Alexis Argüello

File:A. Arguello.jpg

Parade of Champions at International Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota, NY, 2008

Alexis Argüello (April 19, 1952 – July 1, 2009) was a Nicaraguan professional boxer who competed from 1968 to 1995, and later became a politician. He was a three-weight world champion, having held the WBA featherweight title from 1974 to 1976; the WBC super featherweight title from 1978 to 1980; and the WBC lightweight title from 1981 to 1982. Additionally, he held the Ring magazine and lineal featherweight titles from 1975 to 1977; the Ring lightweight title from 1981 to 1982; and the lineal lightweight title in 1982. In his later career, he challenged twice for light welterweight world titles, losing both times in famous fights against Aaron Pryor.

Argüello has regularly been cited as one of the greatest boxers of his era, having never lost any of his world titles in the ring, instead relinquishing them each time in pursuit of titles in higher weight classes. After his retirement from boxing, he became active in Nicaraguan politics and in November 2008 was elected mayor of his native Managua, the nation's capital city.

The Ring magazine has ranked Argüello as 20th on their list of "100 greatest punchers of all time", while the Associated Press ranked him as the world's best Junior Lightweight of the 20th century.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> He was named one of the 20 greatest fighters of the past 80 years by The Ring magazine and is widely regarded as one of the greatest boxers to ever come out of Latin America and one of the few to have fought in four different decades.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Early life and amateur career

Argüello was born April 19, 1952. His father was a shoemaker. His mother's name was Zoila.<ref name="auto">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Argüello had a troubled childhood, growing up in abject poverty in Managua. When he was 5 years old, his father attempted suicide. At the age of 9, Argüello ran away to work in a dairy farm.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> When he was 13, he emigrated to Canada to provide for his family.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Argüello was constantly involved in street brawls through his teenage years, but it wasn't until his sister Marina, one of Alexis' 7 siblings, married a boxer that young Alexis took an interest in the sport.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Argüello's brief amateur career saw him compile a 58–2 record.

At one time, his brother Eduardo José was considered a national hero in Nicaragua and had a street named after him.<ref name="auto"/>

Boxing career

Featherweight

Argüello debuted on October 26, 1968, trained by former boxer Miguel Angel Rivas. After winning his first 3 fights, "The Explosive Thin Man" suffered an unavenged fourth-round KO loss, followed by another split decision loss. Argüello would then win 29 of his next 30 bouts over the next 5 years, including a win over José Legrá. Eventually, Argüello earned a world featherweight championship bout against experienced WBA champion Ernesto Marcel. The fight took place in Panama, Marcel's home country. The young challenger lost a 15-round unanimous decision in the champion's retirement bout. Months after Marcel's retirement, the WBA featherweight title was won by former unified bantamweight champion Rubén Olivares.

Undaunted, Argüello put together another streak of wins and found himself contending for the WBA featherweight, this time against Olivares in the latter's first defense. The fight took place at The Forum in Inglewood on November 23, 1974. After Olivares had built a small lead on the judges' scorecards, Argüello and Olivares landed simultaneous left hooks in round thirteen. Olivares's left hand caused a visible expression of pain on Argüello's face, but Argüello's left hand caused Olivares to crash hard against the canvas. A few seconds later, Argüello was the new featherweight champion of the world.

Argüello's first defense came against Venezuelan featherweight champion Leonel Hernández. Once again, Argüello fought in enemy territory, as the fight took place in Caracas. Nevertheless, Argüello made short work of his challenger, stopping him by technical knockout in the 8th round. His first defense in Nicaragua was against Rigoberto Riasco. Argüello dominated once again, this time stopping Riasco in the second round. Next up for Argüello would be Royal Kobayashi, a highly touted Japanese challenger who was undefeated until then. After a tense, close start, Argüello's relentless body-punching broke Kobayashi halfway through the fifth round, with the challenger dropping to the canvas twice.

Junior lightweight

After a successful fourth defense, Argüello moved up in weight to challenge world junior lightweight champion Alfredo Escalera in Bayamón, Puerto Rico, in what has been nicknamed The Bloody Battle of Bayamon by many. Escalera had been a busy champion with ten defenses, and he had dethroned Kuniaki Shibata in 2 rounds in Tokyo. In what some experts (including The Ring writers) consider one of the most brutal fights in history, Escalera had his eye, mouth and nose broken early but was rallying back in the scorecards when Argüello finished him, once again in the thirteenth round.

