José Nápoles

José Ángel Nápoles (April 13, 1940 – August 16, 2019)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> was a Cuban-born Mexican professional boxer.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He was a two-time undisputed welterweight champion, having held the WBA, WBC, and The Ring welterweight titles between 1969 and 1975. He is frequently ranked as one of the greatest fighters of all time in that division and is a member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> His record of the most wins in unified championship bouts in boxing history, shared with Muhammad Ali, was unbeaten for 40 years. After debuting professionally in Cuba, he fought out of Mexico and became a Mexican citizen.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Mexico

Boxing glove of Mantequilla Nápoles at El Dux de Venecia bar in Mexico City.

Nápoles debuted as a professional boxer on August 2, 1958, in Cuba, knocking out Julio Rojas in the first round. Nápoles' first 21 bouts were in Cuba, against mostly unknown competition. He did beat Ángel García and Leslie Grant, but lost to Hilton Smith (in his first defeat).

After beating Enrique Carabeo in March 1961, Nápoles found himself a new challenge, outside of the ring; Cuban president Fidel Castro banned professional boxing in Cuba, and Nápoles soon found his career in jeopardy.

He found asylum in Mexico, where he soon found himself back inside the ring, beating Enrique Camarena by a knockout in two rounds on July 21, 1962. He won all four of his fights that year.

In 1963, he won seven bouts and lost two. He was defeated by Tony Perez and Alfredo Urbina, both by decision, but he beat JC Morgan, by knockout in seven rounds, in Venezuela.

1964 was a successful year for Nápoles. He travelled to Japan, where he beat Taketeru Yoshimoto by knockout in round one, and he beat future world champion Carlos Morocho Hernández by knockout in round seven, this time back in Venezuela. In addition to those wins, he avenged his loss to Urbina by knocking him out twice, the first time in the first round and the second time in the third.

He won three more fights in 1965, including another win against Morgan, before seeing a raise in opposition quality when he faced the former world Junior Welterweight champion Eddie Perkins, beating him by decision in ten rounds. For his next fight, he met his own future world title challenger, Adolph Pruitt, beating him by knockout in round three.

In 1966, he won five fights, all by knockout, and lost one, to arch-rival Morgan, who knocked him out in round four. This would be his last loss in four years.

Welterweight champion

Nápoles began a streak of 20 wins in a row, 13 of them before challenging for the world's welterweight title. These included avenging the loss to Morgan with a two-round knockout. During this period, Nápoles also became a fan favorite in southern California, and, after beating Fate Davis, on February 15, 1969, in Mexico, he was given an opportunity to win the world championship when he faced the then-current champion Curtis Cokes in Inglewood, on April 18. Nápoles beat Cokes by a knockout in round 13 to become world welterweight champion, and, as was becoming common place for him, he wore a sombrero after the fight. On June 29, he retained the title in a rematch with Cokes by a knockout in round 10 in his hometown of Mexico City, and on October 12, he outpointed former world champion Emile Griffith in 15, also retaining the title.

Loss of title

Nápoles began the 1970s, by defeating Ernie "Indian Red" Lopez by a knockout in round 15 in front of an audience that included former world champion Sugar Ray Robinson on February 14, 1970. But after winning two non-title bouts, he suffered an upset when he was stopped due to being cut in four rounds by Carmen Basilio's nephew Billy Backus, who took the world's Welterweight title from Nápoles on December 3 at Syracuse.

Regaining the title

After winning one more fight, he and Backus fought again, for the world welterweight title now in Backus' hands. This time, it was held in Los Angeles, and Nápoles recovered the world championship via an 8th round stoppage. After three non-title wins, including one over Jean Josselin, he faced Hedgemon Lewis on December 14, retaining the world title with a decision in 15 rounds, but Nápoles' training habits were suffering; he was alleged to be coming into the gym stinking of alcohol with an attitude towards his seconds.

In 1972, he retained the title knocking out Ralph Charles in seven in England, and then, Pruitt resurfaced again, this time with the world Welterweight title on the line. Nápoles retained his crown by knockout in round two.

World traveller Nápoles began 1973 by retaining the title against Lopez again, by knockout in seven, then he visited Grenoble, France, where he retained the crown with a 15-round decision over Roger Menetrey, and Toronto, Ontario, Canada where he beat Clyde Gray, once again retaining the world title with a 15-round decision.

