night before approximately 1,000 at the Reseda Country Club.

Gastineau pushed his record to 5-0, but his performance brought boos from the crowd. And if Baker didn’t hurt Gastineau, the crowd certainly did.

“I’d be lying if I said it didn’t hurt,” the 6-6, 265-pound former All-Pro defensive end said. “I didn’t expect the booing to be that loud.”

In the first round, the bloated, 213-pound Baker--a hairdresser by day and a tavern bouncer at night with a 16-18-1 record in a decade of small-time boxing--hit Gastineau with a few hard punches, sending the huge man into retreat.

In the second round, Gastineau used his huge arms to push Baker against the ropes and dropped him with a looping right hand to the head. Baker got up and appeared unhurt, but referee Chuck Hassett stopped the bout.

“I wasn’t hurt, I know that,” Baker said. “I got up, told the ref I was fine and put my hands up to continue. And he stopped it. What did he want me to do, sing a song?”

Hector Lopez of Glendale, who won a sliver medal for Mexico in the 1984 Olympics, resumed his once-promising pro career after two years in prison on a kidnaping and assault and battery conviction and scored unanimous 10-round decision over Jamie Castillo of Los Angeles in a junior-welterweight bout. Lopez is 20-1, Castillo 10-4-1.