His reign at Junior Lightweight saw him fend off the challenges of Escalera in a rematch held at Rimini, Italy, as well as former and future world champion Bobby Chacon, future two-time world champion Rafael "Bazooka" Limón, Ruben Castillo, future champion Rolando Navarrete, and Diego Alcalá, beaten in only one round.

Argüello suffered many cuts around his face during his second victory against Escalera. The on-site doctor wanted him hospitalized, but Argüello had a flight to catch from Rome the next day to return to Nicaragua, and he boarded a train from Rimini. The doctor decided to travel with Argüello, and performed plastic surgery on Argüello's cuts with Argüello awake.

Lightweight

After eight successful title defenses, Argüello then moved up in weight again, and this time, he had to go to London, England, to challenge world lightweight champion Jim Watt. Watt lasted fifteen rounds, but the judges gave Argüello a unanimous 15-round decision, thus making him only the sixth boxer to win world titles in three divisions and the second Latin American (after Wilfred Benítez had become the first by beating Maurice Hope one month before) to do it. He had to face some lesser-known challengers in this division, one exception being the famous prospect Ray Mancini (known as "Boom Boom"). Mancini and Argüello engaged in a fight that was later showcased in a boxing video of the best fights of the 1980s, with Argüello prevailing by stoppage when he decked Mancini in round 14. After the fight, Argüello gained many American fans when he embraced Mancini and told a CBS television audience that he would do anything to help Mancini's father, who at the time was dealing with illness. Andrew Ganigan proved to be one of Argüello's toughest challenges as he dropped Argüello in the second round, but ultimately, the defending champion prevailed by stopping Ganigan in the fifth.

Junior welterweight

Battles with Aaron Pryor

Template:Main article Argüello successfully defended his lightweight title four times. After defeating James 'Bubba' Busceme by sixth round stoppage, Argüello decided to move up in weight class again, and on November 12, 1982, he tried to become the first world champion in four different categories, meeting the heavier and future Hall-of-Famer Aaron Pryor, in what was billed as "The Battle of the Champions" in Miami, Florida. Argüello was stopped in the 14th round. The fight sparked controversy because Pryor's trainer, Panama Lewis, introduced a second water bottle, which he described as "the bottle I mixed" after round 13, leading to speculation that the bottle was tainted. The Florida State Boxing Commission failed to administer a post-fight urinalysis, adding to speculation that the bottle contained an unsanctioned substance.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Ltd 2009">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Lewis claimed at various times that the bottle was filled with peppermint schnapps or Perrier to help Pryor deal with an upset stomach. It was later revealed in an interview with former Lewis-trained boxer Luis Resto that Lewis would break apart antihistamine pills used to treat asthma and pour the medicine into the water, giving Lewis's fighter greater lung capacity in the later rounds of a fight.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Others say that there was a mixture of cocaine, honey and orange juice in the bottle.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

A rematch was ordered. This time, in Las Vegas, Argüello was KO-ed in the tenth and stated after the fight, "I'm not going to fight anymore. I quit." But he later returned to the ring for financial reasons.

Comeback and post-retirement

During the 1980s, Argüello briefly fought with the Contras in his native Nicaragua, but after a few months in the jungle, he retired from the war.<ref>"Adrift in a Sea of Choices", Sports Illustrated, October 21, 1985</ref> He then attempted several comebacks into boxing during the late 1980s and early 1990s and had some success, most notably a fourth round stoppage of former World Junior Welterweight Champion Billy Costello in a 1986 televised bout that put him in a position for another shot at the Junior Welterweight title. He retired for good in 1995 with a record of 82 wins, 8 losses, and 65 KOs, along with the recognition of being one of the sport's most universally respected fighters among fans, experts, and boxers.

