Ranking the 12 greatest Puerto Rican boxers of all time
With Mexican great Canelo Alvarez defending his titles Saturday in a national rivalry fight vs. Edgar Berlanga, it was time to publish my list
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One of the key storylines and a major part of the promotional angle for the fight between unified super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez and challenger Edgar Berlanga is the renewal of the rivalry between Mexico and Puerto Rico. It is one of the great national rivalries in boxing history.
Alvarez, the Mexican superstar, will make his eighth defense against the Brooklyn, New York-born Puerto Rican Berlanga in the main event of the PBC on Prime PPV on Saturday (Prime Video PPV, PPV.com, DAZN PPV, 8 p.m. ET, $89.99) at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The fight will be Alvarez’s first against a Puerto Rican opponent since he outpointed Hall of Famer and four-division champion Miguel Cotto to win the lineal and vacant WBC middleweight title in 2015.
Adding to the hype of the Mexico-Puerto Rico angle of the fight is that Alvarez-Berlanga will take place on Mexican Independence Day weekend, a traditional date for a major Mexican fight and a date Alvarez has targeted for his fights for years, along with the Cinco de Mayo weekend in May, which is when he outpointed Mexican countryman Jaime Munguia.
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Mexico and Puerto Rico have historically been boxing hotbeds and both have produced numerous great fighters.
I have often been asked by readers for how I rank the best Mexican and Puerto Rican fighters. So I have put together my top 12 list of each with why they are on the list.
My ranking of Mexican greats was published on Monday. Here is my ranking of Puerto Rican legends:
The top 12 Puerto Rican greats
1. Wilfredo Gomez
Record: 44-3-1, 42 KOs
Career: 1974-1989
Division titles: Junior featherweight, featherweight, junior lightweight
Why he’s here: “Bazooka,” who was a prolific puncher, won titles in three divisions but it was his epic run as WBC champion at 122 pounds that ranks as one of the great title reigns in boxing history. Gomez, who was a 1972 Olympian, made a division-record 17 title defenses and won them all by knockout (though it was interrupted by a move up to featherweight and a loss in his legendary fight with Mexican star Salvador Sanchez in 1981). He beat Dong-Kyun Yum for the title and defended against top opponents such as Royal Kobayashi, Hall of Famer Carlos Zarate, Juan “Kid” Meza and HOFer Lupe Pintor in an epic Puerto Rico-Mexico fight before vacating. He also beat Juan Laporte for a featherweight title and Rocky Lockridge for a junior lightweight crown.