List of Puerto Rican boxing world champions

A statue of Sixto Escobar, found in the Estadio Sixto Escobar venue

In Puerto Rico, boxing is considered a major sport, having produced more amateur and professional world champions than any other sport in its history.[1] Puerto Rico ranks third worldwide between countries with most boxing world champions and is the only place to have champions accredited in all of the current boxing divisions.[2][3] This number also places the archipelago in the global lead in terms of champions per capita.[2] February 9, 2008 was the first time that boxers from Puerto Rico had held three of the four major welterweights titles (World Boxing Association, International Boxing Federation and World Boxing Organization) when Carlos Quintana defeated Paul Williams to join Miguel Cotto, and Kermit Cintron as champions in the division.[4]

Individually, Puerto Rican world champions have earned numerous achievements. These include, Wilfredo Gómez's record for most defenses in the super bantamweight division and for most successive knockouts by a titleholder. On September 3, 1994, Daniel Jiménez established a world record for the quickest knockout in a championship fight, defeating Harald Geier in 17 seconds.[5] Juan Manuel López is fifth in this category, having defeated César Figueroa in 47 seconds during his first defense.[5] Ossie Ocasio was the first World Boxing Association (WBA) cruiserweight champion, winning it on February 13, 1982. This accomplishment was mimicked in other organizations: Jose De Jesús, José Ruíz Matos, John John Molina and Héctor Camacho did it in their respective divisions in the World Boxing Organization (WBO), while Ángel Almena was the first pugilist to win the International Boxing Organization's super flyweight title. On June 7, 2014, Miguel Cotto made history by becoming Puerto Rico's first four-division world champion.[6] In women's boxing, Amanda Serrano holds the distinction of being the first IBF super featherweight champion and the first Puerto Rican female boxer to win world titles in four weight classes.[7]

Boxing in Puerto Rico

José Torres: Lineal Light heavyweight champion in 1965.

Boxing was introduced and practiced in a clandestine manner in Puerto Rico while the archipelago was still a Spanish colony.[8] Fights were organized in haciendas among the workers of the sugar and coffee plantations, and the objective was to determine the best fighter among the employees. Following the culmination of the Puerto Rican Campaign and Spanish–American War, American soldiers who were stationed in the main island practiced the sport. During World War I, a championship known as Campeonato Las Casas was held as training for military personnel.[8] Nero Chen, the first Puerto Rican boxer to gain recognition, began his career in these tournaments. The Combat Maneuver Training Center followed this example and organized boxing activities, which they named Los Campeones del Campamento. These were received with enthusiasm by the young recruits. Most of these events were celebrated without restriction due to military jurisdictional limits, although prohibitions were put in place for the civilian population.[8] Illegal matches were organized on the rooftops of residences in Old San Juan, empty terrain's in El Condado and in hippodromes.[8]

By 1924, several young men were being taught to box by Gregario Rosa, a boxer who had won the featherweight championship of the Atlantic Fleet while serving in the Navy.[8] Rosa established "Jack Dempsey Physical Culture and Boxing Club", a gym where he continued instructing more pugilists; however, the local police department would go in and arrest any boxer that participated in a card (organized boxing match). At times they were surprised to discover that several members of the law enforcement agencies and government were involved. In one case they discovered a group of police officers, including a colonel, two members of the governor's cabinet, numerous legislators and a judge at an event.[8] The charges were archived; the decision was justified with a statement that said: "How will we have a boxing world champion if we don't let the boys learn how to box?"[8]

Carlos Ortíz is considered among the best Puerto Rican boxers of all time

In 1926, a boxing venue was opened in a military facility known as Cuartel de Ballajá; a fight card was organized weekly. Legislator Lorenzo Coballes Gandía redacted a proposal to legalize boxing, which was signed by governor Horace Mann Towner in May 1927.[9] Consequently, the Primera Comisión Atlética de Boxeo (The First Athletic Boxing Commission) was created; this became the first organization dedicated to sanctioned boxing in Puerto Rico.[9] Estadio Universal (Universal Stadium) became the first venue to organize legal boxing cards. The first event featured a fight between Enrique Chaffardet and Al Clemens as the main event, which was declared a draw by the judges.[9] New stadiums were built in Bayamón, Caguas, Mayagüez, Ponce, Aguadilla and San Juan.[9] The first Puerto Rican to win a world championship was Sixto Escobar, who won it on June 26, 1934. During the 1960s and 1970s, there was an increase in the number of pugilists who achieved this recognition.[10] Including Wilfred Benítez who on March 6, 1976, became the youngest world champion in history at 17 years old. This tendency continued during the following two decades, reaching its peak between the 1980s and 1990s. There was a slight decline in the 1990s. Félix Trinidad was Puerto Rico's most notable champion during this period.[11] The 2000s brought another increase, as over a dozen boxers won world championships.

