Miguel Canto
Encyclopedia
Miguel Angel Canto Solis (born January 30, 1948 in Mérida, Yucatán
) is a former world boxing
champion from Mexico.
s in most of his fights. Proof of this is that he only won fifteen fights by knockout, out of more than seventy professional bouts. He was a defensive expert who many describe as a Mexican
Willie Pep
.
Canto began his professional boxing career on February 5, 1969. He became one of those rare cases in boxing, like Alexis Argüello
, Henry Armstrong
, Bernard Hopkins
, Victor Luvi Callejas and Wilfredo Vazquez
, where a boxer loses his first fight and goes on to become a world champion. He lost that day to Raul Hernandez, in Canto's hometown of Mérida, by a knockout in round three.
After winning his next four fights, including a rematch victory over Tarcisio Gomez, he was given his first world title try, when he fought Betulio González
in Maracaibo
, Venezuela
, for the WBC
world Flyweight title. In what was also his first fight abroad, he was outpointed by the equally legendary Gonzalez, considered by many to be Venezuela's greatest fighter of all time, on August 4 of 1973.
in Sendai
. Canto defeated Oguma by a fifteen round decision to claim the WBC title and vacant The Ring
title. His dream of becoming a world champion finally realized, Canto was a busy champion, mixing several non-title bouts with his title defenses. In his next fight, he beat Espinal in a rematch by a ten round decision. In his first title defense, he avenged his loss to Betulio Gonzalez by a fifteen round decision. On August 23rd of that year, he defeated OPBF
champion Jiro Takada by 11th round TKO. Following that win, Canto faced Espinal for a third time and retained his title once again by a fifteen round decision. On May 15, 1976, he scored a win over former champion Susumu Hanagata. Canto eventually became a traveling world champion.
For his fifth title defense, he returned to Venezuela and defeated Gonzalez for the second time in their trilogy by a fifteen round decision. One month later, he retained the crown against Orlando Javierto, once again by fifteen round decision, in Los Angeles, California
.
On April 24, 1977, he returned to Venezuela for a third time, retaining the title against Reyes Arnal by a fifteen round decision in Caracas. Two months later, he beat Kimio Furesawa by a fifteen round decision in Tokyo. Then, he and Martin Vargas
fought the first of their two bouts: on September 17, 1977, Canto outpointed Vargas in his hometown of Mérida.
It was Canto's turn to travel to Vargas' hometown of Santiago, Chile
, for their rematch, held on November 30 of the same year. Canto once again retained the titles with a fifteen round decision.
In 1978, Canto retained his title three times, including two rematches with Shoji Oguma, both of them held in Japan, and another fifteen round points win over Facomrom Vibonchai, in a fight held at Houston, Texas
.
By this time, Canto's name had become a household name all over Latin America, thanks in part to Ring En Español
, which gave Canto's fights much coverage.
On February 10 of 1979, he retained his titles for a division record fourteenth time against a future world champion, Antonio Avelar
, by a fifteen round decision.
On March 18, his reign came to an end, when he lost a fifteen round decision to Chan Hee Park
in South Korea
. On September 9 of that same year, he tried to recover his titles from Park in a rematch, but, after fifteen rounds, the fight ended in a draw.
Canto's career took a downward spiral after that fight. He won his following three fights, including wins against Olympic
Bronze medalist Orlando Maldonado
of Puerto Rico
and former champion Sung-Jun Kim. In his 70th career fight, he lost to future world champion Gabriel Bernal
. Canto avenged his loss to Bernal in his next fight, but lost the remaining three fights of his career by knockout.
After his final loss to Rodolfo Ortega on July 24, 1982, Canto retired from boxing for good. He had a record of 61 wins, 9 losses and 4 draws (ties), with 15 knockout wins.
Mérida, Yucatán
Mérida is the capital and largest city of the Mexican state of Yucatán and the Yucatán Peninsula. It is located in the northwest part of the state, about from the Gulf of Mexico coast...
) is a former world boxing
Boxing
Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...
champion from Mexico.