Argüello was elected to the International Boxing Hall Of Fame in 1992. In 2008, he was honored by being selected as Nicaragua's flag-bearer at the Opening Ceremony of the Beijing Olympics.<ref>"Alexis Arguello to bear Nicaraguan flag in Beijing Olympics", Xinhua, July 9, 2008</ref>

Political career

Argüello was actively involved in Nicaraguan politics with the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN)--the same party against whom he took up arms in the 1980s—and in 2004 was elected vice-mayor of Managua. Amid accusations of vote-rigging, Argüello narrowly won the mayoral election in Managua on November 9, 2008<ref>The Independent Newspaper (London) Obituary of Alexis Argüello July 17, 2009</ref> against the candidate of the Constitutionalist Liberal Party, Eduardo Montealegre, who had come second to Daniel Ortega in the 2006 presidential election. Argüello's margin of victory was narrow as he attained just 51.30% of the vote.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Acting

Arguello had a large supporting role in the 1989 film, Fists of Steel.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Death

File:Memorial to Alexis Argüello.jpg

Memorial to Alexis Argüello in Managua

Argüello died on July 1, 2009, after being accused of shooting himself with two bullets through the heart in Managua. The national police, under Sandinista control, confirmed the death shortly afterward, and it was declared a suicide following an autopsy.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Those close to Argüello, including his daughter Dora Arguello and his sons, asserted that he was killed by Ortega's regime because he had become increasingly disenchanted with the Orteguistas and the Sandinista government, and was planning an imminent departure from the Sandinista political party.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Professional boxing record

