Rubén Olivares

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Rubén Olivares
File:Ruben Olivares.jpg
Statistics
Real name Rubén Olivares
Nickname(s) El Púas
Rated at Super Featherweight
Featherweight
Super Bantamweight
Bantamweight
Height 1.67 m (5 ft 6 in)
Reach 68 in (172 cm)
Nationality Mexican
Born (1947-01-14) 14 January 1947 (age 77)
Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Stance Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights 105
Wins 89
Wins by KO 79
Losses 13
Draws 3
No contests 0

Rubén Olivares (born January 14, 1947) is a former Mexican boxer and current member of the Boxing Hall of Fame.[1] 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.[2] Olivares also had cameo appearances on Mexican movies, and he participated in more than 100 professional bouts.[3]

Professional career

Olivares made his pro debut at the age of 17, by knocking out 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.[4]

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.[5]

World Bantamweight Championship

After accumulating a record of 51-0-1, Olivares received his first world title bout when he faced Bantamweight champion Lionel Rose, 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.[6]

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.[7] 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.

Move to Featherweight

Next for Olivares was a move up in division, and he started to campaign in the Featherweight division by defeating Walter Seeley. 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.

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 Argüello on November 23 of that year, losing the world title by a knockout in round 13.[8] He was winning this fight before he gassed and was eventually stopped.[9]

WBC Featherweight Championship

One more win, and Olivares met Chacón in the second installment of their trilogy, this time with Chacón as the WBC'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.[10]

Olivares won two fights in 1976 and lost one, including a victory over world title challenger Fernando Cabanela of the Philippines and a loss to another world title challenger, José Cervantes, 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.[11]

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.