Boxing Life
Contrary to many Mexican boxers, Canto was not a "slam-bang" type of boxer ("Slam-Bang" is a term that is used to describe boxers whose fights are usually action-packed; Mexican boxers are usually stereotyped as "slam-bangers"). He enjoyed using boxing techniques and knowledge instead of trying to score knockoutKnockout
A knockout is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts, Karate and others sports involving striking...
s in most of his fights. Proof of this is that he only won fifteen fights by knockout, out of more than seventy professional bouts. He was a defensive expert who many describe as a Mexican
Mexican people
Mexican people refers to all persons from Mexico, a multiethnic country in North America, and/or who identify with the Mexican cultural and/or national identity....
Willie Pep
Willie Pep
Guglielmo Papaleo was an American boxer who was better known as Willie Pep. Pep boxed a total of 1956 rounds in the 241 bouts during his 26 year career, a considerable number of rounds and fights even for a fighter of his era. His final record was 229-11-1 with 65 knockouts...
.
Canto began his professional boxing career on February 5, 1969. He became one of those rare cases in boxing, like Alexis Argüello
Alexis Argüello
Alexis Argüello , also known by the stage name El Flaco Explosivo , was a Nicaraguan professional boxer and politician...
, Henry Armstrong
Henry Armstrong
Henry Jackson Jr. was a world boxing champion who fought under the name Henry Armstrong. He is universally regarded as one of the greatest fighters of all time by many boxing critics and fellow professionals.Henry Jr...
, Bernard Hopkins
Bernard Hopkins
Bernard Hopkins Jr, known as The Executioner is an American boxer and the current Ring Magazine and WBC light heavyweight champion...
, Victor Luvi Callejas and Wilfredo Vazquez
Wilfredo Vázquez
Wilfredo Vázquez is a retired Puerto Rican professional boxer. He is a former World Champion at three different weights, Bantamweight, Super bantamweight and Featherweight.-Early life and amateur career:...
, where a boxer loses his first fight and goes on to become a world champion. He lost that day to Raul Hernandez, in Canto's hometown of Mérida, by a knockout in round three.
First Win
His first win came against Pedro Martinez, on May 5, 1969, by a four round decision, also at Mérida. Canto lost his next fight, but a streak of seven undefeated fights (he went 5-0-2, with 2 knockouts during that streak), led him to fight Vicente Pool on May 27 of 1970, for the Yucatán state Flyweight title. Canto won his first professional belt when he outpointed Pool over twelve rounds. In his first defense, he retained the crown, with a twelve round decision over Jose Luis Cetina. After losing his next bout, a ten round, non title bout against Tarcisio Gomez, on a decision, he went on to win 21 bouts in a row, including his first bout outside Mérida (a two round knockout of Pedro Martinez in Cansahcab, Mexico), and a win over Constantino Garcia on January 22, 1972, by twelve round decision, to claim the Mexican Flyweight title. On January 31, 1973, he fought to a ten round draw (tie) against perennial contender Ignacio Espinal.After winning his next four fights, including a rematch victory over Tarcisio Gomez, he was given his first world title try, when he fought Betulio González
Betulio González
Betulio Segundo González is a former boxer from Venezuela, who is considered a national hero in Venezuela. He is considered by many to be Venezuela's greatest world champion in boxing history...
in Maracaibo
Maracaibo
Maracaibo is a city and municipality located in northwestern Venezuela off the western coast of the Lake Maracaibo. It is the second-largest city in the country after the national capital Caracas and the capital of Zulia state...
, Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
, for the WBC
World Boxing Council
The World Boxing Council was initially established by 11 countries: the United States, Argentina, United Kingdom, France, Mexico, Philippines, Panama, Chile, Peru, Venezuela and Brazil plus Puerto Rico, met in Mexico City on February 14, 1963, upon invitation of the then President of Mexico, Adolfo...
world Flyweight title. In what was also his first fight abroad, he was outpointed by the equally legendary Gonzalez, considered by many to be Venezuela's greatest fighter of all time, on August 4 of 1973.
WBC World Flyweight Champion Reign
Canto won six more fights, including two Mexican title defenses, and on January 8, 1975, he faced WBC world Flyweight champion Shoji OgumaShoji Oguma
Shoji Oguma was a Japanese southpaw boxer at Flyweight.- Professional career :Oguma turned pro in 1970 and in 1974 won the WBC Flyweight Title by winning a split decision over Betulio González. He lost the title three months later in his first defense against Miguel Canto...
in Sendai
Sendai, Miyagi
is the capital city of Miyagi Prefecture, Japan, and the largest city in the Tōhoku Region. In 2005, the city had a population of one million, and was one of Japan's 19 designated cities...