Template:Abbr	Result	Record	Opponent	Type	Round, time	Date	Location	Notes
85	Template:No2Loss	77–8	Scott Walker	UD	10	Jan 21, 1995	Template:Small
84	Template:Yes2Win	77–7	Jorge Palomares	MD	10	Aug 27, 1994	Template:Small
83	Template:Yes2Win	76–7	Billy Costello	TKO	4 (10), Template:Small	Feb 9, 1986	Template:Small
82	Template:Yes2Win	75–7	Pat Jefferson	TKO	5 (10), Template:Small	Oct 25, 1985	Template:Small
81	Template:No2Loss	74–7	Aaron Pryor	KO	10 (15), Template:Small	Sep 9, 1983	Template:Small	Template:Small
80	Template:Yes2Win	74–6	Claude Noel	TKO	3 (10), Template:Small	Apr 24, 1983	Template:Small
79	Template:Yes2Win	73–6	Vilomar Fernandez	UD	10	Feb 26, 1983	Template:Small
78	Template:No2Loss	72–6	Aaron Pryor	TKO	14 (15), Template:Small	Nov 12, 1982	Template:Small	Template:Small
77	Template:Yes2Win	72–5	Kevin Rooney	KO	2 (10), Template:Small	Jul 31, 1982	Template:Small
76	Template:Yes2Win	71–5	Andrew Ganigan	KO	5 (15), Template:Small	May 22, 1982	Template:Small	Template:Small
75	Template:Yes2Win	70–5	James Busceme	TKO	6 (15), Template:Small	Feb 13, 1982	Template:Small	Template:Small
74	Template:Yes2Win	69–5	Roberto Elizondo	KO	7 (15), Template:Small	Nov 21, 1981	Template:Small	Template:Small
73	Template:Yes2Win	68–5	Ray Mancini	TKO	14 (15), Template:Small	Oct 3, 1981	Template:Small	Template:Small
72	Template:Yes2Win	67–5	Jim Watt	UD	15	Jun 20, 1981	Template:Small	Template:Small
71	Template:Yes2Win	66–5	Robert Vasquez	TKO	3 (10), Template:Small	Feb 7, 1981	Template:Small
70	Template:Yes2Win	65–5	José Luis Ramírez	SD	10	Nov 14, 1980	Template:Small
69	Template:Yes2Win	64–5	Cornelius Boza-Edwards	TKO	8 (10)	Aug 9, 1980	Template:Small
68	Template:Yes2Win	63–5	Rolando Navarrete	RTD	4 (15), Template:Small	Apr 27, 1980	Template:Small	Template:Small
67	Template:Yes2Win	62–5	Gerald Hayes	UD	10	Mar 31, 1980	Template:Small
66	Template:Yes2Win	61–5	Ruben Castillo	TKO	11 (15), Template:Small	Jan 20, 1980	Template:Small	Template:Small
65	Template:Yes2Win	60–5	Bobby Chacon	Template:Abbr	7 (15), Template:Small	Nov 16, 1979	Template:Small	Template:Small
64	Template:Yes2Win	59–5	Rafael Limón	TKO	11 (15), Template:Small	Jul 8, 1979	Template:Small	Template:Small
63	Template:Yes2Win	58–5	Alfredo Escalera	TKO	13 (15), Template:Small	Feb 4, 1979	Template:Small	Template:Small
62	Template:Yes2Win	57–5	Arturo Leon	UD	15	Nov 10, 1978	Template:Small	Template:Small
61	Template:No2Loss	56–5	Vilomar Fernandez	Template:Abbr	10	Jul 26, 1978	Template:Small
60	Template:Yes2Win	56–4	Diego Alcala	KO	1 (15), Template:Small	Jun 3, 1978	Template:Small	Template:Small
59	Template:Yes2Win	55–4	Rey Tam	TKO	5 (15), Template:Small	Apr 29, 1978	Template:Small	Template:Small
58	Template:Yes2Win	54–4	Mario Mendez	TKO	3 (10), Template:Small	Mar 25, 1978	Template:Small
57	Template:Yes2Win	53–4	Alfredo Escalera	TKO	13 (15), Template:Small	Jan 28, 1978	Template:Small	Template:Small
56	Template:Yes2Win	52–4	Enrique Solis	KO	5 (10)	Dec 18, 1977	Template:Small
55	Template:Yes2Win	51–4	Jerome Artis	TKO	2 (10)	Sep 29, 1977	Template:Small
54	Template:Yes2Win	50–4	Benjamin Ortiz	UD	10	Aug 27, 1977	Template:Small
53	Template:Yes2Win	49–4	Jose Fernandez	TKO	1 (10), Template:Small	Aug 3, 1977	Template:Small
52	Template:Yes2Win	48–4	Ezequiel Sanchez	TKO	4 (10)	Jun 22, 1977	Template:Small
51	Template:Yes2Win	47–4	Alberto Herrera	KO	1 (10)	May 14, 1977	Template:Small
50	Template:Yes2Win	46–4	Godfrey Stevens	KO	2 (10)	Feb 19, 1977	Template:Small
49	Template:Yes2Win	45–4	Salvador Torres	KO	3 (15), Template:Small	Jun 19, 1976	Template:Small	Template:Small
48	Template:Yes2Win	44–4	Modesto Concepcion	KO	2 (10)	Apr 10, 1976	Template:Small
47	Template:Yes2Win	43–4	Jose Torres	SD	10	Feb 1, 1976	Template:Small
46	Template:Yes2Win	42–4	Saul Montana	KO	3 (10)	Dec 20, 1975	Template:Small
45	Template:Yes2Win	41–4	Royal Kobayashi	KO	5 (15), Template:Small	Oct 12, 1975	Template:Small	Template:Small
44	Template:Yes2Win	40–4	Rosalio Muro	TKO	2 (10), Template:Small	Jul 18, 1975	Template:Small
43	Template:Yes2Win	39–4	Rigoberto Riasco	TKO	2 (15), Template:Small	May 31, 1975	Template:Small	Template:Small
42	Template:Yes2Win	38–4	Leonel Hernandez	TKO	8 (15), Template:Small	Mar 15, 1975	Template:Small	Template:Small
