| Antonio Ayala Jr. | |
|---|---|
| Statistics | |
| Nickname(s) | El Torito |
| Rated at | Middleweight |
| Nationality | American |
| Born | February 13, 1963 San Antonio, Texas, U.S. |
| Stance | Orthodox |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 33 |
| Wins | 31 |
| Wins by KO | 27 |
| Losses | 2 |
| Draws | 0 |
Antonio Ayala Jr. (born February 13, 1963) is a former Mexican-American boxer in the Light Middleweight division. He began his professional career in 1980, and by 1982 he had compiled a record of 22 wins and no losses, with 19 knockouts. Ayala has two brothers who were boxers, Mike Ayala and Sammy Ayala.[1]
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Ayala was born in San Antonio, Texas. Tony is the brother of former boxers Mike Ayala, Paulie Ayala, Sammy Ayala and the son of trainer Tony Ayala, Sr.[2]
On one occasion, he spit on his opponent after knocking him to the ground. He also admitted to using heroin before a fight on three occasions (his brother Mike Ayala also made allegations of using drugs before his world title fight against Danny Lopez). In the summer of 1981, teenager Ayala was featured in a cover story of Sports Illustrated as a rising star in boxing. Veteran boxing writer Michael Katz claimed he was the best young fighter he had ever seen, Muhammad Ali's trainer Angelo Dundee said he thought Ayala could have been one of boxing's greatest fighters. On September 16, 1981, he fought on the undercard of the legendary fight between Sugar Ray Leonard and Thomas Hearns. After defeating Carlos Herrera at the end of 1982, he was scheduled to fight champion Davey Moore.[3]
The fight was not to be. On January 1, 1983, Ayala burglarized the home of his neighbor, a young schoolteacher, and brutally sexually assaulted her.[4] Although he was only 19 years old, Ayala had already been convicted twice of assaults against women. He had been given probation for these offenses.[5] Under a repeat offender's law, he was sentenced to 35 years in prison. The prosecutor at trial argued the young boxer should serve the full term because he was a danger to the community.[6]
Ayala was paroled from prison in 1999 and resumed his boxing career,[7] winning six high profile fights, all by knockout. An eliminator against hard hitting ex-champ Yori Boy Campas brought an end to his unlikely comeback, a hand injury caused Ayala to quit on his stool after 8 rounds. His troubles with the law continued. In 2000, he was shot in the shoulder by a young woman after breaking into her home. He received probation and a brief jail term for this offense. In 2003, Ayala was charged with having sex with a thirteen year old girl, but the charges were dismissed when the girl said she lied about it. Finally, in 2004 Ayala was sentenced to ten years in prison when found speeding, without a driving license and with heroin and pornography in his possession. He has since been released from prison on 16th November 2010.[8]