Rubén Olivares
Encyclopedia
Rubén Olivares is a former Mexican
boxer
and current member of the Boxing Hall of Fame. A native of Mexico City
, Olivares was a world champion multiple times, and considered by many as the greatest bantamweight
champion of all time. He was very popular among Mexicans, many of whom considered him to be Mexico's greatest fighter for a long period. Olivares also had cameo appearances on Mexican movies, and he participated in more than 100 professional bouts.
Freddy García in round one at Cuernavaca. With that knockout win, a streak of 22 knockout wins in a row had been set off. During that streak, he beat Tony Gallegos, Monito Aguilar and Antonio Leal, among others. It was on March 8, 1967, that Felipe González became the first one to go the distance with Olivares, when Olivares defeated him by a decision in 10 at Mexicali
. Then, on July 29 of that same year, Olivares had the first spot on his record, Germán Bastidas holding him to a ten round draw.
He had back to back rematches with González and Bastidas, knocking González out in round six on November 19, and Bastidas in round four on January 28, 1968. Then came a step up in opponent quality, when he met former world champion Salvatore Burruni
in Mexico City. Olivares knocked Burruni out in three rounds. After defeating Manuel Arnal by a disqualification in six, he set off on another knockout win streak, this one reaching 21 in a row. One of the fights in that streak was against Bernabé Fernández, in Los Angeles
. Olivares won his first fight abroad that day, beating Fernández in round three. On May 23, 1969, he defeated Olympic gold medalist Takao Sakurai
.
, who was defending his world title that day, at the Inglewood Forum. According to boxing book The Ring: Boxing In The 20th Century, the forum's director, fearing a riot like the one that happened after Rose had beaten Chucho Castillo
there might happen again, went to Olivares' locker room to express his worries, and Olivares guaranteed he wouldn't let that happen again. Olivares became world Bantamweight champion by knocking Rose out in round five on that day, August 22 of 1969.
After beating Alan Rudkin
in a title defense and a couple other fighters in non-title bouts, Olivares started his trilogy of bouts with arch-enemy and countryman Castillo. Olivares' knockout streak ended in that fight, but he won the first installment of the Olivares-Castillo rivalry after rising off the canvas to score a 15 round decision. After three more non-title wins, Olivares and Castillo met again, on October 16 of 1970. This time, Olivares suffered a cut in round one, and the fight was stopped in round 14, Castillo the winner and new world Bantamweight champion by a technical knockout. This was Olivares' first loss in his 62 fight career.
After one more win, Olivares and Castillo had their rubber match, on April 3 of 1971. Olivares was knocked down once, but he rose to regain the world Featherweight title in the last fight between him and Castillo with another 15 round decision. Then, he had six more knockouts in a row, including one in a non-title bout in Nicaragua
, one in Tokyo while defending the crown against Kazuyoshi Kanazawa (in round 11), one against former champion Efren Torres
, and one against Jesus Pimentel
, also in round 11.
On March 19, 1972, Olivares lost the world's Bantamweight title to another countryman, Rafael Herrera
, by a knockout in round eight. After defeating Godfrey Stevens in Monterrey, he and Herrera met again, with Herrera the winner by a 10 round decision.
. On June 23 of 1973, he met future champion Bobby Chacón
in the first installment of another trilogy of fights. What was contested for the NABF featherweight title, ended in round nine when Olivares knocked Chacón out. In his next fight, the 78th of his career, he suffered an upset, when unknown Art Hafey knocked him out in five rounds, but then he set off on a string of three more wins in a row, including a decision over Hafey in a rematch, before fighting for the WBA
's vacant world Featherweight championship.
on November 23 of that year, losing the world title by a knockout in round 13. It must be noted that he was winning this fight before he gassed and was eventually stopped.
's world Featherweight champion. Olivares won the fight by a knockout in round two, to become world champion for the fourth time. This time, however, he also lost the title in his first defense, beaten by Ghana
's David "Poison" Kotei
, who became that nation's first world boxing champion ever by winning a 15 round decision against Olivares. A seven round knockout defeat at the hands of future world champion Danny "Little Red" López
followed.
