Alexis Argüello
Encyclopedia
Alexis Argüello also known by the stage name
El Flaco Explosivo (lit. "The Explosive Thin Man"), was a Nicaragua
n professional boxer
and politician. As a boxer he was a three-time world champion, and has regularly been cited as one of the greatest fighters 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. His trainer was Lupe Sanchez. After his retirement from boxing, Argüello became active in Nicaraguan politics
and in November 2008 he was elected mayor of Managua
, the nation's capital city. He allegedly committed suicide on July 1, 2009.
Arguello is ranked 20th on Ring
magazine's list of 100 greatest punchers of all time.
of Panama in Panama. The young challenger lost a 15-round unanimous decision in Marcel's retirement bout.
Undaunted, Argüello began another streak of wins, and found himself in the ring with a world champion again, this time challenging Marcel's successor to the throne, Mexican world champion Rubén Olivares
in Los Angeles
. After Olivares 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 pain expression 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 defended this title a few times, then 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 Bayamón 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.
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 3 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 less known challengers in this division, one exception being the famous prospect Ray Mancini
(known as "Boom Boom" Mancini) who would later be the subject of a made for television movie. 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. This fight was referenced in the Warren Zevon
song "Boom Boom Mancini".
, in what was billed as The Battle of the Champions
in Miami, Florida
. Argüello was stopped in the 14th round. The fight sparked controversy however, 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. 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. A rematch was ordered. This time, in Las Vegas, Arguello 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.
, but after a few months in the jungle he retired from the war. 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 KO's, along with the recognition of being one of the sports 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
.
Argüello was an avid breeder of cats, and had several articles published in Cat Fancy magazine throughout the 1990s.
He remained very friendly with his old rival Aaron Pryor, and the pair saw each other several times a year until Argüello's death.
n 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 elections 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.
, according to a report from Channel 8 national television. Reports now say there could be some foul play involved.
The national police have confirmed the death, but are still awaiting the results of the autopsy.
Those close to Argüello are saying that he was becoming progressively disenchanted with the Ortegistas and the Sandinista government, and was planning an imminent departure from the Sandinista political party.
http://lisa-olson.fanhouse.com/2009/08/31/son-in-fight-of-alexis-arguellos-life/
Stage name
A stage name, also called a showbiz name or screen name, is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers such as actors, wrestlers, comedians, and musicians.-Motivation to use a stage name:...
El Flaco Explosivo (lit. "The Explosive Thin Man"), was a 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...
n professional boxer
Professional Boxing
Professional boxing, or prizefighting, emerged in the early twentieth century as boxing gradually attained legitimacy and became a regulated, sanctioned sport. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse which is divided among the fighters and promoters as determined by contract...
and politician. As a boxer he was a three-time world champion, and has regularly been cited as one of the greatest fighters 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. His trainer was Lupe Sanchez. After his retirement from boxing, Argüello became active in Nicaraguan politics
Politics of Nicaragua
Nicaragua is a presidential representative democratic republic, in which the President of Nicaragua is both head of state and head of government, and there is a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the National...
and in November 2008 he was elected mayor of Managua
Managua
Managua is the capital city of Nicaragua as well as the department and municipality by the same name. It is the largest city in Nicaragua in terms of population and geographic size. Located on the southwestern shore of Lake Xolotlán or Lake Managua, the city was declared the national capital in...
, the nation's capital city. He allegedly committed suicide on July 1, 2009.
Arguello is ranked 20th on 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...
magazine's list of 100 greatest punchers of all time.
Boxing career
"The Explosive Thin Man" suffered an unavenged first round TKO loss in his 1968 professional debut, but then won 36 of his next 38 bouts, which then led him to a world Featherweight championship bout against experienced WBA champion Ernesto MarcelErnesto Marcel
Ernesto Marcel is a retired Panamanian boxer.-Career:Making his professional debut as a teenager in 1966, Marcel built up a record of 31-3-1, which included a second round knockout of Bernardo Caraballo, who had previously fought Fighting Harada and Éder Jofre for world titles, and a tenth round...
of Panama in Panama. The young challenger lost a 15-round unanimous decision in Marcel's retirement bout.
Undaunted, Argüello began another streak of wins, and found himself in the ring with a world champion again, this time challenging Marcel's successor to the throne, Mexican world champion Rubén Olivares
Rubén Olivares
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...
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...
. After Olivares 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 pain expression 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 defended this title a few times, then moved up in weight to challenge world Junior Lightweight champion Alfredo Escalera
Alfredo Escalera
Alfredo Escalera is a Puerto Rican who was a world champion boxer. A native of Carolina, his nickname was "Salsero" because he was a fan of Salsa music.-Early boxing career:...
in Bayamón, 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...
