Felipe 'The Flash' Torres ~ 'A Good West-Coast Kid'

[Bill Paxtom]

Felipe 'The Flash' Torres

'A Good West-Coast Kid'

Interview from 1976

> After you took some time off {5 Months} did you come back stronger >

Well, I got a new Handler. He got me a good bout in September 1970, but
it was against Enrique Jana.

He was ranked as the #6 Light-Welterweight, and he was an experienced guy
who really knew how to fight, especially on the inside.

Enrique was too strong for me, and wiped the floor with me. He won an easy 10-Round
Decision. That was my 5th-Straight loss.

9-months later, Enrique was fighting for the WBC Light-Welterweight Championship.
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Then in late-October, I got another bout. It was against Al Robinson in Oakland.
He was a 'rising star', as he was the 1968 Olympic Silver Medalist in the Featherweight
Division.

He was a tall and lanky guy. Well, he out-boxed me pretty good over the first 6-Rounds,
and won every Round. But he started to fade, and I rallied strongly over the last 4-Rounds.
I hit him with some solid head punches, and nearly knocked him out in Round 10. He just
barely made it.

He won the Decision, but he was in bad shape at the end of the bout.

He suffered from a bad headache after the bout, and he couldn't fight for 6-Months
after that.

He started training for a comeback in April 1971, and he suffered an injury in the Gym
on April 30th and fell into a coma.

He was in a coma for 2 1/2 years, and died on January 24, 1974.