TRIUMPH AND TRAGEDY
tape and was blown away by what he saw. “This kid can really bang,” said Espinoza. “He had Larios out for five or 10 minutes.” Larios became a sort of satellite to Vazquez. They fought each other three times. By the time Vazquez fought his first fight in the United States, Espinoza was his manager, a partnership that lasted through the remainder of Israel’s career. His U.S. debut was a six-round unanimous decision over Antonio Ramirez at the Sycuan Resort and Casino in El Cajon, California, on March 15, 1998. Espinoza kept him busy, and word of Magnifico’s prowess spread. The crowds that came to see him grew exponentially. The audiences liked what they saw: a steely-eyed young man whose occasional hiccups didn’t faze his upward trajectory. He was fun to watch – a quick, determined stalker with a decent defense and a wicked punch. What’s not to like? On May 17, 2002, Vazquez lost to late-sub Larios in a WBC interim junior featherweight match. “I really didn’t want him to take the fight, because the fighters we were sparring with weren’t the same style,” said Espinoza. “I told Vazquez, ‘Don’t take the fight. We don’t have to take it. Just wait.’ But Vazquez, the warrior that he is, said, ‘I beat him once and I’ll do it again.’” Not this time, Israel. You should have taken Espinoza’s advice, but at least you knew what went wrong. “My big mistake was trying to land one big punch while he was landing them the entire fight, hitting me over and over,” he said. Larios knocked Vazquez down twice in the 12th round and the fight was stopped at the 1:57 mark. E spinoza must have been working overtime behind the scenes, because three victories over modest opponents later, Vazquez met Jose Luis Valbuena for the vacant IBF junior featherweight title at the Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles on March 25, 2004. Magnifico floored Valbuena in the fourth and again in the 12th round. Soon after Valbuena
regained his feet, Vazquez caught him with a terrific left-right combination, prompting referee James Jen-Kin to stop the fight 34 seconds into the final round. For titleholders weighing 122 pounds, big money is relative. Every now and then, however, a lower-weight hopeful will become a superstar – think Naoya Inoue, Manny Pacquiao, Michael Carbajal. Extroverts have an edge because they draw attention to themselves, but that wouldn’t work for Vazquez. As Freddie Roach famously remarked, “When he comes into the gym, nobody notices.” In the ring is where he was noticed. An opponent sees Vazquez coming after him with a deadpan expression, most likely blood trickling down his face, danger in both fists, convinced he will prevail. Five world title bouts followed the Valbuena victory. Vazquez won them all, four inside the distance. The fab five were Artyom Simonyan, Armando Guerrero, Larios, Ivan Hernandez and Jhonny Gonzalez. Guerrero gave Vazquez a demanding fight. All three judges scored it 116-112 for Vazquez, but that might have been a tad too wide. Many observers said it could have been a draw. Larios, the man who would not go away, gave it one last try on December 3, 2005. The Guadalajara native entered their rubber match as the defending WBC titleholder, and the vacant Ring Magazine 122-pound championship was on the line. Vazquez was more than ready for him. “By then I knew how he was. I had fought him already,” said Vazquez. “When I connected with an uppercut, he almost went down … I started throwing so many punches, and when Larios went down, I didn’t even realize he was on the canvas. I threw a punch and the referee broke us apart. I thought, ‘Shit, they are going to disqualify me because he was down.’ But no, they let us continue fighting, and then I threw a jab that opened a bad cut, and the doctor stopped the fight [at the 2:52 mark of the third round].” Magnifico relinquished the IBF strap due to some alphabet shenanigans involving the ratings. He still had the
WBC title and the Ring belt he’d won by defeating Larios. In a wild slugfest with Gonzalez. Vazquez was down in the fourth and sixth, and Gonzalez was down in the seventh and 10th. Jhonny’s corner threw the towel in the ring after he was knocked down the second time. It was an insane fight and I wish I could have been there. The Ring made Vazquez Fighter of the Month. I’m not doing any math, but Vazquez just might have been the thrill- provider of his day. M ention Israel Vazquez among fight people and they automatically turn the conversation to a discussion about his series with Rafael Marquez. And that’s how it should be. Remembering greatness. To start with, the boxers weighed only 122 pounds. The rivalry was special in that it grabbed the attention of the boxing public and created a unique narrative that built to a perfect pitch. “With the first punch of the first round, my nose was bleeding,” said