Via Ken Hisner: In speaking to famous and respected gym owners, managers, mentors, coaches, barbers, and former business owners from Reading, Pa, Rich Ormsbee, we discussed about the city’s two world champions he was in.
Those are WBA super middleweight champion Steve “Lightning” Little and IBF Welterweight champion Kermit “The Killer” Cintron. In Cintron, he just worked as his cutter.
Little won the WBA Super Middleweight title in February 1994 in a crushing defeat with a 21-13-2 record defeating champion Michael “Second To” Nunn, then 42-1, at the Gallery. Earls Court Exhibition, Kensington, UK. It was the co-main event to defend the WBC World SuperMiddleweight Championship Nigel “Dark Terminator” Benn.
At the time, Little, 10-2, fought famous opponents whose records at the time included 1984 Olympic gold medalist and future WBA Welterweight champion Mark Breland, 2-0, in April 1985, losing a six-round decision.
The following year Little, 11-5-1, defeated former WBA Welterweight champion Pipino Cuevas, 31-11, in March 1986. In August, he defeated former NABF champion David “Machine Gun” Braxton 37-2 .
In August 1987, Little lost to Kronk’s Tyrone Trice 25-1.
In the next match, he lost to David Gutierrez, 16-0-1, one point above all cards, who never fought again, having retired after this match due to a severe neck injury.
In April 1988, Little lost to future IBF Welterweight champion Robert “Bam Bam” Hines, 21-1-1, for the IBF USBA Super Welterweight title. In December, he lost to future world super-lightweight champion “Terrible” Terry Norris, 18-2.
In Little’s next game, he lost to future Montreal WBC super champion Dave Hilton, 25-0-1, in Atlantic City. Despite losing two matches in a row, he had a world title fight when he lost to WBO world welterweight champion John David Jackson, 18-0, at Palace, Auburn Hills, MI.
In Little’s next game, he lost to Tyrone “The Wyandanch Warrior” Frazier of Philadelphia, 17-2-3, his fourth consecutive loss. Four games later, in a rematch, Little began to turn his career around by defeating Frazier, 19-3-3, in September 1991.
In Little’s next game, he drew with Merqui “El Corombo” Sosa, 19-2 in January 1992 at the legendary Blue Horizon in Philadelphia. Two more wins and Little has a world title match against Nunn, 42-1, as mentioned earlier in one of boxing’s biggest fights! In his first defense, he lost to Nevada’s “Fabulous” Frankie Liles, 24-1, in August in Argentina in the Co-Main Event before a vacant WBA World Championship match against Jorge Castro of Argentina. defeated former WBA champion Reggie “Sweet” Johnson.
Not competing again until March 1996, about 19 months later, Little, 22-14-2, won the WBC FECARBOX Super Middleweight belt by defeating Camilo Alarcon of Colombia, 13-1, in Miami. He’ll be fighting for two more titles to claim the vacant IBO Cruiser title ahead of former double world champion James “Lights Out” Toney, 54-4-2, in Biloxi, MS, and later it was IBF USBA Cruiser champion Arthur “King” Williams, 26-4-1, in PA’s Pocono Mountains.
Little’s final record was 25-17-3 with six stops in November 1998, tied with Courtney “Pound for Pound” Butler, 19-4-1. On January 30, 2000, Little died of colon cancer at the age of 34.
“Boxer Bobby Heath and I were at Steve’s bedside in the hospital until the nurse arrived with family members when he passed away,” said longtime friend Rich Ormsbee.
Little was trained by James “Corky” Taylor. His cutter is Rich Ormsbee. His promoter is Don King.
Ormsbee had this to say about Little: “I’ve known Steve Little since he was 16 and he was the most amazing kid to work with. He is a good amateur and will fight anyone! He doesn’t care about the weight difference. His actual weight is 147, and he will fight at 160.
He will eat too much to make the weight heavier. In 1997, he, 25-15-2, rose to 184½ to fight Arthur “King” Williams, 26-4-1, 189, for the IBF belt. USBA decisively lost when I was his cutter. His opponent entered the ring in 201st place. I told him after the match that he should get in shape and fight in his weight class. I have all the memories of Steve.
Cintron, 23-0, won his first title, defeating NABF and WBO interim welterweight champion Teddy “Two Gun” Reid, 22-5-1, in July 2004, in Houston, Texas. This earned him a world title match when he lost to WBO world welterweight champion Antonio “El Tornado de Tijuana” Margarito in April 2005 in Las Vegas.
Two games later, Cintron, 25-1, in the IBF welterweight knockout for 2nd place, stopped “King” David Estrada, 18-2, in Palm Beach, Florida. In his next bout, he won the vacant IBF world welterweight belt against WBO NABO champion and No. 1 ranked Mark “Poison” Suarez, 25-2, in October 2006, at Center Conference in Palm Beach, Florida.
After two title defenses, including Walter “El Terrible” Matthysse of Argentina, 26-1, at Atlantic City, Cintron rematched the only man to ever beat him, Margarito, 35-5, losing again. In injury time in April 2008, he lost his title. Although he won’t be fighting for the world title again for about three years, the rest of his career until then is in a number of exciting matches over the next ten years.
In his next bout after losing the title, Cintron defeated former African IBF Welterweight champion Lovemore “The Black Panther” Ndou, 46-10-1. He then drew with WBC interim super welterweight champion Sergio “Maravilla” Martinez, 44-1-1.
Cintron then defeated WBO Intercontinental champion Alfredo “Perro” Angulo, 15-0, in a match to become the WBC lightweight middleweight belt elimination, even though he never competed for the title. gender. Two fights later, he lost by technical split due to four rounds completed to former WBO Welterweight champion Paul “The Punisher” Williams, 38-1, when he fell from the ring and was injured. shoulder injury in May 2010 in Carson, california.
Fourteen months later, Cintron returned to the ring, losing to Carlos “King” Molina, 18-4-2, but the following month defeating Antwone “The Truth” Smith, 20-2-1, in August 2011.
In November, Cintron earned his last title, losing to WBC world super-middleweight champion Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, 38-0-1, in five innings. He then won 6-1-2 before his final game in February 2018 against Marquis Taylor, 8-1, when in the third inning he was slashed due to an accidental headbutt that ended the match. inconclusive at the Sands Casino in Bethlehem, PA. Taylor would go on to win the NABF Junior Welter title. Cintron ended his career with a 39-6-3 record with 30 stops.
Cintron is coached by Marshall Kauffman, Manny Steward, Ronnie Shields and Joe Pastore. His manager is Kauffman. He was promoted by Main Events.