Héctor García, Dommys Delgado Berty, Francisco Varcárcel and José Peñagaricano have served as presidents of the Puerto Rico Boxing Commission. This organization gained more prominence in 1985 when it received full control as the sanctioning body in any professional fight organized in Puerto Rico.[12] In 2000, the commission's regulation was revised to exclude professional wrestling, which up to that point had been under its scope. This was Peñagaricano's first proposal on taking office, since he considered professional wrestling "a spectacle instead of a sport like boxing".[12] During the following decades, the Puerto Rico Boxing Commission became the first governing body to have a female president when Delgado Berty served from 1986 to 1988.[13] It became the first commission to require pre-fight weigh-ins, a measure that was at first criticized, but was later adopted by other boxing organizations.[14] In 2007, David Bernier, then Secretary of Recreation and Sports, approved a new rule in the boxing organization's regulation that prohibited the signing of any pugilist younger than 18 years old as a professional.[15] In 2011, women's boxing saw an increase in popularity, gaining mainstream attention. This was fueled by the championships won by Ada Veléz and Amanda Serrano, as well as Kiria Tapia becoming the first Pan American champion in her division.

List of world champions

Note: Minor or interim titlists are not included.

Number Name Date of first title win Divisions Successful defenses References
1 Sixto Escobar June 6, 1934 Bantamweight (U & L 2) 5 [I] [16]
2 Carlos Ortiz June 12, 1959 Light welterweight (U & L 2) 2 and 9 [II] [17]
3 José Torres March 30, 1965 Light heavyweight (U, M, M & L) 3 [III] [18]
4 Ángel Espada June 28, 1975 Welterweight (M) 1 [IV] [19]
5 Alfredo Escalera July 5, 1975 Super featherweight (M) 10 [V] [20]
6 Samuel Serrano October 16, 1976 Super featherweight (M 2 & L 2) 14 [VI] [21]
7 Wilfred Benítez March 6, 1976 Light welterweight (M & L), welterweight (M & L) and light middleweight (M) 2, 1 and 2 [VII] [22]
8 Esteban De Jesús May 8, 1976 Lightweight (M) 3 [VIII] [23]
9 Wilfredo Gómez May 21, 1977 Super bantamweight (M & L), featherweight (M) and super featherweight (M) 17, 0 and 0 [IX] [24]
10 Julian Solís August 29, 1980 Bantamweight (M & L) 0 [X] [25]
11 Carlos De León November 25, 1980 Cruiserweight (M 4 & L 2) 8 [XI] [26]
12 Ossie Ocasio February 13, 1982 Cruiserweight (M) 3 [XII] [27]
13 Juan Laporte September 15, 1982 Featherweight (M) 2 [XIII] [28]
14 Edwin Rosario May 1, 1983 Lightweight (M & M 2) and light welterweight (M) 3 and 0 [XIV] [29]
15 Héctor Camacho August 7, 1983 Super featherweight (M), lightweight (M), light welterweight (M) 1, 2 and 3 [XV] [30]
16 Mark Medal March 11, 1984 Light middleweight (M) 0 [XVI] [31]
17 Harry Arroyo April 15, 1984 Lightweight (M) 2 [XVII] [32]
18 Victor Callejas May 26, 1984 Super bantamweight (M) 2 [XVIII] [33]
19 Carlos Santos November 2, 1984 Light middleweight (M) 1 [XIX] [34]
20 Antonio Rivera August 30, 1986 Featherweight (M) 0 [XX] [35]
21 Wilfredo Vázquez October 4, 1987 Bantamweight (M), super bantamweight (M) and featherweight (M) 1, 9 and 4 [XXI] [36]
22 José Ruíz Matos April 29, 1989 Super flyweight (M) 4 [XXII] [37]
23 John John Molina April 29, 1989 Super featherweight (M & M 2) 7 and 0 [XXIII] [38]