. Canto defeated Oguma by a fifteen round decision to claim the WBC title and vacant The Ring
The Ring (magazine)
The Ring is an American boxing magazine that was first published in 1922 as a boxing and wrestling magazine. As the sporting legitimacy of professional wrestling came more into question, The Ring shifted to becoming exclusively a boxing oriented publication...
title. His dream of becoming a world champion finally realized, Canto was a busy champion, mixing several non-title bouts with his title defenses. In his next fight, he beat Espinal in a rematch by a ten round decision. In his first title defense, he avenged his loss to Betulio Gonzalez by a fifteen round decision. On August 23rd of that year, he defeated OPBF
Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation
The Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation is a professional boxing organization that sanctions title fights in the Asian and Pacific region.-History:The OPBF was formed in 1954 by the Japanese, Korean, and Filipino boxing commissions...
champion Jiro Takada by 11th round TKO. Following that win, Canto faced Espinal for a third time and retained his title once again by a fifteen round decision. On May 15, 1976, he scored a win over former champion Susumu Hanagata. Canto eventually became a traveling world champion.
For his fifth title defense, he returned to Venezuela and defeated Gonzalez for the second time in their trilogy by a fifteen round decision. One month later, he retained the crown against Orlando Javierto, once again by fifteen round decision, in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
.
On April 24, 1977, he returned to Venezuela for a third time, retaining the title against Reyes Arnal by a fifteen round decision in Caracas. Two months later, he beat Kimio Furesawa by a fifteen round decision in Tokyo. Then, he and Martin Vargas
Martín Vargas
Martín Vargas Fuentes is a former boxer from Chile, who represented his native country at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, West Germany. He attempted to obtain Chile's first boxing world title four times...
fought the first of their two bouts: on September 17, 1977, Canto outpointed Vargas in his hometown of Mérida.
It was Canto's turn to travel to Vargas' hometown of Santiago, Chile
Santiago, Chile
Santiago , also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile, and the center of its largest conurbation . It is located in the country's central valley, at an elevation of above mean sea level...
, for their rematch, held on November 30 of the same year. Canto once again retained the titles with a fifteen round decision.
In 1978, Canto retained his title three times, including two rematches with Shoji Oguma, both of them held in Japan, and another fifteen round points win over Facomrom Vibonchai, in a fight held at Houston, Texas
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
.
By this time, Canto's name had become a household name all over Latin America, thanks in part to Ring En Español
Ring En Español
The Ring En Español was a Spanish version of boxing publication The Ring magazine. Ring En Español was published from 1977 to 1985. Originally published from Caracas, it moved in 1981 to Miami, to Editorial America , the same editorial house that oversaw the production of Cosmopolitans Spanish...
, which gave Canto's fights much coverage.
On February 10 of 1979, he retained his titles for a division record fourteenth time against a future world champion, Antonio Avelar
Antonio Avelar
Jose Antonio Rodríguez Avelar was a Mexican boxer in the Flyweight division. He is a former NABF and the WBC Flyweight Champion.-Professional career:...
, by a fifteen round decision.
On March 18, his reign came to an end, when he lost a fifteen round decision to Chan Hee Park
Chan Hee Park
Chan-Hee Park is a former South Korean boxer, who was WBC world champion in the Flyweight division.-Amateur career:Park competed at the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games as a Light Flyweight for South Korea...
in South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
. On September 9 of that same year, he tried to recover his titles from Park in a rematch, but, after fifteen rounds, the fight ended in a draw.
Canto's career took a downward spiral after that fight. He won his following three fights, including wins against Olympic
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
Bronze medalist Orlando Maldonado
Orlando Maldonado
Orlando Maldonado is a retired boxer from Puerto Rico, who won the bronze medal in the men's light flyweight division at the 1976 Summer Olympics...
of Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
and former champion Sung-Jun Kim. In his 70th career fight, he lost to future world champion Gabriel Bernal
Gabriel Bernal
Gabriel Bernal was a retired WBC Flyweight Champion. He held the title for 6 months in 1984.-Pro career:...
. Canto avenged his loss to Bernal in his next fight, but lost the remaining three fights of his career by knockout.
After his final loss to Rodolfo Ortega on July 24, 1982, Canto retired from boxing for good. He had a record of 61 wins, 9 losses and 4 draws (ties), with 15 knockout wins.