, in what has been nicknamed The Bloody Battle of Bayamón by many. Escalera had been a busy champion with ten defenses, and he had dethroned Kuniaki Shibata
Kuniaki Shibata
Kuniaki Shibata is a former Japanese professional boxer. He is a former WBC and WBA super featherweight champion.- Biography :...
in 2 rounds in Tokyo. In what some experts (including 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...
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
Rimini
Rimini is a medium-sized city of 142,579 inhabitants in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, and capital city of the Province of Rimini. It is located on the Adriatic Sea, on the coast between the rivers Marecchia and Ausa...
, Italy, as well as former and future world champion Bobby Chacon
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...
, future two time world champion Rafael "Bazooka" Limón
Rafael Limon
Rafael Limón is a Mexican former boxer who was a world champion in the Super Featherweight /Jr. Lightweight division twice.He is better known as Bazooka Limón. Limón shares his nickname, Bazooka, with at least two other known world boxing champions: Puerto Rico's Wilfredo "Bazooka" Gómez and...
, Ruben Castillo, future champion Rolando Navarrete
Rolando Navarrete
Rolando Navarrete is a Filipino ex-boxer who briefly held a junior lightweight world title in the 80s.-Fighting style:A fine boxer, Navarrete had a good talent and was known for his hard-hitting punches....
, 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
Flight
Flight is the process by which an object moves either through an atmosphere or beyond it by generating lift or propulsive thrust, or aerostatically using buoyancy, or by simple ballistic movement....
to catch from Rome the next day to return to Nicaragua, and he boarded a train
Train
A train is a connected series of vehicles for rail transport that move along a track to transport cargo or passengers from one place to another place. The track usually consists of two rails, but might also be a monorail or maglev guideway.Propulsion for the train is provided by a separate...
from Rimini. The doctor decided to travel with Argüello, and performed plastic surgery
Plastic surgery
Plastic surgery is a medical specialty concerned with the correction or restoration of form and function. Though cosmetic or aesthetic surgery is the best-known kind of plastic surgery, most plastic surgery is not cosmetic: plastic surgery includes many types of reconstructive surgery, hand...
on Argüello's cuts with Argüello awake.
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 3 divisions, and the second Latin American (after Wilfred Benítez
Wilfred Benitez
Wilfred Benítez , is a Puerto Rican boxer. He is remembered best as a skilled and aggressive fighter with exceptional defensive abilities who won world championships in three separate weight divisions, and was the youngest world champion in boxing history at the age of 17...
had become the first by beating Maurice Hope
Maurice Hope
Maurice Hope is a former boxer from England, who was world Jr. Middleweight champion. Hope lived in Hackney most of his life, but now lives in his place of birth, Antigua. He represented Great Britain at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, West Germany.- Biography :Maurice Hope moved at a very...
one month before) to do it. He had to face some less known challengers in this division, one exception being the famous prospect Ray Mancini
Ray Mancini
Ray "Boom Boom" Mancini is a retired Italian-American boxer. He held the World Boxing Association lightweight championship from 1982 to 1984. Mancini inherited his distinctive nickname from his father, veteran boxer Lenny "Boom Boom" Mancini, who laid the foundation for his son's career...
(known as "Boom Boom" Mancini) who would later be the subject of a made for television movie. 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. This fight was referenced in the Warren Zevon
Warren Zevon
Warren William Zevon was an American rock singer-songwriter and musician noted for including his sometimes sardonic opinions of life in his musical lyrics, composing songs that were sometimes humorous and often had political or historical themes.Zevon's work has often been praised by well-known...
song "Boom Boom Mancini".
Battles with Aaron Pryor
After defeating James 'Bubba' Busceme by sixth round stoppage, Argüello decided to move up in weight class time again, and on November 12, 1982, he tried to become the first world champion in 4 different categories, meeting the heavier and future Hall-of-Famer Aaron PryorAaron Pryor
Aaron Pryor is a former boxer from Cincinnati, Ohio, and member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame. He is the former world Junior Welterweight champion, and regarded as one of the greatest fighters in the history of the weight class.-Amateur career:Pryor, nicknamed The Hawk, had a record of...
, in what was billed as The Battle of the Champions
The Battle of the Champions
The Battle of the Champions, was a term used by promoter Bob Arum regarding the November 12, 1982 boxing match between Aaron Pryor and Alexis Argüello.-The Fighters:...
in Miami, Florida
Miami, Florida
Miami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625...
. Argüello was stopped in the 14th round. The fight sparked controversy however, because Pryor's trainer, Panama Lewis
Panama Lewis
Carlos "Panama" Lewis is a well-known and highly controversial boxing trainer who achieved his greatest notoriety in the 1980s.-Early career:Lewis was a disciple of trainer Chickie Ferrara...
