By Dan Morley
WHEN you talk to young boxing fans today, Canelo Alvarez is the name that comes to mind when it comes to the great Mexican boxing dominance of all time. Having watched Alvarez go from a teenage boomer to the star of the sport, compiling a stellar resume, multiple world titles and an undisputed claim to the super middleweight division, it’s easy to see why so many feel this way.
However, Canelo was raised in a country rich in boxing tradition, a country that has dedicated itself to the sport and dominated it in a way that few other countries can match.
The boxing tradition in Mexico is so ingrained that the ‘Mexican Style’ has become a popular, fan-favorite way to defeat your opponent. Mexican boxers embody courage, bravery and spirit. Combined with devastating body shots, slick defensive techniques, iron chins and never-ending stamina, many of Mexico’s great boxers have conquered every contest with brutal intensity.
Canelo’s achievements over the past decade have been nothing short of incredible, placing him among the greatest of all time. 18 world champions, superfights with Golovkin, Mayweather, Cotto and Kovalev, to name a few, and a dominating 168lbs career to add to his three other world titles, rival any great Mexican. However, it’s easy to forget how many great Mexicans paved the way for the red-headed superstar and in doing so, created their own extraordinary feats.
In recent years, Juan Manuel Marquez, Erik Morales and Marco Antonio Barrera have ignited the sport with some of the most intense and dramatic fights ever seen. Returning to the dynamic, hyper-talented Ricardo Lopez – just about the most complete fighter history has ever produced. His unbeaten record of 52 fights perfectly demonstrates the skill and intelligence behind his dominance in the smaller weight classes.
Carlos Zarate’s ferocious punches crushed opponents like no other, amassing a world-class record of 52-0 (51 KOs) before tasting defeat at the hands of Wilfredo Gomez. The list is endless, from the criminally underrated left-hander Vicente Saldivar to Baby Arizmendi, who wrestled the immobile Henry Armstrong in the 1930s.
Yet, even with all these names – there were three men who, at the time, held the title of Mexico’s ‘Greatest Boxer of All Time’. They were the three GOATs of Mexican Boxing.
3. Ruben Olivares – 89-13-3 79KOs
Olivares honed a charismatic personality and entertaining style that made him a beloved and revered Mexican champion. ‘Mister Knockout’ is the greatest Mexican boxer of all time. Ranked alongside Eder Jofre as the unofficial ‘Greatest Bantamweight Ever’, this Mexican KO machine dominated the most prolific period in bantamweight history. In his first 62 fights, he compiled a perfect record of 61-0-1 58KOs.
Won the title against Lionel Rose in the 54 weight classth fighting via KO, the winning streak also included victories over greats such as Takao Sakurai, Alan Rudkin, Chucho Castillo and Kazuyoshi Kanazawa. The latter fight produced 13 of the most brutal fightsth round in history. After losing the rematch to Castillo, Olivares regained the crown in the rubber match, successfully defending it several times, including a notable victory over world champion Efren Torres.
A move up to featherweight champion, with wins over champions Bobby Chacon, Jose Luis Ramirez and contender Walter Seeley, cemented his profile. In the years that followed, he lost to the likes of Alexis Arguello, Danny Lopez and Eusebio Pedroza.
A short, stocky puncher, Olivares overwhelmed his opponents with pressure, crushing them with punches that carried the full weight of his body. His style made for exciting fights, often beating his opponents into submission, ending a legendary career with 79 KOs from 89 wins.
All of this was achieved alongside a partying lifestyle, where tequila was considered as great an enemy as any rival.
Ruben Olivares
2. Salvador Sanchez – 44-1-1 32KOs
Salvador Sanchez left such an indelible mark on the sport in his short career that many experts still consider him to be the most complete boxer ever. A tragic and gruesome death at the age of 23 prevented Sanchez from reaching his limitless potential. However, with his incredible achievements and in-ring prowess over 46 fights, there is no denying that he is one of the greatest boxers of all time.