Middleweight

Nápoles with El Santo during the filming of Santo y Mantequilla Nápoles en la venganza de la Llorona (1974)

After this, many boxing fans were asking for a fight between Nápoles and world middleweight champion Carlos Monzón. The fight was made possible when Nápoles moved in weight to challenge Monzon for Monzon's title, so the two dueled on February 9, 1974, at a ring set up inside a circus tent that had been erected in the Paris suburb of Puteaux.<ref>"Monzon And Napoles Will Fight In Circus Tent", AP report in Sacramento Bee, February 8, 1974, p.C3 ("Adel Productions now can offer boxing history a Belgian pitched in Puteaux, France.")</ref> This would be Nápoles' only bout at the middleweight division, as he was defeated by quitting the match, officially losing by a seventh-round technical knockout. He then went back to the welterweight division, and retained the title twice before the year ended, with a knockout in nine over Lewis, and with a knockout in three over Horacio Saldaño.

In 1975, Nápoles had two wins over Armando Muniz, both times to retain his world title. The first time, a technical decision win in 12 rounds at Acapulco was a controversial win, so a return match was fought in Los Angeles, where Nápoles prevailed by decision.

Retirement

On December 6 of that year, however, Nápoles lost his title to British boxer John H. Stracey, who won over Nápoles by a technical knockout in round six at Mexico City despite being floored by Nápoles in round one. After this fight, Nápoles announced his retirement. He was able to stay away from the temptation of a comeback.

Nápoles had a final record of 81 wins and 7 losses, with 54 wins by knockout, which makes him a member of the exclusive group of boxers that won 50 or more fights by knockout in their careers.

Personal life

Napoles was the son of Pedro Napoles, a schoolteacher, and his wife Rosa. He had a brother, Pedro Napoles Jr. and nine children.<ref>Template:YouTube</ref> He resided in Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, Mexico, with his wife Bertha.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Napoles co-starred with superstar Santo in a 1974 Mexican wrestler/horror film called Santo en la venganza de la llorona, aka Santo and Mantequilla Napoles in the Revenge of the Crying Woman.

Nápoles died on August 16, 2019, in Mexico City, after a long-illness at the age of 79.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Honours

In 1985, Nápoles was inducted into The Ring boxing hall of fame, and in 1990 into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