, 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
Urinalysis
A urinalysis , also known as Routine and Microscopy , is an array of tests performed on urine, and one of the most common methods of medical diagnosis...
, adding to speculation that the bottle contained an unsanctioned substance. It was later revealed in an interview with former Lewis-trained boxer Luis Resto
Luis Resto
Luis Resto born Luis Edgardo Resto, is a Detroit-based musician, producer and keyboardist who has worked closely with rapper Eminem since his third major-label album The Eminem Show. He is of Puerto Rican descent, with both of his parents from Puerto Rico, and was raised in Detroit , Michigan...
that Lewis would break apart antihistamine
Antihistamine
An H1 antagonist is a histamine antagonist of the H1 receptor that serves to reduce or eliminate effects mediated by histamine, an endogenous chemical mediator released during allergic reactions...
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. A rematch was ordered. This time, in Las Vegas, Arguello 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 NicaraguaNicaragua
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...
, but after a few months in the jungle he retired from the war. 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 KO's, along with the recognition of being one of the sports most universally respected fighters among fans, experts, and boxers.
Argüello was elected to 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...
in 1992. In 2008 he was honored by being selected as Nicaragua's flag-bearer at the Opening Ceremony of the Beijing Olympics
2008 Summer Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, was a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008. A total of 11,028 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees competed in 28 sports and 302 events...
.
Argüello was an avid breeder of cats, and had several articles published in Cat Fancy magazine throughout the 1990s.
He remained very friendly with his old rival Aaron Pryor, and the pair saw each other several times a year until Argüello's death.
Political career
Argüello was actively involved in NicaraguaNicaragua
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...
n politics
Politics
Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
with the Sandinista National Liberation Front
Sandinista National Liberation Front
The Sandinista National Liberation Front is a socialist political party in Nicaragua. Its members are called Sandinistas in both English and Spanish...
(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 elections against the candidate of the Constitutionalist Liberal Party, Eduardo Montealegre
Eduardo Montealegre
Eduardo Montealegre is a Nicaraguan politician. He ran for president in the 2006 general election as the candidate of the Nicaraguan Liberal Alliance a spin-off of the Constitutional Liberal Party in alliance with other liberal parties and the Conservative Party...
, who had come second to Daniel Ortega
Daniel Ortega
José Daniel Ortega Saavedra is a Nicaraguan politician and revolutionary, currently serving as the 83rd President of Nicaragua, a position that he has held since 2007. He previously served as the 79th President, between 1985 and 1990, and for much of his life, has been a leader in the Sandinista...
in the 2006 presidential election
Nicaraguan general election, 2006
Nicaragua held a general election on 5 November 2006. The country's voters went to the polls to elect a new President of the Republic and 90 members of the National Assembly, all of whom will serve five-year terms...
. Argüello's margin of victory was narrow as he attained just 51.30% of the vote.
Death
Argüello died around 1 a.m. local time on July 1, 2009, after allegedly shooting himself through the heart in ManaguaManagua
Managua is the capital city of Nicaragua as well as the department and municipality by the same name. It is the largest city in Nicaragua in terms of population and geographic size. Located on the southwestern shore of Lake Xolotlán or Lake Managua, the city was declared the national capital in...
, according to a report from Channel 8 national television. Reports now say there could be some foul play involved.
The national police have confirmed the death, but are still awaiting the results of the autopsy.
Those close to Argüello are saying that he was becoming progressively disenchanted with the Ortegistas and the Sandinista government, and was planning an imminent departure from the Sandinista political party.
http://lisa-olson.fanhouse.com/2009/08/31/son-in-fight-of-alexis-arguellos-life/
See also
- List of lightweight boxing champions
- List of WBC world champions
- List of boxing triple champions
External links
- BoxingInsider.com Biofile interview with Alexis Arguello
- Aladdin Freeman's BraggingRights Interview With Arguello 2004
- On June 26, 2009 in Carolina, Puerto RicoCarolina, Puerto RicoCarolina is a city located in the northern part of Puerto Rico, bordering the Atlantic Ocean; it lies north of Gurabo and Juncos; east of Trujillo Alto and San Juan; and west of Canóvanas and Loíza. Carolina is spread over 12 wards plus Carolina Pueblo...
, Argúello placed flowers at a monument for Roberto ClementeRoberto ClementeRoberto Clemente Walker was a Puerto Rican Major League Baseball right fielder. He was born in Carolina, Puerto Rico, the youngest of seven children. Clemente played his entire 18-year baseball career with the Pittsburgh Pirates . He was awarded the National League's Most Valuable Player Award in...
to honor the late baseball great. YouTube video - La Prensa - police statement