Guy Lopez knows tough.

He wore 75 pounds of body armor when he was in the army - the, um, fierce but furry gorilla army in the 2001 remake of Planet of the Apes.

Still, taking on Marky Mark (the singer-turned-movie star Mark Wahlberg) was no match for the Toughman contest he entered in Marion, Ohio, for the first time last year.

"Minute for minute, the Toughman was harder," said Lopez, a former actor who traded in his monkey suit and now lives in West Toledo, where he owns Gorilla Powdercoating.

Lopez, 36, will be back at the amateur boxing contest when the Original Toughman Contest returns to Toledo for the 27th year this weekend. Matches begin at 8 p.m. tomorrow and Saturday in the Toledo Sports Arena.

A total of 64 locals are expected to duke it out. Fighters are categorized into three groups: light heavyweight (160-184 pounds), heavyweight (185-214 pounds), and super heavyweight (215-400 pounds).

That last category was split off from the heavyweight division this year so that someone weighing, say, 190 pounds isn't going up against a 300-pound behemoth. Not that it stopped the smaller guys from having success in the past.

"In reality, the guys who pretty much won it were between 195 and 210 [pounds]," said event promoter Brad McDonald. "Those guys are pretty much the ones who have been training, are in shape."

Another change is that there will be a three-bout limit on fighters for Saturday night.

Still, people like Dr. Douglas Paul worry about the dangers of the event. Last year, he was at Good Samaritan Hospital in Dayton, where he is medical director of the trauma program, when a man died from blows to the head he received during a Toughman contest. Ever since, Dr. Paul has been lobbying legislators to do something about it.

"The problem is that in the absence of good regulation and good oversight, our state is being negligent in my opinion in allowing this to occur," he said.

The event remains popular nevertheless.

Each round consists of three one-minute rounds, which may not sound like a long time until you get in the ring.

"Guys who say, 'That's nothing,' they come in there ... and they swing nonstop. Halfway through the second round, they can't even hold their arms up," McDonald said.

But those are the kinds of mistakes made by amateurs, who are the hallmark of this annual exhibition.

"This is a chance for the Average Joe to get in the ring under safe conditions...," McDonald said. "There are people who've always watched, enjoyed boxing. This is a chance for them to experience it."

Sometimes, that experience can be a bit of a jolt.

"The first time a guy hit me, he was a big guy, 305 ... It felt like a truck had hit me," said Lopez, who weighed 285 at the time.

He said he tore some cartilage in his ribs last year but managed to battle on to finish as the runner-up.

Nowadays, he's 6 feet, 2 inches and 269 pounds. For the last 30 days, he's been jumping rope, hitting a heavy bag, and working on his stamina at a local gym. And he's got a new strategy.

"I'm feeling pretty confident," said Lopez, whose ring name is The Gorilla. "I think maybe I held back too much [last year]. If I was a little more aggressive last time, I think I would have won."

His loved ones have been supportive, though perhaps not without some reservations.

"My son loves it," Lopez said. "My girlfriend supports it, but I don't know if she's worried about my face."

The Original Toughman Contest starts at 8 p.m. tomorrow and Saturday in the Toledo Sports Arena, 1 Main St. Tickets are $15 and $25 for each night or $20 for the less expensive seats for both nights. Information: 419-698-4545 or www.toledotoughman.com.

Contact Ryan E. Smith at:

ryansmith@theblade.com

or 419-724-6103.

First Published February 2, 2006, 11:43 a.m.