Professional record

88 Wins (78 knockouts, 10 decisions), 13 Losses, 3 Draws
Res. Record Opponent Type Round Date Location Notes
Loss 88-13-3 Mexico Ignacio Madrid KO 4 (10) 1988-03-12 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Draw 88-12-3 United States Roman Almaguer MD 4 1986-02-25 United States Forum, Inglewood, California, United States
Loss 88-12-2 United States Margarito Marquez SD 10 1981-11-24 United States Houston, Texas, United States
Loss 88-11-2 Mexico Rafael Gandarilla TKO 9 (10) 1980-08-24 United States McAllen, Texas, United States
Win 88-10-2 United States Sergio Reyes TKO 7 (10) 1980-04-25 Mexico Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico
Win 87-10-2 Puerto Rico Carlos Serrano TKO 5 (10) 1980-03-07 United States Uptown Theatre, Chicago, Illinois, United States
Loss 86-10-2 Panama Eusebio Pedroza TKO 12 (15) 1979-07-21 United States Sam Houston Coliseum, Houston, Texas, United States For WBA World featherweight title
Win 86-9-2 Philippines Adrian Zapanta TKO 2 (10) 1979-06-30 United States Tingley Coliseum, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States
Draw 85-9-2 Mexico Guillermo Morales MD 10 1979-04-22 Mexico Tuxtla Gutierrez, Chiapas, Mexico
Win 85-9-1 Colombia Isaac Vega TKO 3 (10) 1978-11-20 United States Sam Houston Coliseum, Houston, Texas, United States
Win 84-9-1 Japan Shig Fukuyama KO 2 (10) 1978-10-18 United States Houston, Texas, United States
Win 83-9-1 Mexico Jose Luis Ramirez TKO 2 (10) 1978-04-28 Mexico Ciudad Obregon, Sonora, Mexico
Win 82-9-1 United States Ricky Gutierrez UD 10 1977-12-06 United States Municipal Auditorium, San Antonio, Texas, United States
Loss 81-9-1 United States Bobby Chacon UD 10 1977-08-20 United States Forum, Inglewood, California, United States
Loss 81-8-1 Colombia Jose Cervantes KO 6 (12) 1976-11-19 United States Sports Arena, Los Angeles, California, United States
Win 81-7-1 Philippines Fernando Cabanela UD 10 1976-07-30 United States Sports Arena, Los Angeles, California, United States
Win 80-7-1 Thailand Pajet Lupikanet TKO 1 (10) 1976-06-02 United States Sports Arena, Los Angeles, California, United States
Loss 79-7-1 United States Danny Lopez KO 7 (10) 1975-12-04 United States Forum, Inglewood, California, United States
Loss 79-6-1 Ghana David Kotey SD 15 1975-09-20 United States Forum, Inglewood, California, United States Lost WBC World featherweight title
Win 79-5-1 United States Bobby Chacon TKO 2 (15) 1975-06-20 United States Forum, Inglewood, California, United States Won WBC World featherweight title
Win 78-5-1 Puerto Rico Benjamin Ortiz TKO 6 (10) 1975-04-07 Mexico Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico
Loss 77-5-1 Nicaragua Alexis Arguello KO 13 (15) 1974-11-23 United States Forum, Inglewood, California, United States Lost WBA World featherweight title
Win 77-4-1 Panama Carlos Mendoza TKO 6 (10) 1974-10-05 Mexico Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico
Win 76-4-1 Mexico Enrique Garcia TKO 5 (10) 1974-08-31 Mexico Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico
Win 75-4-1 Japan Zensuke Utagawa KO 7 (15) 1974-07-09 United States Forum, Inglewood, California, United States Won Vacant WBA World featherweight title
Win 74-4-1 Philippines Adrian Zapanta KO 2 (10) 1974-05-14 Mexico Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico
Win 73-4-1 Canada Art Hafey SD 12 1974-03-04 United States Forum, Inglewood, California, United States
Win 72-4-1 Colombia Francisco Durango UD 10 1973-12-02 Mexico Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico
Loss 71-4-1 Canada Art Hafey TKO 5 (10) 1973-09-15 Mexico Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico
Win 71-3-1 United States Bobby Chacon RTD 9 (12) 1973-06-23 United States Forum, Inglewood, California, United States Won NABF featherweight title
Win 70-3-1 United States Walter Seeley TKO 2 (10) 1973-04-28 United States Forum, Inglewood, California, United States
Loss 69-3-1 Mexico Rafael Herrera MD 10 1972-11-14 United States Forum, Inglewood, California, United States
Win 69-2-1 Chile Godfrey Stevens UD 10 1972-08-19 Mexico Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico
Loss 68-2-1 Mexico Rafael Herrera KO 8 (15) 1972-03-19 Mexico Toreo de Cuatro Caminos, Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico Lost WBC & WBA World bantamweight title