24 José De Jesús May 19, 1989 Light flyweight (M) 3 [XXIV] [39]
25 Juan Nazario April 4, 1990 Lightweight (M) 0 [XXV] [40]
26 Orlando Fernández May 12, 1990 Super bantamweight (M) 1 [XXVI] [40]
27 Rafael del Valle May 13, 1992 Bantamweight (M) 2 [XXIX] [40]
28 Josué Camacho July 31, 1992 Light flyweight (M) 1 [XXXI] [40]
29 Daniel Jiménez June 9, 1993 Bantamweight (M) and super bantamweight (M) 4 and 0 [XXXII] [40]
30 Félix Trinidad June 19, 1993 Welterweight (M, M) and (L) light middleweight (M & M) and middleweight (M) 17, 2 and 0 [XXXIII] [41]
31 Kevin Kelley December 4, 1993 Featherweight (M) 7 [XXXIV] [42]
32 Alex Sánchez December 22, 1993 Minimumweight (M) 6 [XXXV] [40]
33 Jake Rodríguez February 13, 1994 Light welterweight (M) 2 [XXXVI] [40]
34 Sammy Fuentes September 17, 1994 Light welterweight (M) 2 [XXXVII] [40]
35 Frank Toledo June 9, 1996 Featherweight (M) 0 and 0 [XLI] [40]
36 José Antonio Rivera April 25, 1997 Welterweight M) and light middleweight (M) 0 [XLIII] [40]
37 Lou Del Valle September 20, 1997 Light heavyweight (M) 0 [XLIV] [40]
38 Eric Morel October 17, 1998 Super flyweight (M) 7 and 0 [XLV] [40]
39 Daniel Santos May 6, 2000 Welterweight (M), light middleweight (M & M) 2 and 4 [XLVI] [40]
40 Nelson Dieppa July 22, 2000 Light flyweight (M) 5 [XLVII] [43]
41 John Ruiz March 3, 2001 Heavyweight (M 2) 4 [XLVIII] [40]
42 Iván Calderón May 3, 2003 Minimumweight (M) and light flyweight (M & L) 11 and 4 [LI] [44][45]
43 Manny Siaca May 5, 2004 Super middleweight (M) 0 [LII] [46]
44 Miguel Cotto September 11, 2004 Light welterweight (M), welterweight (M & M) light middleweight (M & M, Middleweight (M & L) 5, 5, 2 and 1 [LIII] [47][48]
45 Luis Collazo April 2, 2005 Welterweight (M) 1 [LIV] [49]
46 Kermit Cintrón October 28, 2006 Welterweight (M) 2 [LV] [50]
47 Carlos Quintana February 9, 2008 Welterweight (M) 0 [LVI] [51]
48 Juan Manuel López June 7, 2008 Super bantamweight (M) and featherweight (M) 5 and 2 [LVIX] [52]
49 Román Martínez March 14, 2009 Super featherweight (M 3) 2 [LX] [53]
50 José López March 28, 2009 Super flyweight (M) 0 [LXI] [54]
51 Wilfredo Vázquez, Jr. February 27, 2010 Super bantamweight (M) 2 [LXIII] [55]
52 Danny García♦ July 30, 2010 Light welterweight (M, M & L) and welterweight (M) 5 [LXVII] [56]
53 Rico Ramos July 9, 2011 Super bantamweight (M) 0 [LXV] [57][58]
54 José Pedraza♦ March 22, 2014 Super featherweight (M) 2 [LXVIII] [59]
55 McJoe Arroyo July 18, 2015 Super flyweight (M) 0
56 Jason Sosa June 24, 2016 Super featherweight (M) 0
  •      indicates boxer of Puerto Rican heritage that is recognized by the commission due to parent's nationality, residence or other circumstances.

List of female world champions

Number Name Date of first title win Divisions Successful defenses References
1 Melissa Del Valle September 12, 1998 Super featherweight (M) and super bantamweight (M) 1, 0 and 0 [A] [60]
2 Ada Vélez January 19, 2001 Bantamweight (M 2) and super bantamweight (M 2 & M) 1 and 1 [B] [61]
3 Melissa Hernández November 4, 2006 Super batamweight (M) & M), super featherweight (M) and featherweight (M) 0, 0, 0 and 0 [C] [62]
4 Amanda Serrano September 10, 2011 Super featherweight (M), lightweight (M), featherweight (M) and junior featherweight (M) 0, 0, 1 and 0 [D] [63]