Olivares won three fights in 1976 without losing one, including victories over world title challengers Fernando Cabanela and José Cervantes, both of them from Colombia
. In 1977, Olivares and Chacón boxed the final bout of their trilogy, and this time Chacón came out the winner, by a 10 round decision. But in 1978, Olivares found what would be the beginning of his last hurrah in his 93rd bout, as he knocked out the future 2 time world Lightweight champion José Luis Ramírez
in two rounds at Ciudad Obregón
, and he followed that win with wins over Shig Fukuyama and Isaac Vega.
After drawing in ten rounds with Guillermo Morales on April 22, 1979, he received what would turn out to be his last world title try: On July 21 of that year, he was knocked out in 12 rounds by WBA world Featherweight champion Eusebio Pedroza
in Houston
, for the WBA Featherweight title.
For the next eight years, he fought sporadically and with mixed success, until he was able to walk away from professional boxing in 1988.
came onto the scene, Olivares was the boxer most fans recognized as Mexico's greatest boxer ever. He became a mainstream star there, and he reportedly had friends in the Mexican entertainment world. In addition, he could be seen fairly often doing cameos in Mexican comedy movies
. He is still considered a national hero there.
He had a record of 88 wins, 13 losses and 3 draws, with 78 wins by knockout. His knockout winning streaks of 22 and 21 in a row qualify as two of the longest knockout winning streaks in the history of boxing. Similarly, his 78 knockout wins make him a member of an exclusive group of boxers to have won 50 or more fights by knockout. In 2003, The Ring
placed him at number twelve in their list of the greatest punchers of all time.
Olivares is a member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame
.
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....
boxer
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...
and current member of the Boxing Hall of Fame. A native of Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
, Olivares was a world champion multiple times, and considered by many as the greatest bantamweight
Bantamweight
Bantamweight is usually a class in boxing for boxers who weigh above 115 pounds and up to 118 pounds . However, in Mixed Martial Arts it is 134-136 pounds . Wrestling also has similar weight classes including bantamweight...
champion of all time. He was very popular among Mexicans, many of whom considered him to be Mexico's greatest fighter for a long period. Olivares also had cameo appearances on Mexican movies, and he participated in more than 100 professional bouts.
Professional career
Olivares made his pro debut at the age of 17, by knocking outKnockout
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...
Freddy García in round one at Cuernavaca. With that knockout win, a streak of 22 knockout wins in a row had been set off. During that streak, he beat Tony Gallegos, Monito Aguilar and Antonio Leal, among others. It was on March 8, 1967, that Felipe González became the first one to go the distance with Olivares, when Olivares defeated him by a decision in 10 at Mexicali
Mexicali
Mexicali is the capital of the State of Baja California, seat of the Municipality of Mexicali, and 2nd largest city in Baja California. The City of Mexicali has a population of 689,775, according to the 2010 census, while the population of the entire metropolitan area reaches 936,826.The city...
. Then, on July 29 of that same year, Olivares had the first spot on his record, Germán Bastidas holding him to a ten round draw.
He had back to back rematches with González and Bastidas, knocking González out in round six on November 19, and Bastidas in round four on January 28, 1968. Then came a step up in opponent quality, when he met former world champion Salvatore Burruni
Salvatore Burruni
Salvatore Burruni , was an Italian flyweight and bantamweight boxer who fought between 1957 to 1969. Burruni was born in Alghero , and fought mostly in Europe.-Amateur career:...
in Mexico City. Olivares knocked Burruni out in three rounds. After defeating Manuel Arnal by a disqualification in six, he set off on another knockout win streak, this one reaching 21 in a row. One of the fights in that streak was against Bernabé Fernández, in Los Angeles
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...
. Olivares won his first fight abroad that day, beating Fernández in round three. On May 23, 1969, he defeated Olympic gold medalist Takao Sakurai
Takao Sakurai
was a former professional boxer who won the gold medal at the 1964 Summer Olympics.-Amateur career:...
.
