Hall of Fame Professional Boxer. He held the World Welterweight Title on two separate occasions (1969 to 1970 and 1971 to 1975). Widely regarded as one of the top fighters in the history of the Welterweight Division, he was known for his agility and dependability to close out a match once he sensed an opponent was weakened. Born Jose Angel Napoles, he tallied an impressive record as an amateur in his native Cuba and following the uprising of Fidel Castro, Napoles fled to Mexico where he established his base in Mexico City. He turned professional in 1958 and rose through the Lightweight and Junior Lightweight divisions, prior to moving up to the Welterweight Division in 1967. In April 1969, he finally got his chance at a title fight against Curtis Cokes and the result was a decimation of the champion in 13 rounds at the Inglewood Forum in Los Angeles. A rematch took place 10 months later in his native Mexico City which saw him defeat Cokes in 10 rounds. He followed this with wins over Emile Griffith and Ernie 'Red' Lopez, before he was defeated by Billy Backus due to severe cuts in 1970. In 1971, he recaptured the Welterweight Title after stopping Backus in their rematch. He sustained an impressive stretch of successful title defenses and in 1974, he moved up in weight class (Middleweight) for a bout with Carlos Monzon, which resulted in a loss. In 1975, he relinquished the Welterweight Title to John H. Stracey. He retired from boxing that year. In 84 bouts, he compiled a 84 win (54 knockout), 7 loss record. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990.
Hall of Fame Professional Boxer. He held the World Welterweight Title on two separate occasions (1969 to 1970 and 1971 to 1975). Widely regarded as one of the top fighters in the history of the Welterweight Division, he was known for his agility and dependability to close out a match once he sensed an opponent was weakened. Born Jose Angel Napoles, he tallied an impressive record as an amateur in his native Cuba and following the uprising of Fidel Castro, Napoles fled to Mexico where he established his base in Mexico City. He turned professional in 1958 and rose through the Lightweight and Junior Lightweight divisions, prior to moving up to the Welterweight Division in 1967. In April 1969, he finally got his chance at a title fight against Curtis Cokes and the result was a decimation of the champion in 13 rounds at the Inglewood Forum in Los Angeles. A rematch took place 10 months later in his native Mexico City which saw him defeat Cokes in 10 rounds. He followed this with wins over Emile Griffith and Ernie 'Red' Lopez, before he was defeated by Billy Backus due to severe cuts in 1970. In 1971, he recaptured the Welterweight Title after stopping Backus in their rematch. He sustained an impressive stretch of successful title defenses and in 1974, he moved up in weight class (Middleweight) for a bout with Carlos Monzon, which resulted in a loss. In 1975, he relinquished the Welterweight Title to John H. Stracey. He retired from boxing that year. In 84 bouts, he compiled a 84 win (54 knockout), 7 loss record. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990.
Bio by: C.S.
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