Current titleholders

Name Organization Division Date won
José Pedraza International Boxing Federation Super featherweight June 13, 2015
Danny García World Boxing Council Welterweight January 23, 2016
Amanda Serrano World Boxing Organization Featherweight February 17, 2016
Jason Sosa World Boxing Association Super Featherweight June 24, 2016

See also

References

Footnotes

  1. ↑ "Puerto Rico, país de tradición boxística" (in Spanish). Univision. 2007-09-13. Retrieved 2008-10-08.
  2. 1 2 José Torres (2004-12-15). "Fábrica de campeones" (in Spanish). ESPN Deportes. Retrieved 2008-10-06.
  3. ↑ "El Consejo Mundial de Boxeo rinde un homenaje a Peñagarícano y Chade" (in Spanish). Yahoo!. 2008-07-31. Retrieved 2008-10-08.
  4. ↑ Sebastián Contursi (2008-06-08). "La época dorada" (in Spanish). ESPN Deportes. Retrieved 2008-08-15.
  5. 1 2 José A. Sánchez Fournier (2008-10-06). "Deportes". En un dos por tres (in Spanish). Puerto Rico: El Nuevo Día. p.97
  6. ↑ "Miguel Cotto beats Sergio Martinez to become first Puerto Rican to win four weight division world championships". Daily Mail UK.
  7. ↑ "Amanda-Serrano ties Cotto, demolishes Lazar for WBO title". BoxingScene.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Fonseca et al., p.314
  9. 1 2 3 4 Fonseca et al., p.315
  10. ↑ Fonseca et al., pp.14–16
  11. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.17
  12. 1 2 Fonseca et al., p.317
  13. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.320
  14. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.326
  15. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.328
  16. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.20
  17. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.31
  18. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.39
  19. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.50
  20. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.59
  21. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.95
  22. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.70
  23. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.86
  24. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.104
  25. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.122
  26. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.134
  27. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.151
  28. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.164
  29. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.180
  30. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.198
  31. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.210
  32. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.220
  33. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.224
  34. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.240
  35. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.252
  36. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.263
  37. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.275
  38. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.293
  39. ↑ Fonseca et al., p.282
  40. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 "Los campeones mundiales boricuas" (in Spanish). Primera Hora. Archived from the original on 2007-10-29. Retrieved 2008-10-07.
  41. ↑ Luis Santiago Arce (2008-01-05). Rumbo a la Titomanía (in Spanish). El Nuevo Día.
  42. ↑ Rey Colón (2009-03-31). ‘Carita’ López en la lista de campeones boricuas (in Spanish). El Vocero.
  43. ↑ "A defender en casa" (in Spanish). ESPN Deportes. 2003-08-28. Retrieved 2008-12-27.
  44. ↑ Fiona Manning (2003-05-09). "Ivan Calderon: Puerto Rico's New World Champion". La Prensa San Diego. Retrieved 2008-10-07.
  45. ↑ José A. Sánchez Fournier (2007-08-26). Calderón vs Cázares: Doble Correa para el boricua (in Spanish). El Nuevo Día. pp. 118–119.
  46. ↑ "Siaca takes Mundine's crown". BBC. 2004-05-05. Retrieved 2008-10-07.
  47. ↑ Don Steinberg (2008-07-25). "Las peleas más importantes" (in Spanish). ESPN Deportes. Retrieved 2008-12-27.
  48. ↑ Dan Rafael (2006-12-02). "Cotto crushes Quintana in five". ESPN. Retrieved 2008-12-27.
  49. ↑ Clifton Brown (2007-02-10). "BOXING; Every Picture Tells a Story". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-12-27.
  50. ↑ Dan Rafael (2006-10-30). "Scorecard: Cintron gets title; Julio wins but loses luster". ESPN. Retrieved 2008-10-07.
  51. ↑ Carlos González (2008-02-13). ""El Indio" Quintana: "Gané por mí y por mi familia"" (in Spanish). Primera Hora. Archived from the original on 2014-04-21. Retrieved 2014-04-21.
  52. ↑ Carlos González (2008-06-07). "Fulminante Juanma" (in Spanish). Primera Hora. Archived from the original on 2014-04-20.
  53. ↑ Mark Vester (2009-03-14). "Martinez Knocks Cook Out in Four, Captures WBO title". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 2009-03-14.
  54. ↑ Esteban Pagán Rivera (2009-03-29). ""Carita López" logró su ansiado título mundial" (in Spanish). Primera Hora. Archived from the original on 2014-04-21. Retrieved 2009-03-29.
  55. ↑ Mark Vester (2010-02-27). "Wilfredo Vazquez Jr. Knocks Out Marvin Sonsona in Four". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 2010-02-27.
  56. ↑ Dan Rafael (2012-03-25). "Garcia outlasts Erik Morales to win title". ESPN. Retrieved 2012-03-25.
  57. ↑ Thomas Gerbasi (2011-06-10). "Ready Rico Preps For First World Title Shot With Shimoda". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 2011-07-10.
  58. ↑ Lem Satterfield (2011-07-09). "Rico Ramos Knocks Out Akifumi Shimoda, Wins Title". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 2011-07-10.
  59. ↑ "Pedraza wins IBO super featherweight belt". FightNews.com. 2014-03-22. Retrieved 2014-06-14.
  60. ↑ "Women's Boxing: Melissa Del Valle Biography". Women Boxing Archive Network. Retrieved 2011-09-11.
  61. ↑ "Women's Boxing: Ada Velez Biography". Women Boxing Archive Network. Retrieved 2011-09-11.
  62. ↑ Ken Hissner (2011-07-20). "Melissa Hernandez - 4 Time World Champion!". Doghouseboxing.com. Retrieved 2011-12-17.
  63. ↑ "Amanda Serrano". Boxrec.