World Bantamweight Championship
After accumulating a record of 51-0-1, Olivares received his first world title bout when he faced Bantamweight champion Lionel RoseLionel Rose
Lionel Edmund Rose MBE was an Australian bantamweight boxer, the first Indigenous Australian to win a world title.-Early life:...
, who was defending his world title that day, at the Inglewood Forum. According to boxing book The Ring: Boxing In The 20th Century, the forum's director, fearing a riot like the one that happened after Rose had beaten Chucho Castillo
Chucho Castillo
Jesus Castillo Aguillera is a former Mexican boxer. Better known as Chucho Castillo, he was WBA and WBC Bantamweight champion in 1970....
there might happen again, went to Olivares' locker room to express his worries, and Olivares guaranteed he wouldn't let that happen again. Olivares became world Bantamweight champion by knocking Rose out in round five on that day, August 22 of 1969.
After beating Alan Rudkin
Alan Rudkin
Alan Rudkin MBE was a British, Commonwealth, and European bantamweight boxing champion . He was born in St Asaph As his pregnant mother was evacuated from Liverpool during the second world war...
in a title defense and a couple other fighters in non-title bouts, Olivares started his trilogy of bouts with arch-enemy and countryman Castillo. Olivares' knockout streak ended in that fight, but he won the first installment of the Olivares-Castillo rivalry after rising off the canvas to score a 15 round decision. After three more non-title wins, Olivares and Castillo met again, on October 16 of 1970. This time, Olivares suffered a cut in round one, and the fight was stopped in round 14, Castillo the winner and new world Bantamweight champion by a technical knockout. This was Olivares' first loss in his 62 fight career.
After one more win, Olivares and Castillo had their rubber match, on April 3 of 1971. Olivares was knocked down once, but he rose to regain the world Featherweight title in the last fight between him and Castillo with another 15 round decision. Then, he had six more knockouts in a row, including one in a non-title bout in Nicaragua
Nicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
, one in Tokyo while defending the crown against Kazuyoshi Kanazawa (in round 11), one against former champion Efren Torres
Efren Torres
Efren Torres was a Mexican boxer, who was world champion in the Flyweight division.Torres was born in Guadalajara.-Pro career:...
, and one against Jesus Pimentel
Jesus Pimentel
Jesús "Little Poison"Pimentel was an exciting Mexican bantamweight boxer who fought from 1960 to 1971.-Professional career:...
, also in round 11.
On March 19, 1972, Olivares lost the world's Bantamweight title to another countryman, Rafael Herrera
Rafael Herrera
Rafael Herrera is a former boxer from Mexico. He has won world titles in the Bantamweight division.- Professional career :...
, by a knockout in round eight. After defeating Godfrey Stevens in Monterrey, he and Herrera met again, with Herrera the winner by a 10 round decision.
Move to Featherweight
Next for Olivares was a move up in division, and he started to campaign in the Featherweight division by defeating Walter SeeleyWalter Seeley
Walter Paul Seeley - Born: June 11, 1941 on Lower East Side of New York. His boxing career started when he was a child attending the Boys Club."Irish" Walter Seeley was a professional American Super Featherweight boxer from Sayville, Long Island, New York...
. On June 23 of 1973, he met future champion Bobby Chacón
Bobby Chacon
Bobby Chacon is an American former, two-time, world boxing champion.-Career:Chacon turned professional in 1972 and won his first 19 fights, including a win against former champion Jesus Castillo...
in the first installment of another trilogy of fights. What was contested for the NABF featherweight title, ended in round nine when Olivares knocked Chacón out. In his next fight, the 78th of his career, he suffered an upset, when unknown Art Hafey knocked him out in five rounds, but then he set off on a string of three more wins in a row, including a decision over Hafey in a rematch, before fighting for the WBA
World Boxing Association
The World Boxing Association is a boxing organization that sanctions official matches, and awards the WBA world championship title at the professional level. It was previously known as the National Boxing Association before changing its name in 1962...
's vacant world Featherweight championship.