Professional boxing record

Template:Abbr	Result	Record	Opponent	Type	Round	Date	Location	Notes
88	Template:No2Loss	81–7	John H. Stracey	TKO	6 (15)	Dec 6, 1975	Template:Small	Template:Small
87	Template:Yes2Win	81–6	Armando Muñíz	UD	15	Jul 12, 1975	Template:Small	Template:Small
86	Template:Yes2Win	80–6	Armando Muñíz	TD	12 (15)	Mar 29, 1975	Template:Small	Template:Small
85	Template:Yes2Win	79–6	Horacio Agustin Saldano	KO	3 (15)	Dec 14, 1974	Template:Small	Template:Small
84	Template:Yes2Win	78–6	Hedgemon Lewis	TKO	9 (15)	Aug 3, 1974	Template:Small	Template:Small
83	Template:No2Loss	77–6	Carlos Monzon	RTD	6 (15)	Feb 9, 1974	Template:Small	Template:Small
82	Template:Yes2Win	77–5	Clyde Gray	UD	15	Sep 22, 1973	Template:Small	Template:Small
81	Template:Yes2Win	76–5	Roger Menetrey	UD	15	Jun 23, 1973	Template:Small	Template:Small
80	Template:Yes2Win	75–5	Ernie Lopez	KO	7 (15)	Feb 28, 1973	Template:Small	Template:Small
79	Template:Yes2Win	74–5	Edmundo Leite	TKO	2 (10)	Aug 5, 1972	Template:Small
78	Template:Yes2Win	73–5	Adolph Pruitt	TKO	2 (15)	Jun 10, 1972	Template:Small	Template:Small
77	Template:Yes2Win	72–5	Ralph Charles	KO	7 (15)	Mar 28, 1972	Template:Small	Template:Small
76	Template:Yes2Win	71–5	Hedgemon Lewis	UD	15	Dec 14, 1971	Template:Small	Template:Small
75	Template:Yes2Win	70–5	Esteban Alfredo Osuna	UD	10	Oct 16, 1971	Template:Small
74	Template:Yes2Win	69–5	Jean Josselin	KO	5 (10)	Aug 23, 1971	Template:Small
73	Template:Yes2Win	68–5	David Melendez	TKO	5 (10)	Jul 31, 1971	Template:Small
72	Template:Yes2Win	67–5	Billy Backus	TKO	8 (15)	Jun 4, 1971	Template:Small	Template:Small
71	Template:Yes2Win	66–5	Manuel Gonzalez	KO	6 (10)	Mar 27, 1971	Template:Small
70	Template:No2Loss	65–5	Billy Backus	TKO	4 (15)	Dec 3, 1970	Template:Small	Template:Small
69	Template:Yes2Win	65–4	Pete Toro	TKO	9 (10)	Oct 5, 1970	Template:Small
68	Template:Yes2Win	64–4	Fighting Mack	KO	3 (10)	Aug 14, 1970	Template:Small
67	Template:Yes2Win	63–4	Ernie Lopez	TKO	15 (15)	Feb 14, 1970	Template:Small	Template:Small
66	Template:Yes2Win	62–4	Emile Griffith	UD	15	Oct 17, 1969	Template:Small	Template:Small
65	Template:Yes2Win	61–4	Curtis Cokes	RTD	10 (15)	Jun 29, 1969	Template:Small	Template:Small
64	Template:Yes2Win	60–4	Curtis Cokes	RTD	13 (15)	Apr 18, 1969	Template:Small	Template:Small
63	Template:Yes2Win	59–4	Fate Davis	TKO	6 (10)	Feb 15, 1969	Template:Small
62	Template:Yes2Win	58–4	Lennox Beckles	KO	1 (10)	Dec 22, 1968	Template:Small
61	Template:Yes2Win	57–4	Des Rea	TKO	5 (10)	Nov 4, 1968	Template:Small
60	Template:Yes2Win	56–4	Eddie Pace	UD	10	Jul 15, 1968	Template:Small
59	Template:Yes2Win	55–4	Leroy Roberts	TKO	1 (10)	Jun 14, 1968	Template:Small
58	Template:Yes2Win	54–4	Peter Cobblah	PTS	10	Jun 2, 1968	Template:Small
57	Template:Yes2Win	53–4	Herbie Lee	TKO	6 (10)	Apr 29, 1968	Template:Small
56	Template:Yes2Win	52–4	Mike Cruz	TKO	4 (10)	Feb 18, 1968	Template:Small
55	Template:Yes2Win	51–4	Charlie Watson	KO	6 (10)	Dec 3, 1967	Template:Small
54	Template:Yes2Win	50–4	Johnny DePeiza	TKO	1 (10)	Sep 11, 1967	Template:Small
53	Template:Yes2Win	49–4	LC Morgan	TKO	2 (10)	Jul 10, 1967	Template:Small
52	Template:Yes2Win	48–4	Johnny Brooks	KO	7 (10)	Jun 4, 1967	Template:Small
51	Template:Yes2Win	47–4	Eugenio Espinoza	TKO	6 (10)	Dec 17, 1966	Template:Small
50	Template:Yes2Win	46–4	Jimmy Fields	TKO	10 (10)	Oct 30, 1966	Template:Small
49	Template:No2Loss	45–4	LC Morgan	TKO	4 (10)	Aug 22, 1966	Template:Small
48	Template:Yes2Win	45–3	Humberto Trottman	KO	2 (10)	Jul 27, 1966	Template:Small
47	Template:Yes2Win	44–3	Al Grant	TKO	4 (10)	Apr 17, 1966	Template:Small
46	Template:Yes2Win	43–3	Johnny Santos	KO	3 (10)	Feb 12, 1966	Template:Small
45	Template:Yes2Win	42–3	Aldolph Pruitt	TKO	3 (10)	Dec 11, 1965	Template:Small
44	Template:Yes2Win	41–3	Eddie Perkins	UD	10	Aug 3, 1965	Template:Small