Sources

Notes

Men's titlists

I^ :Professional boxing record for Sixto Escobar from BoxRec
II^ :Professional boxing record for Carlos Ortiz from BoxRec
III^ :Professional boxing record for Jose Torres from BoxRec
IV^ :Professional boxing record for Angel Espada from BoxRec
V^ :Professional boxing record for Alfredo Escalera from BoxRec
VI^ :Professional boxing record for Samuel Serrano from BoxRec
VII^ :Professional boxing record for Wilfred Benitez from BoxRec
VIII^ :Professional boxing record for Esteban De Jesus from BoxRec
IX^ :Professional boxing record for Wilfredo Gomez from BoxRec
X^ :Professional boxing record for Julian Solis from BoxRec
XI^ :Professional boxing record for Carlos De Leon from BoxRec
XII^ :Professional boxing record for Ossie Ocasio from BoxRec
XIII^ :Professional boxing record for Juan La Porte from BoxRec
XIV^ :Professional boxing record for Edwin Rosario from BoxRec
XV^ :Professional boxing record for Hector Camacho from BoxRec
XVI^ :Professional boxing record for Mark Medal from BoxRec
XVII^ :Professional boxing record for Harry Arroyo from BoxRec
XVIII^ :Professional boxing record for Victor Callejas from BoxRec
XIX^ :Professional boxing record for Carlos Santos from BoxRec
XX^ :Professional boxing record for Antonio Rivera from BoxRec
XXI^ :Professional boxing record for Wilfredo Vazquez from BoxRec
XXII^ :Professional boxing record for Jose Ruiz from BoxRec
XXIII^ :Professional boxing record for John John Molina from BoxRec
XXIV^ :Professional boxing record for Jose De Jesus from BoxRec
XXV^ :Professional boxing record for Juan Nazario from BoxRec
XXVI^ :Professional boxing record for Orlando Fernandez from BoxRec
XXVII^ :Professional boxing record for Rafael Del Valle from BoxRec
XXVIII^ :Professional boxing record for Josue Camacho from BoxRec
XXIX^ :Professional boxing record for Daniel Jimenez from BoxRec
XXX^ :Professional boxing record for Felix Trinidad from BoxRec
XXXI^ :Professional boxing record for Kevin Kelley from BoxRec
XXXII^ :Professional boxing record for Alex Sanchez from BoxRec
XXXIII^ :Professional boxing record for Jake Rodriguez from BoxRec
XXXIV^ :Professional boxing record for Sammy Fuentes from BoxRec
XXXV^ :Professional boxing record for Frank Toledo from BoxRec
XXXVI^ :Professional boxing record for Jose Antonio Rivera from BoxRec
XXXVII^ :Professional boxing record for Lou Del Valle from BoxRec
XXXVIII^ :Professional boxing record for Eric Morel from BoxRec
XXXIX^ :Professional boxing record for Daniel Santos from BoxRec
XL^ :Professional boxing record for Nelson Dieppa from BoxRec
XLI^ :Professional boxing record for John Ruiz from BoxRec
XLII^ :Professional boxing record for Ivan Calderon from BoxRec
XLIII^ :Professional boxing record for Manny Siaca from BoxRec
XLIV^ :Professional boxing record for Miguel Cotto from BoxRec
XLV^ :Professional boxing record for Luis Collazo from BoxRec
XLVI^ :Professional boxing record for Kermit Cintron from BoxRec
XLVII^ :Professional boxing record for Carlos Quintana from BoxRec
XLVIII^ :Professional boxing record for Juan Manuel Lopez from BoxRec
XLIX^ :Professional boxing record for Roman Martinez from BoxRec
L^ :Professional boxing record for Jose Lopez from BoxRec
LI^ :Professional boxing record for Wilfredo Vazquez Jr from BoxRec
LII^ :Professional boxing record for Danny Garcia from BoxRec
LIII^ :Professional boxing record for Rico Ramos from BoxRec
LIV^ :Professional boxing record for Jayson Velez from BoxRec
LV^ :Professional boxing record for Janiel Rivera from BoxRec
LVI^ :Professional boxing record for Jose Pedraza from BoxRec