Win 68-1-1 Mexico Jesus Pimentel TKO 11 (15) 1971-12-14 United States Forum, Inglewood, California, United States Retained WBC & WBA World bantamweight title
Win 67-1-1 Japan Kazuyoshi Kanazawa TKO 14 (15) 1971-10-25 Japan Aichi Prefectural Gym, Nagoya, Aichi, Japan Retained WBC & WBA World bantamweight title
Win 66-1-1 Paraguay Kid Pascualito TKO 9 (10) 1971-08-23 United States Forum, Inglewood, California, United States
Win 65-1-1 Mexico Efren Torres TKO 4 (10) 1971-07-10 Mexico Auditorio del Estado, Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico
Win 64-1-1 Nicaragua Vicente Blanco KO 5 (10) 1971-06-07 Nicaragua Managua, Nicaragua
Win 63-1-1 Japan Tsuguo Mineyama TKO 3 (10) 1971-05-19 Mexico Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico
Win 62-1-1 Mexico Chucho Castillo UD 15 1971-04-02 United States Forum, Inglewood, California, United States Won WBC & WBA World bantamweight title
Win 62-1-1 South Korea Chung Park KO 6 (10) 1971-03-03 Mexico Auditorio del Estado, Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico
Loss 61-1-1 Mexico Chucho Castillo TKO 14 (15) 1970-10-16 United States Forum, Inglewood, California, United States Lost WBC & WBA World bantamweight title
Win 61-0-1 Mexico Memo Rodriguez KO 5 (10) 1970-09-11 Mexico Acapulco, Guerrero, Mexico
Win 60-0-1 Spain Jose Arranz TKO 3 (10) 1970-08-14 United States Forum, Inglewood, California, United States
Win 59-0-1 Japan Shuji Chiyoda UD 10 1970-07-22 United States International Amphitheatre, Chicago, Illinois, United States
Win 58-0-1 Mexico Chucho Castillo UD 15 1970-04-18 United States Forum, Inglewood, California, United States Retained WBC & WBA World bantamweight title
Win 57-0-1 Philippines Romy Guelas TKO 6 (10) 1970-03-18 United States Convention Center Arena, San Antonio, Texas, United States
Win 56-0-1 Mexico Angel Hernandez KO 3 (10) 1970-02-22 Mexico Acambaro, Guanajuato, Mexico
Win 55-0-1 United Kingdom Alan Rudkin TKO 2 (15) 1969-12-12 United States Forum, Inglewood, California, United States Retained WBC & WBA World bantamweight title
Win 54-0-1 Japan Shigeyoshi Oki KO 3 (10) 1969-10-27 Mexico Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico
Win 53-0-1 Australia Lionel Rose KO 5 (15) 1969-08-22 United States Forum, Inglewood, California, United States Won WBC & WBA World bantamweight title
Win 52-0-1 Philippines Nene Jun TKO 1 (10) 1969-06-29 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 51-0-1 Japan Takao Sakurai TKO 6 (12) 1969-05-23 United States Forum, Inglewood, California, United States World Bantamweight Title Elimination bout
Win 50-0-1 United States Frank Adame KO 2 (10) 1969-05-06 Mexico Nogales, Sonora, Mexico
Win 49-0-1 Philippines Ernie Cruz TKO 9 (10) 1969-03-17 United States Forum, Inglewood, California, United States
Win 48-0-1 United States Carlos Zayas TKO 7 (10) 1969-03-09 Mexico Tuxtla Gutierrez, Chiapas, Mexico
Win 47-0-1 Spain Jose Bisbal KO 3 (10) 1969-02-23 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 46-0-1 Japan Kazuyoshi Kanazawa TKO 2 (10) 1969-01-26 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 45-0-1 Mexico Joe Medel KO 8 (10) 1968-11-24 Mexico Estadio Universitario, Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico
Win 44-0-1 United States Wally Brooks KO 1 (10) 1968-10-11 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 43-0-1 France Antoine Porcel KO 1 (10) 1968-09-15 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 42-0-1 Philippines Bernabe Fernandez TKO 3 (10) 1968-08-28 United States Forum, Inglewood, California, United States
Win 41-0-1 Philippines Tiny Palacio TKO 6 (10) 1968-08-10 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 40-0-1 United States Gary Garber TKO 5 (10) 1968-07-11 Mexico Torreon, Coahuila, Mexico
Win 39-0-1 Mexico Enrique Yepes KO 5 (10) 1968-06-25 Mexico Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico
Win 38-0-1 Mexico Octavio Gomez KO 5 (10) 1968-06-08 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 37-0-1 United States King Gavilan KO 4 (10) 1968-05-20 Mexico Puebla, Puebla, Mexico
Win 36-0-1 Venezuela Manuel Arnal DQ 6 (10) 1968-04-27 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 35-0-1 Italy Salvatore Burruni TKO 3 (10) 1968-03-31 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 34-0-1 Thailand Pornchai Poprai-ngam TKO 9 (10) 1968-03-03 Mexico La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico
