By Shaun Brown
There is perhaps no better candidate than Mexico when picking a country which embodies the true spirit of boxing. Heart, passion, drama, the power and the glory, have taken boys from the barrios and transformed them into giants of the sport.
Boxing’s DNA would not be the same without Mexico. From journeymen to gatekeepers to iconic champions, Mexicans are born to fight and below are 10 of the greatest to ever do it.
*Fighters must be retired for consideration.
10) Miguel Canto (61-9-4, 15 KOs)
One of the finest little men of the sport, Canto is near the top of many greatest ever flyweight lists. Canto’s footwork and combinations got him past Shoji Oguma to take the WBC flyweight crown in 1975.
Fourteen defences followed, showcasing his gifts on the front and back foot, as he beat the high-calibre Betulio Gonzalez three years after losing to the Venezuelan. This was in the middle of a 24-fight winning run incorporating 14 title fights. His power didn’t instil fear but his jab, lead hook and counters were nightmarish for anyone looking to get the better of him.
9) Vicente Saldivar (37-3, 26 KOs)
Saldivar was an elite southpaw who merits naming among the pantheon of Mexican greats. A troubled time at school saw Saldivar land at a gym in that now-traditional tale of a kid who needed to use his energy more productively. Part of the 1960 Mexican Olympic team, Saldivar didn’t sail anywhere near a medal and decided to switch codes.
He was finding his feet until December 1962 when Baby Luis ended an early unbeaten run of 16 fights. Regrouping, Saldivar found himself in a far tougher class two years later, challenging Panamanian great Ismael Laguna. Winning over 10 rounds on points was followed by picking up the two world featherweight titles available against Cuban Sugar Ramos in an epic contest.
However, the career of Saldivar is most famously linked with Merthyr Tydfil’s Howard Winstone. Their trilogy of bouts from 1965 to 1967 brought the best out in one another with Saldivar prevailing on each occasion against the celebrated Welshman.
8) Ricardo Lopez (51-0-1, 38 KOs)
From fighting bigger kids at seven years old to eating raw eggs just like Rocky Balboa, the story of Lopez didn’t include taking the shots the fictious slugger did. Widely-rated the greatest strawweight of all-time, Lopez was a master boxer with a technique which should be studied and appreciated by a larger audience.
Trained by the iconic, Nacho Beristain, “El Finito” picked up his first world title in Tokyo, stopping Hideyuki Ohashi in the fifth round and he never looked back. Lopez was often on the road, fighting in the challenger’s backyard. Between Asia, Mexico and the USA, opponents were either stopped or beaten widely on the cards.
Lopez unified the 105lbs division late on in his career before capturing a world title at light-flyweight against Will Grigsby in 1999. There were bigger men and bigger names from his homeland but not many were better than Lopez.
7) Erik Morales (52-9, 36 KOs)
If you had a ticket for an Erik Morales fight, you were in for a treat. “El Terrible” was raised by his father – a former pro boxer – above a boxing gym and, like so many of his countrymen, made his debut at 16.
Morales came through the Tijuana club circuit and several former contenders on his way towards his breakout win against grizzled veteran Daniel Zaragoza in September 1997. After winning the WBC super-bantamweight title, Morales kept fighting regularly at top level, winning wars against seasoned warriors Wayne McCullough and In Jin Chi. His unification against Marco Antonio Barrera in 2000 was the beginning of a long and bitter rivalry.
Their first fight was breathtaking and controversial, but Morales got the nod. They met two years later, and the roles were reversed at featherweight as another debatable score went the way of Barrera. Up a weight again, they met in 2004 but Barrera ended the series a 2-1 winner after another Vegas thriller.
“El Terrible” bounced back to outbox Manny Pacquiao a year later, his final marquee victory, before being twice stopped by the Filipino. His career lasted longer than it should have done, but Morales and fighting were joined at the hip.
Erik Morales fires a shot at Marco Antonio Barrera during their 2002 fight (Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)
6) Marco Antonio Barrera (67-7, 44 KOs)
From 122lbs to as high as 140lbs, Barrera was another fan favourite who played his part in the stunning all-Mexican trilogy with Morales and effectively ended the career of Prince Naseem Hamed. Barrera had ring smarts and a heart the size of Mexico City.
A classic against Kennedy McKinney is often overshadowed by fights against grander names but his career suffered a surprising knock on two occasions to nemesis Junior Jones. The loss to Morales was significantly more painful but “The Baby-Faced Assassin” bounced back again with one of this century’s most memorable wins. The lesson dished out to Hamed was the most exquisite way to put his name back on everyone’s lips.
Beating Morales and friend Johnny Tapia had Barrera on a roll at 126lbs before he was steamrollered by Manny Pacquiao. Another win over Morales and two against Rocky Juarez illustrated his mettle. Late losses to Juan Manuel Marquez, Pacquiao and Amir Khan didn’t take the gloss off a career which will still shine in the next decade and beyond.
Two Mexicans from different socio-economic backgrounds, the rivalry between Erik Morales and Marco Antonio Barrera was about as real as it gets in boxing (JOHN GURZINSKI/AFP via Getty Images)
5) Juan Manuel Marquez (56-7-1, 40 KOs)
With one perfectly placed, short overhand right punch, Juan Manuel Marquez changed the course of his career which was already destined for the Hall of Fame. Boxing is never better when a rivalry is played out and Pacquiao-Marquez was of such quality it takes its place amongst the likes of Robinson-LaMotta, Zale-Graziano, Barrera-Morales and Ali-Frazer.