Salvador is a rhythm boxer’s dream, constantly bouncing on his toes but still ready and able to stand and strike with pinpoint power at any moment. A smooth counterpuncher who stalks his opponents with relentless aggression, Sanchez will constantly make you miss while tearing you apart with his flipping punches and combinations.
As the intense bouts continued, his energy increased and his focus became sharper. He had the physical and mental stamina to rival the great featherweight champion Henry Armstrong. He was able to take a beating, although punches often missed his shaggy hair as he spun around unprotected opponents with a new angle of attack.
His style isn’t his only selling point. More impressive is the level of competition he consistently destroys with it. A fresh-faced 21-year-old Sanchez challenged seasoned Hall of Famer Danny Lopez for the world crown. Lopez, a formidable puncher, held a 42-3 39KO record. In three years, the featherweight champion had retained his title eight times, all by knockout, coming into the fight on an impressive 18-fight winning streak, including victories over Ruben Olivares and Chucho Castillo.
Sanchez ruthlessly outboxed Lopez in a climactic counter-punching display en route to a 13th-round TKO. After defeating Ruben Castillo, a man who had also faced Chavez and Arguello, Sanchez once again stopped Lopez. That same year, he also defeated future world champion Juan Laporte.
An exciting fight with fellow countryman ‘Little-Giant’ Wilfredo Gomez, 32-0 32KO at the time, would give Sanchez his biggest KO win to date. His last fight perfectly summed up his iconic stamina, knocking out future Ghanaian great Azumah Nelson in the 15th round.
During his three-year reign as featherweight champion, Sanchez earned four KO victories over top Hall of Famers and defeated multiple world champions and notable contenders.
Salvador Sanchez attempts to tame Azumah Nelson
1. Julio Cesar Chavez – 107-6-2 86KOs
Chavez, the greatest pressure fighter of recent decades, was the perfect embodiment of ‘Mexican Style’ boxing, drawing record crowds of 120,000 Mexican fans to his biggest fights. His dominance across three weight divisions produced the greatest unbeaten streak of the modern era, a shocking 89-0-1 77KO record.
In this 90-fight streak, Chavez crushed everything in his path, amassing a stellar champion’s resume in his win column. The way he brutally defeated in-form multi-division champion Edwin Rosario in an 11-round masterclass was in striking style and demonstrated every trait Chavez had mastered in close combat.
His meticulous footwork knocks you out, with both feet always planted at the same time, creating perfect balance. The balance allows for easy head movement to avoid any punches thrown by his opponent while being quick allowing each punch to maximize power.
Up close, he was a master of head position, elbow and shoulder defense, and a steady stream of punches to the torso and head that crushed bone. The pressure never let up, and when you did hit Chavez with the occasional well-placed blow, it was absorbed by an iron chin and only served to intensify his own attacks.
In a super fight with the agile, skillful Meldrick Taylor – Chavez’s courage and determination were on display. On the cards, it was necessary to knock out his opponent to win, the cumulative damage that this style caused Taylor finally sealed the victory with just three seconds left in the match.
Over the course of 90 fights, in three weight divisions, Chavez defeated notable world champions Roger Mayweather, Rocky Lockridge, Juan Laporte, Edwin Rosario, Rafael Limon, Jose Luis Ramirez, Meldrick Taylor, Lonnie Smith, Hector Camacho and Greg Haugen. Subsequent victories over notable contenders Mario Martinez, Sammy Fuentes and Danilo Cabrera further solidified his record.
A controversial draw to Pernell Whitaker and losses to Oscar De La Hoya, Kostya Tszyu and Frankie Randall, among others, rounded out Chavez’s final career record to an astonishing 107-6-2 86KO. His 31 wins in 37 world title fights remains the world record for most fights and victories.
Referee Richard Steele officiates the IBF and WBC welterweight title fight between Meldrick Taylor and Julio Cesar Chavez on March 17, 1990 at the Las Vegas Hilton in Winchester, Nevada. (Focus on Sport/Getty Images)
