| Héctor Camacho | |
|---|---|
| Statistics | |
| Real name | Hector Luis Camacho |
| Nickname(s) | Macho Camacho |
| Rated at | Junior lightweight |
| Height | 1.69 m (5 ft 6 1⁄2 in) |
| Reach | 175 cm (69 in) |
| Nationality | Puerto Rican |
| Born | May 24, 1962 Bayamón, Puerto Rico |
| Stance | Southpaw |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 87 |
| Wins | 79 |
| Wins by KO | 38 |
| Losses | 5 |
| Draws | 3 |
| No contests | 1 |
Héctor Camacho (born May 24, 1962), nicknamed "Macho Camacho", is a Puerto Rican professional boxer. His son, Héctor Camacho Jr., is also a boxer.
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Camacho was born in Bayamon, Puerto Rico, but his family moved to Spanish Harlem when he was a child. He ran into trouble there as a teen, getting into fights and landing in jail at 15. He also learned boxing and karate as a teenager, and since he demonstrated talent as a boxer, he chose that sport as a career. He is the first fighter to win in seven different divisions.
Camacho won three New York Golden Gloves Championships. Camacho won the 1978 112 lb Sub-Novice Championship, 1979 118 lb Open Championship and 1980 119 lb Open Championship. In 1979 Camacho defeated Paul DeVorce of the Yonkers Police Athletic League in the finals to win the title, and in 1980 Camacho defeated Tyrone Jackson in the finals to win the Championship. Camacho trained at the LaSombra Sporting Club in New York.
After a stellar amateur career, Camacho began a quick rise through the professional rankings, first in the Featherweight and then in the Junior Lightweight division. He was so confident that he claimed he could beat World featherweight champions Salvador Sánchez and Eusebio Pedroza. However, Sanchez died when Camacho was still coming up in the ranks.
In the Junior Lightweight division, he defeated top contenders Irleis Cubanito Perez, Melvin Paul, John Montes and Refugio Rojas (Both Montes and Rojas lasted one round, and Rojas would later last seven in a world title challenge of Julio César Chávez for Chavez's world Jr. Lightweight championship).
| External audio | |
|---|---|
| You may watch Hector "Macho" Camacho fight Rafael "Bazooka Limón", here | |
When World Junior Lightweight champion Bobby Chacón refused to go to Puerto Rico to defend his title against Camacho, the WBC declared the world championship vacant, and the man Chacon had taken the title from, Rafael Limón, fought Camacho for the vacant title. It was the first time Camacho was in a ring with a former world champion, and he didn't show any lack of experience, scoring knockdowns on Limón in the first and third rounds before the referee stopped the fight in the fifth round.
His first defense also came in San Juan where he met fellow Puerto Rican Rafael Solis, whose family included former world bantamweight champion Julian Solís. Camacho got tested in this fight for the first time, and was shaken in round three by a Solis uppercut, but he flattened Solis with a right to the chin in round five, knocking him out to retain the title.
Next came a move to lightweighthe won the United States Boxing Association title with a twelve round decision of Roque Montoya. His next fight made him a two time world champion. Fought on Home Box Office, Camacho beat the Mexican defending world champion, José Luis Ramírez in Las Vegas to win the WBC world Lightweight championship. Camacho dropped Ramirez in round three and went on to win the fight by a unanimous twelve round decision.
The two other reigning world champions in his division at that time, Livingstone Bramble and Jimmy Paul, were reluctant to unify the crown with Camacho. Instead, he beat Freddie Roach before his next fight of importance came along, ten months after beating Ramirez.
He met Edwin Rosario at Madison Square Garden in New York, once again on HBO. In a famous fight, Camacho dominated rounds one to four, but had to hang on for dear life in rounds five, six and seven when he felt Rosario's power. He came back to take rounds eight and nine, but Rosario came back taking the last three rounds. It was a close fight but Camacho won the title by split decision. After this fight, Camacho's style changed into a defensive style that seemed more intent on avoiding punishment than winning a fight.