41	Template:Yes2Win	37–4	Oscar Aparicio	UD	10	Feb 8, 1975	Template:Small
40	Template:Yes2Win	36–4	Rubén Olivares	KO	13 (15), Template:Small	Nov 23, 1974	Template:Small	Template:Small
39	Template:Yes2Win	35–4	Otoniel Martinez	KO	1 (10)	Sep 21, 1974	Template:Small
38	Template:Yes2Win	34–4	Oscar Aparicio	Template:Abbr	12	Aug 24, 1974	Template:Small
37	Template:Yes2Win	33–4	Art Hafey	KO	5 (10)	May 18, 1974	Template:Small
36	Template:Yes2Win	32–4	Enrique Garcia	KO	3 (10)	Apr 27, 1974	Template:Small
35	Template:No2Loss	31–4	Ernesto Marcel	UD	15	Feb 16, 1974	Template:Small	Template:Small
34	Template:Yes2Win	31–3	Raul Martinez Mora	KO	1	Jan 12, 1974	Template:Small
33	Template:Yes2Win	30–3	José Legrá	TKO	1 (10)	Nov 24, 1973	Template:Small
32	Template:Yes2Win	29–3	Sigfrido Rodriguez	TKO	9 (10)	Oct 27, 1973	Template:Small
31	Template:Yes2Win	28–3	Nacho Lomeli	KO	1 (10), Template:Small	Aug 25, 1973	Template:Small
30	Template:Yes2Win	27–3	Octavio Gomez	KO	2 (10)	Jun 30, 1973	Template:Small
29	Template:Yes2Win	26–3	Kid Pascualito	TKO	3 (10)	May 26, 1973	Template:Small
28	Template:Yes2Win	25–3	Magallo Lozada	UD	10	Mar 31, 1973	Template:Small
27	Template:Yes2Win	24–3	Fernando Fernandez	TKO	2	Feb 24, 1973	Template:Small
26	Template:Yes2Win	23–3	Rafael Gonzalez	TKO	3	Dec 16, 1972	Template:Small
25	Template:Yes2Win	22–3	Memo Ortiz	KO	2 (10)	Nov 19, 1972	Template:Small
24	Template:Yes2Win	21–3	Memo Barrera	TKO	2	Oct 21, 1972	Template:Small
23	Template:Yes2Win	20–3	Jorge Benitez	KO	1	Sep 9, 1972	Template:Small
22	Template:No2Loss	19–3	Jorge Reyes	TKO	6 (10)	Jan 15, 1972	Template:Small
21	Template:Yes2Win	19–2	Vicente Worrel Jr.	KO	2 (10)	Dec 18, 1971	Template:Small
20	Template:Yes2Win	18–2	Reynaldo Mendoza	TKO	4	Oct 10, 1971	Template:Small
19	Template:Yes2Win	17–2	Emilio Buitrago	UD	10	Oct 2, 1971	Template:Small	Template:Small
18	Template:Yes2Win	16–2	Catalino Alvarado	KO	1	Aug 14, 1971	Template:Small
17	Template:Yes2Win	15–2	Emilio Buitrago	TKO	5 (10)	Jul 17, 1971	Template:Small
16	Template:Yes2Win	14–2	Marcial Loyola	TKO	2	Jun 26, 1971	Template:Small
15	Template:Yes2Win	13–2	Kid Chapula	KO	1	Jun 5, 1971	Template:Small
14	Template:Yes2Win	12–2	Mauricio Buitrago	KO	7 (10)	May 1, 1971	Template:Small
13	Template:Yes2Win	11–2	Julio Hernandez	UD	10	Apr 17, 1971	Template:Small
12	Template:Yes2Win	10–2	Julio Hernandez	Template:Abbr	10	Mar 13, 1971	Template:Small
11	Template:Yes2Win	9–2	Antonio Quiroz	KO	6 (8), Template:Small	Feb 13, 1971	Template:Small
10	Template:Yes2Win	8–2	Armando Figueroa	TKO	1	Dec 19, 1970	Template:Small
9	Template:Yes2Win	7–2	Julio Morales	KO	3	Dec 5, 1970	Template:Small
8	Template:Yes2Win	6–2	Jose Urbina	KO	1	Nov 14, 1970	Template:Small
7	Template:Yes2Win	5–2	Mario Bojorque	KO	1 (6)	Sep 24, 1970	Template:Small
6	Template:Yes2Win	4–2	Marcelino Beckles	TKO	8 (8)	Sep 24, 1970	Template:Small
5	Template:No2Loss	3–2	Oscar Espinosa	SD	6	Apr 26, 1969	Template:Small
4	Template:No2Loss	3–1	Omar Amaya	KO	4	Mar 1, 1969	Template:Small
3	Template:Yes2Win	3–0	Burrito Martinez	Template:Abbr	3	Feb 15, 1969	Template:Small
2	Template:Yes2Win	2–0	Oscar Espinosa	Template:Abbr	4	Dec 14, 1968	Template:Small
1	Template:Yes2Win	1–0	Israel Medina	Template:Abbr	1 (4)	Oct 26, 1968	Template:Small

Titles in boxing

Major world titles

• WBA featherweight champion (126 lbs)
• WBC super featherweight champion (130 lbs)
• WBC lightweight champion (135 lbs)

The Ring magazine titles

• The Ring featherweight champion (126 lbs)
• The Ring lightweight champion (135 lbs)

Regional/International titles

• Nicaraguan bantamweight champion (118 lbs)

See also

• List of WBA world champions
• List of WBC world champions
• List of lightweight boxing champions
• List of boxing triple champions

External links

• Template:Sports links
• BoxingInsider.com Biofile interview with Alexis Arguello
• Aladdin Freeman's BraggingRights Interview With Arguello 2004
• On June 26, 2009, in Carolina, Puerto Rico, Argúello placed flowers at a monument for Roberto Clemente to honor the late baseball great. Template:YouTube
• {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}

• {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}

• {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}

• {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}