Vazquez. “I think it was in the second round when he broke the little part of my nose that allows you to breathe. “He would land punches on the nose, and it took me out of my concentration because the pain at the moment was very intense.” Vazquez remained in his corner after the seventh round ended. “Ten days after the fight, we took him to a doctor, a plastic surgeon we had heard was very good,” said Espinoza. “There were prior injuries to the nose. [The doctor] said 100% was closed on one side and 90% on the other.” The second Vazquez-Marquez match took place in Hidalgo, Texas, on August 4, 2007, at the Dodge Arena. From the opening bell, there was frenzied action as the pair traded punches at a remarkable pace. Marquez appeared to have a slender edge in the early going, but Vazquez was relentless and gradually wore him down. Entering the sixth round, both men wore the signs of abuse they had absorbed. Vazquez was leaking blood from cuts over both eyes – what else is new – and Marquez looked like he had
run headlong into a brick wall. Vazquez dropped Marquez with a left hook in the sixth. He beat the count, but Israel immediately went back to work and didn’t stop punching until referee Jose Guadalupe Garcia stopped the fight
of head shots. Rafael was stunned; only the ropes were holding him up. When he slumped to a sitting position on the bottom rope, referee Pat Russell correctly ruled it a knockdown. Seconds later, the fight-ending bell rang.
anyone could hope for – a masterful war between uniquely courageous athletes, and it’s appropriate to stand back and just acknowledge straight-on the excellence of the fighters and what they did.”
at 1:16 of the round. The breathtaking combat was The Ring’s 2007 Fight of the Year, and the third round was The Ring’s Round of the Year. According to Espinoza, Vazquez received $400,000 and $50,000 training expenses for the second Marquez match. Israel laughed and said, “It was nice and I’m hoping for more. I’m hoping for millions of dollars.” With one victory each in a pair of spine-tingling fights, a third bout was a given. It took place on March 1, 2008, at the same venue where it all started, the Home Depot Center in Carson, California, televised by Showtime. The rivalry reached its apex in their third fight, one of the very best I’ve ever seen. Marquez knocked Vazquez down in the sixth, but when he regained his feet, Israel savagely tore into his adversary, taking him by surprise. Back and forth they went, swapping
Most fans like to think of the Vazquez-Marquez rivalry as a trilogy, but it unfortunately wasn’t. There was a fourth fight between Israel and Rafael on May 22, 2010, at the Staples Center. Everybody knew Vazquez’s eye would start to gush blood the first time Rafael hit him. “I didn’t want that fight,” said Espinoza recently, “but Israel had done something foolish and lost his money. He was in danger of losing his house, so we took the fight. It was sad.” They stopped it in the third round. It was hard to watch. But what took place over the next 15 years was much, much worse. When I first saw a photo of Vazquez after he retired from boxing, I thought the caption was wrong. His face was so skinny it was enough to make you cry. He was suffering from systemic sclerosis and cancer but still managed a
blows at every turn. Just when you thought things were going one way, the other boxer rallied. The fight seemed even when the bell rang to start Round 12. You just knew the final three minutes were going to decide the winner, and I’m sure the fighters did, too. After a good start, Marquez was still exchanging volleys but appeared to be fading. Vazquez landed a series of jolting right hands and it seemed like Marquez was ready to go, but he stayed upright, desperately trying to stave off his rampaging antagonist. Vazquez forced Marquez into the corner with a series
little smile. Magnifico died on December 2, 2024. Except for his right eye, which was surgically removed because of accumulated fight damage and botched treatments, I know of no connections between boxing and any of his physical ailments. But I’m not a doctor or a scientist. All I know for sure is that Israel Vazquez was as brave as any boxer I’ve known and could punch like a middleweight. I put a check mark next to his name on my International Boxing Hall of Fame ballot and mailed it to Canastota before he died.
Vazquez (embracing Oscar Larios) had more than a warrior’s heart; he was kind and compassionate.
It was The Ring’s 2008 Fight of the Year, and the fourth was the Round of the Year. The Boxing Writers Association of America also voted it 2008’s Fight of the Year. Ivan Goldman, The Ring’s West Coast correspondent, summed it up flawlessly: “Every once in a while, you see two magnificent adversaries in a contest that was even finer than
70
71
Made with FlippingBook - Online magazine maker