The four-fight series between them ended on December 8, 2012, when Marquez flattened “Pac-Man” in the sixth round. During eight years they fought fire with fire, hurt one another, knocked each other down and grew a spiky rivalry. But the career of “Dinamita” is more than that.
Wins over Manuel Medina, Orlando Salido, Rocky Juarez, Marco Antonio Barrera, Joel Casamayor, Juan Diaz and Michael Katsidis would make a fabulous day’s viewing and that’s before dipping into the Pacquiao story. One of the greatest counter-punchers of all-time, an all-rounder who could make you miss and pay. Marquez had a career that will age even better with time.
Action Images/Reuters/Sam Norris
4) Carlos Zarate (66-4, 63 KOs)
The astonishing knockout record of this great bantamweight speaks for itself; 66 wins with 63 not hearing the final bell equates to a 95 per cent KO percentage during an 18-year career. After 52 fights undefeated, Zarate’s reputation soared as many believed he was an all-time great in the making.
In May 1976, in front of 17,000 fans in Inglewood, Zarate got his first bantamweight title shot against WBC holder Rodolfo Martinez. Zarate’s compatriot could do nothing to stop the inevitable conclusion which arrived in the ninth round. Bad blood between Zarate and WBA titlist Alfonso Zamora was settled in a non-title fight in 1977.
Despite fan interventions in the ring, the fighters swung leather at one another until one couldn’t. Zarate was the last man standing in round four. The 5ft 8ins, 118lbs frame of Zarate carried on halting challengers until a “Bazooka” gave him a taste of his own medicine at super-bantamweight. Puerto Rican legend Wilfredo Gomez thwarted Zarate to end an impressive run. Lupe Pintor’s controversial victory in 1979 back at bantamweight sparked the beginning of the end for Zarate who eventually bowed out in 1988 with a loss to Daniel Zaragoza.
3) Ruben Olivares (89-13-3, 79 KOs)
Other than the jab, the left hook is one of the most celebrated punches in the sport because of the great names who have delivered it in spectacular fashion. One of its finest exponents was Mexico City’s Ruben Olivares. Standing at 5ft 5½ins, “El Puas” became a world champion at bantamweight and featherweight and was adored by fans for his efforts in the ring which were equalled by his partying lifestyle outside it.
In 1969, he ended the reign of Aussie great Lionel Rose and later defended his two bantamweight straps successfully against Alan Rudkin and then in April 1970 against great rival Chucho Castillo, who levelled the score six months later. But it was 2-1 to Olivares in April 1971 and his second stint as champ continued until Rafael Herrera knocked him out one year later.
Olivares roared on to featherweight with ups and downs against Alexis Arguello, Bobby Chacon, Danny Lopez and Eusebio Pedroza. He was heralded as Mexico’s greatest until the 1980s.
Ruben Olivares
2) Salvador Sanchez (44-1-1, 32 KOs)
What might have been. On August 12, 1982, Sanchez lost his life at the age of 23 after a car accident 160 miles north of Mexico City. He was 34 days away from defending his WBC featherweight crown in a rematch against Juan LaPorte at Madison Square Garden and had discussed moving up two weight classes to face Alexis Arguello for the Nicaraguan’s WBC lightweight title.
Had he lived on, “Chava” could have become the greatest 126-pounder in boxing history. It is testament to his early achievements and abilities that he is in this list at number two. Sanchez began his career as a teenager, but by his 19th fight had tasted defeat to Antonio Becerra for the Mexican bantamweight title.
He moved to 126lbs where the wheels clicked into motion. Danny “Red” Lopez was the favourite to beat Sanchez when the two clashed in February 1980. Lopez was into the fourth year of his reign as WBC featherweight champion. It was billed as “Little Red v Little Known”. Everyone knew who Sanchez was by the end of the fight in the 13th round.
Sanchez repeated the trick four months later stopping Lopez in round 14, inbetween came a win over Ruben Castillo in 1985. Victories over Laporte, Wilfredo Gomez and Azumah Nelson cemented his legacy before tragedy struck. One can only speculate what Sanchez might have achieved had he lived longer, but he still created something special that will never be forgotten.
1) Julio Cesar Chavez (107-6-2, 85 KOs)
The greatest Mexican boxer of all-time, Chavez is a national hero who, approaching his 62nd birthday, is still swamped by adoring fans young and old. Chavez was a force of nature and, after beating Mario Martinez in September 1984 to win the WBC super-featherweight title, he would go on to retain it nine times over the next three years before moving to lightweight.
Whatever his opponents had to offer, Chavez would match it and invariably hand out a beating. At 135lbs, his stirring 11th round stoppage of WBA king Edwin Rosario earned him his second world title at lightweight. The 10-stone division received an unwelcome knock at the door when Chavez beat an improved Roger Mayweather for a second time in 1989.
One year later, there was ‘Thunder and Lightning’ at the Hilton Hotel in Las Vegas when Chavez and Meldrick Taylor delivered a super-fight which “The Lion of Culiacán” won with seconds to spare while down on the scorecards. A controversial yet memorable ending. The high of bashing Greg Haugen in front of 132,274 fans inside the Estadio Azteca gave Chavez a 1993 to remember or so he thought.
Later that year his win streak in world title fights fizzled out, but his 88-fight unbeaten record remained intact – just – when he gained a hotly debated draw against Pernell Whittaker at welterweight. Chavez’s remaining years saw losses to Frankie Randall, Oscar De La Hoya and Kostya Tszyu as his powers waned, but at his best he was peerless.
Julio Cesar Chavez and Greg Haugen fight for the WBC and Lineal light-welterweight titles on February 20, 1993 at the Estadio Aztec in Mexico City, Mexico (Focus on Sport/Getty Images)
