WHO?S AFRAID OF VALERO?S 24-0 RECORD?
Mugabi was 25-0 (25 KOs) when Hagler tore him to pieces
By Alex P. Vidal
PhilBoxing.com
Wed, 02 Jul 2008
LAREDO, Texas ? In boxing, what matters most is quality not quantity.
Quality of the opponents, not their quantity.
History has proven that not all boxers who are undefeated and knockout specialists are invincible. To a certain extent, there has to be an ending to their dominance in the square jungle; and records reveal their imminent Waterloo occurs during world championship tussles.
Former World Boxing Council (WBC) light middleweight champion John ?The Beast? Mugabi of Kampala, Uganda was the most prominent among them.
Mugabi, perhaps the deadliest warrior to grace the middleweight division in the mid-80?s, was 25 years old when he was pitted against Marvelous Marvin Hagler, then undisputed crownholder of the middleweight titles in WBC, World Boxing Association (WBA) and International Boxing Federation (IBF).
Because Mugabi was ranked No. 1 contender in all the three world boxing bodies and possessed an immaculate and fearsome record of 25 wins, no defeat with all of his 25 wins by coming by way knockout, oddsmakers thought 'The Beast' was the missing link in the long quest to end Hagler?s mind-boggling supremacy in the division.
They were wrong. On March 10, 1986, Hagler (62-3, 52 KOs) blasted the Ugandan to smithereens in the 11th stanza of the 12-round battle for the undisputed middleweight championship of the world at the Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.
Although he knocked out cold all his previous 25 rivals, Mugabi had no match to the vastly incredible Hagler, then 31 years old, and was the darling of the boxing community in his time.
Hagler ruled the world unmolested and was unfazed by Mugabi?s fearsome record. 'The Beast' was never the same again after being exposed by Hagler. He lost by technical knockout (TKO) to Duane Thomas in his next fight, a WBC light middleweight showdown also in the same venue.
On Nov. 3, 1984, former WBC super bantamweight champion Jaime Garza was 40-0 with 38 knockouts when he lost his title by a shock first round knockout to unheralded Juan Meza who had 41 victories against five losses.
Venezuelan phenom Edwin Valero, 26, has caught the attention of Top Rank promoter Bob Arum for possessing a nerve-tingling 24-0 ledger spiked with 24 knockouts (18 in the first round). He is reportedly next in line for WBC lightweight champion Manny Pacquiao, who is fresh from toppling David Diaz in the 9th round in the fight dubbed ?Lethal Combination? at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino.
Experts said either Valero will do a Jaime Garza or he will end up the next John Mugabi.
But Pacquiao (47-3, 36 KOs) said as a fighter, he will only do his best and train hard, and not to pick his opponent.
Top photo: Marvelous Marvin Hagler (R) and John 'The Beast' Mugabi during their fight on March 10, 1986 at the Ceasars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Alex P. Vidal.
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