Women's titlists

A^ :Professional boxing record for Melissa Del Valle from BoxRec
B^ :Professional boxing record for Ada Velez from BoxRec
C^ :Professional boxing record for Melissa Hernandez from BoxRec
D^ :Professional boxing record for Amanda Serrano from BoxRec

External links


Puerto Ricans in the International Boxing Hall of Fame
Number Name Year inducted Notes
1 Carlos Ortíz 1991 World Jr. Welterweight Champion 1959 June 12- 1960, September 1, WBA Lightweight Champion 1962 Apr 21 – 1965 Apr 10, WBC Lightweight Champion 1963 Apr 7 – 1965 Apr 10, WBC Lightweight Champion 1965 Nov 13 – 1968 Jun 29.
2 Wilfred Benítez 1994 The youngest world champion in boxing history. WBA Light Welterweight Champion 1976 Mar 6 – 1977, WBC Welterweight Champion 1979 Jan 14 – 1979 Nov 30, WBC Light Middleweight Champion.
3 Wilfredo Gómez 1995 WBC Super Bantamweight Champion 1977 May 21 – 1983, WBC Featherweight Champion 1984 Mar 31 – 1984 Dec 8, WBA Super Featherweight Champion 1985 May 19 – 1986 May 24.
4 José "Chegui" Torres 1997 Won a silver medal in the junior middleweight at the 1956 Olympic Games. Undisputed Light Heavyweight Champion 1965 Mar 30 – 1966 Dec 16
5 Sixto Escobar 2002 Puerto Rico's first boxing champion. World Bantamweight Champion 15 Nov 1935– 23 Sep 1937, World Bantamweight Champion 20 Feb 1938– Oct 1939
6 Edwin Rosario 2006 Ranks #36 on the list of "100 Greatest Punchers of All Time." according to Ring Magazine. WBC Lightweight Champion 1983 May 1 – 1984 Nov 3, WBA Lightweight Champion 1986 Sep 26 – 1987 Nov 21, WBA Lightweight Champion 199 Jul 9 – 1990 Apr 4, WBA Light Welterweight Champion 1991 Jun 14 – 1992 Apr 10.
7 Pedro Montañez 2007 92 wins out of 103 fights. Never held a title.
8 Joe Cortez 2011 The first Puerto Rican boxing referee to be inducted into the Boxing Hall of Fame
9 Herbert "Cocoa Kid" Hardwick 2012 Member of boxing's "Black Murderers' Row". World Colored Welterweight Championship - June 11, 1937 to August 22, 1938; World Colored Middleweight Championship - January 11, 1940 until the title went extinct in the 1940s; World Colored Middleweight Championship - January 15, 1943 until the title went extinct in the 1940s
10 Félix "Tito" Trinidad 2014 Captured the IBF welterweight crown in his 20th pro bout. Won the WBA light middleweight title from David Reid in March 2000 and later that year unified titles with a 12th-round knockout against IBF champ Fernando Vargas. In 2001 became a three-division champion.
11 Héctor "Macho" Camacho 2016 First boxer to be recognized as a septuple champion in history. WBC Super Featherweight Championship - August 7, 1983 – 1984, WBC Lightweight Championship - August 10, 1985 – 1987, WBO Light Welterweight Champion - March 6, 1989 – February 23, 1991, WBO Light Welterweight Champion - May 18, 1991–1992.

     = Indicates the person is no longer alive

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 10/24/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.