FIGHTLINE BY DOUG FISCHER
Fights only last a matter of minutes, but fighters are connected to each other by chains that extend for decades – even centuries – into the past. Their bond is a lineage built face-to-face: A young prospect struggles with the skills of an aging veteran whose nose was once broken by a fighter now enshrined in the International Boxing Hall of Fame. In that way, muscle memory carries knowledge and boxers face a piece of everyone their opponent has fought, everyone those people fought, and so on. This month we’re linking one of Puerto Rico’s most beloved fighters to the newest face of the Caribbean island’s boxing scene – Hall of Famer Felix Trinidad and unified junior middleweight titleholder Xander Zayas. One of the most popular and accomplished boxers in Puerto Rico’s long and rich boxing history, Trinidad was a relentless technician who wielded fight-ending power – especially with his vaunted left hook.
N
Three years after his pro debut, “Tito” won his first world title – the IBF welterweight belt – with a brutal stoppage of veteran Maurice Blocker (KO 2) in 1993. He defended the title 15 times during a six-year reign that included undefeated contenders Yory Boy Campas (TKO 4) and Oba Carr (TKO 8), as well as Hall of Famers Hector Camacho (UD 12), Pernell Whitaker (UD 12) and Oscar De La Hoya (MD 12). After the narrow, title-unifying decision over De La Hoya in 1999, Trinidad moved up to junior middleweight, where he unified the IBF and WBA titles with grueling beatdowns of two 1996 Olympians – gold medal-winner David Reid (UD 12) and Fernando Vargas (TKO 12). His brutal 2000 campaign earned him The Ring’s Fighter of the Year award.
TRINIDAD MD 12 DE LA HOYA SEPTEMBER 18, 1999
MOSLEY SD 12 DE LA HOYA JUNE 17, 2000
MOSLEY TKO 10 LOPEZ DECEMBER 17, 2015
Trinidad turned his sights to the middleweight division in 2001, battering William Joppy (TKO 5) for the WBA belt but failing against fellow future Hall of Famer Bernard Hopkins in a bid for the undisputed championship. He wrapped up his superb career with a scintillating stoppage of Ricardo Mayorga (TKO 8) in 2004, and decision losses to future Hall of Famers Winky Wright (2005) and Roy Jones Jr. (2008). Win or lose, the Cupey Alto native was supported by the island of Puerto Rico and by hardcore fans everywhere. Tito finished with a 42-3 (35 KOs) record and was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2014. While Trinidad might be the ultimate seek-and-destroy fighter, Zayas is the epitome of a stick-and-move boxer. The San Juan native doesn’t punch anywhere near as hard as his fellow Boricua, but he’s more versatile in the ring. After a successful junior amateur career, Zayas turned pro at 16 in 2019 and was signed by Top Rank, which developed him into a hot junior middleweight prospect. Once Zayas had physically matured enough for his first test, he took on former titleholder Patrick Teixeira in 2024 and outclassed the rugged Brazilian veteran to a 10-round decision. One year later, he won the vacant WBO title at age 22 by outboxing Mexican spoiler Jorge Garcia Perez (UD 12). In his next bout, on January 31, Zayas became a unified beltholder in front of a packed arena in his hometown with a hard-fought split decision over dangerous WBA titlist Abass Baraou. The classy 23-year-old may not be as dynamic as Tito, but he shares the Hall of Famer’s charisma and has all the makings of Puerto Rico’s next star attraction. There are multiple paths linking the proud Puerto Ricans, whose primes are separated by 25 years, but we found this five-boxer Fightline. Can you find a faster route? If so, or if you have another Fightline you’d like to submit, send it to comeoutwriting@gmail.com. And remember, some fighters can be linked on paper by jumping forward and backward in time, but to be a true lineage, the fights must come in chronological order.
ADAMES TKO 4 LOPEZ APRIL 15, 2016
P
TEIXEIRA UD 12 ADAMES NOVEMBER 30, 2019
ZAYAS UD 10 TEIXEIRA JUNE 8, 2024
96 RINGMAGAZINE.COM
Made with FlippingBook - Online magazine maker