Win 33-0-1 Mexico German Bastidas TKO 5 (10) 1968-01-28 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 32-0-1 Mexico Felipe Gonzalez TKO 6 (10) 1967-11-19 Mexico La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico
Win 31-0-1 Mexico Chamaco Castillo KO 5 (10) 1967-11-03 Mexico Veracruz, Veracruz, Mexico
Win 30-0-1 Japan Ushiwakamaru Harada TKO 2 (10) 1967-10-14 Mexico Estadio Azteca, Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 29-0-1 Mexico Gustavo Sosa TKO 3 (10) 1967-09-20 Mexico Puebla, Puebla, Mexico
Win 28-0-1 Mexico Grillito Aguilar KO 5 (10) 1967-09-06 Mexico Poza Rica, Veracruz, Mexico
Draw 27-0-1 Mexico German Bastidas MD 10 1967-07-29 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 27-0 Mexico Angel Hernandez KO 5 (10) 1967-07-14 Mexico Leon, Guanajuato, Mexico
Win 26-0 Mexico Julio Guerrero KO 4 (10) 1967-06-17 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 25-0 Mexico Felipe Gonzalez UD 10 1967-02-26 Mexico Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico
Win 24-0 Mexico Antonio Leal KO 1 (10) 1967-02-05 Mexico Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico
Win 23-0 Mexico Daniel Gutierrez TKO 10 (10) 1966-12-17 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 22-0 Mexico Rafael Martinez TKO 5 (8) 1966-11-09 Mexico Leon, Guanajuato, Mexico
Win 21-0 Mexico Rafael Macias TKO 5 (10) 1966-10-18 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 20-0 Mexico Ernesto Aguilar TKO 3 (10) 1966-10-07 Mexico Tampico, Tamaulipas, Mexico
Win 19-0 Mexico Ramiro Garcia KO 9 (10) 1966-09-17 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 18-0 Mexico Oscar Rivas TKO 3 (10) 1966-08-07 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 17-0 Mexico Gerardo Lujano TKO 5 (10) 1966-07-10 Mexico Tampico, Tamaulipas, Mexico
Win 16-0 Mexico German Guzman KO 4 (10) 1966-06-24 Mexico Tampico, Tamaulipas, Mexico
Win 15-0 Mexico Alfonso Jose Cazares TKO 2 (10) 1966-06-11 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 14-0 Mexico Emeterio Campos TKO 4 (10) 1966-05-20 Mexico Tampico, Tamaulipas, Mexico
Win 13-0 Mexico Juan Molina TKO 2 (10) 1966-04-23 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 12-0 Mexico Gallito Camacho TKO 1 (10) 1966-03-12 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 11-0 Mexico Eduardo Alvarado KO 2 (10) 1966-02-16 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 10-0 Mexico Reynaldo De La Cerda TKO 3 (10) 1966-01-28 Mexico Tampico, Tamaulipas, Mexico
Win 9-0 Mexico Pablo Martinez TKO 2 (10) 1965-11-24 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 8-0 Mexico Mateo Jaimes TKO 5 (10) 1965-10-20 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 7-0 Mexico Jorge Gomez TKO 8 (10) 1965-09-09 Mexico Plaza de Toros, Torreon, Coahuila, Mexico
Win 6-0 Mexico Nemesio Zenil TKO 2 (8) 1965-08-14 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 5-0 Mexico Antonio Gallegos TKO 4 (10) 1965-04-01 Mexico Arena Olímpico Laguna, Gomez Palacio, Durango, Mexico
Win 4-0 Mexico Torito Silva KO 6 (10) 1965-02-18 Mexico Arena Olímpico Laguna, Gomez Palacio, Durango, Mexico
Win 3-0 Mexico Geronimo Cisneros TKO 3 (6) 1965-02-01 Mexico Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Win 2-0 Mexico Freddie Garcia KO 1 (6) 1965-01-18 Mexico Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico
Win 1-0 Mexico Isidro Sotelo KO 1 (6) 1965-01-04 Mexico Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico professional debut.

Legacy

Until Julio César Chávez 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.[12]

He had a record of 89 wins, 13 losses and 3 draws, with 79 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.[13]

Olivares is a member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame.[14]

Olivares was voted as the #1 bantamweight (along with Carlos Zarate) of the 20th century by the Associated Press in 1999 [15]

See also

Preceded by World Bantamweight Champion
22 Aug 1969– 16 Oct 1970
Succeeded by
Chucho Castillo
Preceded by World Bantamweight Champion
2 Apr 1971 – 19 Mar 1972
Succeeded by
Rafael Herrera
Preceded by WBA Featherweight Champion
9 Jul 1974 – 23 Nov 1974
Succeeded by
Alexis Argüello
Preceded by WBC Featherweight Champion
20 Jun 1975 – 20 Sep 1975
Succeeded by
David Kotei

References

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  9. [2] Archived July 27, 2011 at the Wayback Machine
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External links