Camacho then retained his title vs former world junior lightweight champion Cornelius Boza Edwards in Miami in a unanimous decision before going up in weight again. After a few fights there, he met former world lightweight champion Ray "Boom Boom" Mancini, who had a record of 29-3 with 23 knockouts coming into this fight, for the vacant WBO Light Welterweight title. Camacho was the fresher of the two and ended up winning a unanimous twelve round decision, joining that exclusive group of world champion boxers who have become three-weight world champions.
Camacho next met Vinny Pazienza, winning on points again. His next challenger was Tony Baltazar, from Phoenix. Baltazar was another points victim on an HBO televised bout. Camacho saw his undefeated streak come to an end and lost his world championship to the former world Lightweight champion Greg Haugen. This fight would have ended in a draw if it were not for the fact that the referee deducted one point from Camacho for refusing to touch gloves with Haugen at the start of the 12th round. After the fight, an unidentified substance was found in Haugen's urine, and a rematch was ordered. Camacho regained the title, beating Haugen in a close split decision.
In 1992 Camacho met the legendary Mexican Julio César Chávez for a showdown with the undefeated 81-0 champion. Camacho entered the Las Vegas ring dressed in an outfit based on the Puerto Rican flag for a fight televised by Showtime's Pay Per View. During the bout Camacho was criticized for his retreating tactics as Chávez kept pushing the fight and constantly harassed him with hard punches to the body. The highly anticipated bout ended with a victory by unanimous decision for Chávez.
Among Camacho's notable bouts since 1992 were two victories (by points) over Roberto Durán, (one in Atlantic City, the other in Denver). In 1997, he knocked out Sugar Ray Leonard in 5 rounds. This loss sent the forty-one year-old Leonard into permanent retirement, putting an end to his third comeback attempt six years after a loss to Terry Norris in 1991. Camacho fought for the World Welterweight Championship against Félix Trinidad (in 1994) and Oscar De La Hoya (in 1997), losing both matches by unanimous decision.
On December 5, 2003, Camacho recovered from a first round knockdown (the third against him in his career) to defeat Craig Houk by knockout in round three.
Camacho won, on July 4, 2004, a unanimous ten round decision over Clinton McNeil.
On January 6, 2005, Camacho was arrested by police in Mississippi on charges of trying to burgle an electronic goods store and carrying ecstasy on him.
On July 9 he returned to the ring, in Tucson, Arizona, beating Raul Muñoz by decision after ten rounds. A small riot ensued, both inside and outside the ring[1] and old rival, Julio Cesar Chavez, had to be escorted out of the arena where the fight took place by security. Police are investigating this case.
Camacho returned to boxing on July 18, 2008, competing against Perry Ballard for the World Boxing Empire's Middleweight championship.[2] The fight lasted seven rounds. Camacho won when Ballard's corner threw the towel. Before this fight, Camacho was trained by Angelo Dundee.[3]
| Vacant
Title last held by
Bobby Chacon |
WBC Super Featherweight Champion 7 Aug 1983–1984 Vacated |
Vacant
Title next held by
Julio César Chávez |
| Preceded by José Luis Ramírez |
WBC Lightweight Champion 10 Aug 1985–1987 Vacated |
Vacant
Title next held by
José Luis Ramírez |
| Inaugural Champion | WBO Light Welterweight Champion 6 Mar 1989 – 23 Feb 1991 |
Succeeded by Greg Haugen |
| Preceded by Greg Haugen |
WBO Light Welterweight Champion 18 May 1991–1992 Vacated |
Vacant
Title next held by
Carlos González |
On an interview published on the website, Ringsidereport.com with Dan Hernandez, Camacho proclaimed himself a newborn Christian [1]. In 2010, Camacho participated ¡Mira Quien Baila! a reality show airing on Univision in the United States. The show is the American/Spanish-Speaking version of Dancing with the Stars[4]