43	Template:Yes2Win	40–3	Giordano Campari	TKO	2 (10)	Mar 25, 1965	Template:Small
42	Template:Yes2Win	39–3	LC Morgan	KO	3 (10)	Feb 28, 1965	Template:Small
41	Template:Yes2Win	38–3	Carlos Rios	KO	5 (10)	Jan 1, 1965	Template:Small
40	Template:Yes2Win	37–3	Alfredo Urbino	KO	3 (10)	Nov 14, 1964	Template:Small
39	Template:Yes2Win	36–3	Eduardo Moreno	TKO	5 (12)	Aug 15, 1964	Template:Small
38	Template:Yes2Win	35–3	Carlos Morocho Hernández	TKO	7 (10)	Jun 22, 1964	Template:Small
37	Template:Yes2Win	34–3	Alfredo Urbina	TKO	1 (10)	Apr 25, 1964	Template:Small
36	Template:Yes2Win	33–3	Taketeru Yoshimoto	KO	1 (8)	Mar 1, 1964	Template:Small
35	Template:Yes2Win	32–3	LC Morgan	KO	7 (10)	Nov 30, 1963	Template:Small
34	Template:Yes2Win	31–3	Tony Perez	TKO	3 (10)	Nov 16, 1963	Template:Small
33	Template:Yes2Win	30–3	Francisco Cancio	KO	1 (10)	Oct 23, 1963	Template:Small
32	Template:Yes2Win	29–3	Pulga Serrano	TKO	10 (10)	Aug 19, 1963	Template:Small
31	Template:Yes2Win	28–3	Baby Vasquez	PTS	10	Jul 13, 1963	Template:Small
30	Template:Yes2Win	27–3	Raul Soriano	KO	4 (10)	May 27, 1963	Template:Small
29	Template:No2Loss	26–3	Alfredo Urbina	PTS	10	Apr 27, 1963	Template:Small
28	Template:Yes2Win	26–2	Baby Vasquez	UD	10	Mar 30, 1963	Template:Small
27	Template:Yes2Win	25–2	Baby Gutierrez	TKO	7 (10)	Feb 9, 1963	Template:Small
26	Template:No2Loss	24–2	Tony Perez	SD	10	Jan 5, 1963	Template:Small
25	Template:Yes2Win	24–1	Tony Perez	PTS	10	Nov 10, 1962	Template:Small
24	Template:Yes2Win	23–1	Bobby Cervantes	TKO	1 (10)	Sep 29, 1962	Template:Small
23	Template:Yes2Win	22–1	Kid Anahuac	KO	9 (10)	Aug 25, 1962	Template:Small
22	Template:Yes2Win	21–1	Enrique Camarena	KO	2 (10)	Jul 21, 1962	Template:Small
21	Template:Yes2Win	20–1	Angel Robinson Garcia	PTS	10	Jun 3, 1961	Template:Small
20	Template:Yes2Win	19–1	Rolando Chico Morales	UD	10	Mar 18, 1961	Template:Small
19	Template:Yes2Win	18–1	Guillermo Valdez	UD	10	Jan 28, 1961	Template:Small
18	Template:Yes2Win	17–1	Tony Padron	DQ	5 (10)	Dec 17, 1960	Template:Small
17	Template:Yes2Win	16–1	Rolando Chico Morales	PTS	10	Nov 26, 1960	Template:Small
16	Template:Yes2Win	15–1	Tony Padron	UD	10	Oct 15, 1960	Template:Small
15	Template:Yes2Win	14–1	Bunny Grant	PTS	10	Jul 2, 1960	Template:Small
14	Template:Yes2Win	13–1	Angel Robinson Garcia	PTS	10	May 21, 1960	Template:Small
13	Template:Yes2Win	12–1	Diwaldo Ventosa	UD	10	Feb 20, 1960	Template:Small
12	Template:Yes2Win	11–1	Isaac Espinosa	UD	10	Jan 2, 1960	Template:Small
11	Template:Yes2Win	10–1	Bobby Cervantes	TKO	1 (10)	Nov 28, 1959	Template:Small
10	Template:Yes2Win	9–1	Augusto Narvalle	UD	8	Nov 14, 1959	Template:Small
9	Template:Yes2Win	8–1	Cristobal Gonzalez	UD	8	Oct 3, 1959	Template:Small
8	Template:No2Loss	7–1	Hilton Smith	UD	8	Aug 22, 1959	Template:Small
7	Template:Yes2Win	7–0	Clodoaldo Hernandez	UD	8	Jul 25, 1959	Template:Small
6	Template:Yes2Win	6–0	Clodoaldo Hernandez	TKO	3 (6)	Jul 11, 1959	Template:Small
5	Template:Yes2Win	5–0	Juan Bacallo	TKO	4 (6)	May 16, 1959	Template:Small
4	Template:Yes2Win	4–0	Armando Castillo	PTS	4	Feb 21, 1959	Template:Small
3	Template:Yes2Win	3–0	Felix Pomares	TKO	2 (4)	Nov 29, 1958	Template:Small
2	Template:Yes2Win	2–0	Euripides Guerra	TKO	4 (4)	Oct 11, 1958	Template:Small
1	Template:Yes2Win	1–0	Julio Rojas	Template:Abbr	1 (4)	Aug 2, 1958	Template:Small

Titles in boxing

Major world titles

• NYSAC welterweight champion (147 lbs) (2×)
• WBA welterweight champion (147 lbs) (2×)
• WBC welterweight champion (147 lbs) (2×)

The Ring magazine titles

• The Ring welterweight champion (147 lbs) (2×)

Undisputed titles

• Undisputed welterweight champion (2×)

See also

• List of world welterweight boxing champions
• List of Mexican boxing world champions

External links

• Template:Boxrec
• https://titlehistories.com/boxing/na/usa/ny/nysac-wl.html