WBA Featherweight Championship
On July 9, 1974, Olivares became world Featherweight champion by beating Zenzuke Utagawa by a knockout in round seven. After two non-title wins, he met Alexis ArgüelloAlexis Argüello
Alexis Argüello , also known by the stage name El Flaco Explosivo , was a Nicaraguan professional boxer and politician...
on November 23 of that year, losing the world title by a knockout in round 13. It must be noted that he was winning this fight before he gassed and was eventually stopped.
WBC Featherweight Championship
One more win, and Olivares met Chacón in the second installment of their trilogy, this time with Chacón as the WBCWorld 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...
's world Featherweight champion. Olivares won the fight by a knockout in round two, to become world champion for the fourth time. This time, however, he also lost the title in his first defense, beaten by Ghana
Ghana
Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...
's David "Poison" Kotei
David Kotei
David Kotei born on December 7, 1950 in Accra, Ghana, was a world featherweight boxing champion between 1975 and 1976 and was also the first Ghanaian professional boxer to win a world title. He was popularly called "D.K. Poison"....
, who became that nation's first world boxing champion ever by winning a 15 round decision against Olivares. A seven round knockout defeat at the hands of future world champion Danny "Little Red" López
Danny Lopez
Danny Lopez is a former American boxer from Fort Duchesne, Utah. He was world Featherweight champion, and a very popular fighter both in television and Southern California, during the 1970s. His nickname is Little Red.-Background:...
followed.
Olivares won three fights in 1976 without losing one, including victories over world title challengers Fernando Cabanela and José Cervantes, both of them from Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
. In 1977, Olivares and Chacón boxed the final bout of their trilogy, and this time Chacón came out the winner, by a 10 round decision. But in 1978, Olivares found what would be the beginning of his last hurrah in his 93rd bout, as he knocked out the future 2 time world Lightweight champion José Luis Ramírez
José Luis Ramírez
José Luis Ramírez is a retired Mexican boxer. He was a two-time World Lightweight Champion.-Career:A native of Huatabampo, Sonora and a resident of Culiacán, Ramírez made his professional debut on March 25, 1973 at the age of 15. He climbed slowly but steadily on boxing's rankings...
in two rounds at Ciudad Obregón
Sonora
Sonora officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 72 municipalities; the capital city is Hermosillo....
, and he followed that win with wins over Shig Fukuyama and Isaac Vega.
After drawing in ten rounds with Guillermo Morales on April 22, 1979, he received what would turn out to be his last world title try: On July 21 of that year, he was knocked out in 12 rounds by WBA world Featherweight champion Eusebio Pedroza
Eusebio Pedroza
Eusebio Pedroza is a native of Panama who holds two records in boxing: His 19 defenses as world featherweight champion are a record for that division, and his seven years as world champion non-stop are a division record too...
in Houston
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 ...
, for the WBA Featherweight title.
For the next eight years, he fought sporadically and with mixed success, until he was able to walk away from professional boxing in 1988.
Legacy
Until Julio César ChávezJulio César Chávez
Julio César Chávez is a retired Mexican professional boxer.He is a six-time world champion in three weight divisions, and for several years he was considered the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world...
came onto the scene, Olivares was the boxer most fans recognized as Mexico's greatest boxer ever. He became a mainstream star there, and he reportedly had friends in the Mexican entertainment world. In addition, he could be seen fairly often doing cameos in Mexican comedy movies
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
. He is still considered a national hero there.
He had a record of 88 wins, 13 losses and 3 draws, with 78 wins by knockout. His knockout winning streaks of 22 and 21 in a row qualify as two of the longest knockout winning streaks in the history of boxing. Similarly, his 78 knockout wins make him a member of an exclusive group of boxers to have won 50 or more fights by knockout. In 2003, 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...
placed him at number twelve in their list of the greatest punchers of all time.
Olivares is a member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame
International Boxing Hall of Fame
The modern International Boxing Hall of Fame is located in Canastota, New York, United States, within driving distance from the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown and the National Soccer Hall of Fame in Oneonta...
.
See also
- List of WBC world champions
- List of WBA world champions
- List of Featherweight boxing champions
- List of Bantamweight boxing champions