The Most Famous

BOXERS from Mexico

This page contains a list of the greatest Mexican Boxers. The pantheon dataset contains 496 Boxers, 10 of which were born in Mexico. This makes Mexico the birth place of the 9th most number of Boxers behind Argentina, and Uzbekistan.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Mexican Boxers of all time. This list of famous Mexican Boxers is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Mexican Boxers.

1. Julio César Chávez (b. 1962)

With an HPI of 50.35, Julio César Chávez is the most famous Mexican Boxer. His biography has been translated into 25 different languages on wikipedia.

Julio César Chávez González (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈxuljo ˈsesaɾ ˈtʃaβes ɣonˈsales]; born July 12, 1962), also known as Julio César Chávez Sr., is a Mexican former professional boxer who competed from 1980 to 2005. A multiple-time world champion in three weight divisions, Chávez was listed by The Ring magazine as the world's best boxer, pound for pound, from 1990 to 1993. During his career he held the WBC super featherweight title from 1984 to 1987, the WBA and WBC lightweight titles between 1987 and 1989, the WBC light welterweight title twice between 1989 and 1996, and the IBF light welterweight title from 1990 to 1991. He also held the Ring magazine and lineal lightweight titles from 1988 to 1989, and the lineal light welterweight title twice between 1990 and 1996. Chávez was named Fighter of the Year for 1987 and 1990 by the Boxing Writers Association of America and The Ring respectively. Chávez holds records for the most total successful defenses of world titles (27, shared with Omar Narváez), most title fight victories and fighters beaten for the title (both at 31), and most title fights (37); he has the second most title defenses won by knockout (21, after Joe Louis with 23). His fight record was 89 wins, 0 losses, and 1 draw before his first professional loss to Frankie Randall in 1994, before which he had an 87-fight win streak until his draw with Pernell Whitaker in 1993. Chávez's 1993 win over Greg Haugen at the Estadio Azteca set the record for the largest attendance for an outdoor boxing match: 136,274. He is ranked as the 17th best boxer of all time, pound for pound, by BoxRec, #24 on ESPN's list of "50 Greatest Boxers of All Time", and 18th on The Ring's "80 Best Fighters of the Last 80 Years". In 2010 he was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame for the Class of 2011. He is the father of current boxers Omar Chávez and former WBC middleweight champion Julio César Chávez Jr.

2. Canelo Álvarez (b. 1990)

With an HPI of 50.00, Canelo Álvarez is the 2nd most famous Mexican Boxer. His biography has been translated into 27 different languages.

Santos Saúl Álvarez Barragán (Latin American Spanish: [saˈul ˈalβaɾes]; born 18 July 1990), commonly known as Canelo or Saúl Álvarez, is a Mexican professional boxer. He has held multiple world championships in four weight classes, from light middleweight to light heavyweight, including unified titles in three of those weight classes and lineal titles in two. In 2021, Álvarez became the first and only boxer in history to become the undisputed champion at super middleweight, holding this distinction until July 2024. He has also held the Ring magazine super middleweight title since 2020. Álvarez started his professional boxing career at the age of 15 and won his first world championship – the World Boxing Council (WBC) light middleweight title – in 2011 at the age of 20, becoming the youngest champion in the history of that weight class. In 2013, he beat Austin Trout to win the World Boxing Association (WBA) (Unified version) and Ring titles. In the same year, he lost his WBC and Ring light middleweight titles to Floyd Mayweather Jr. in his first professional defeat. He defeated Miguel Cotto to win the WBC and Ring middleweight titles in 2016. That same year he returned to light middleweight to beat Liam Smith to win the World Boxing Organization (WBO) title. In 2017, he fought unified middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin to a split draw. Their rematch in 2018 saw Álvarez beat Golovkin to become the WBA (Super version), WBC, and Ring middleweight champion. The following year, he beat Rocky Fielding for the WBA super middleweight title (Regular version) and won the International Boxing Federation (IBF) middleweight title from Daniel Jacobs in 2019. Later that year, Álvarez made his light heavyweight debut, knocking out former unified champion Sergey Kovalev to claim the WBO title. He went on to beat three unbeaten fighters (Callum Smith, Billy Joe Saunders, and Caleb Plant) to win all four titles at super middleweight, a feat he achieved inside 12 months. In May 2022, he returned to light heavyweight and challenged for the WBA (Super) light heavyweight title, but was defeated by Dmitry Bivol via unanimous decision. Known as an excellent counterpuncher, Álvarez is able to exploit openings in his opponents' guards while avoiding punches with head and body movement. He is also known as a formidable body puncher. The Ring ranked Álvarez as the world's best boxer, pound for pound, from November 7, 2019, to March 16, 2022. One of boxing's biggest ever pay-per-view stars, he is consistently one of the highest-paid athletes in the world, making Forbes' list of the world's highest-paid athletes in 2019, 2022, and 2023. He was the top-earning boxer of 2023, earning a reported $110 million. Outside his boxing career, Álvarez has appeared in numerous popular media and is involved in several business ventures. He served as executive-producer for the film The Long Game (2023) and featured on the cover of the boxing video game Undisputed (2024). He is also involved in philanthropic work, particularly in his home country. He has supported various charitable organizations and causes, specifically those focused on helping underprivileged children and families.

3. Salvador Sánchez (1959 - 1982)

With an HPI of 46.09, Salvador Sánchez is the 3rd most famous Mexican Boxer. His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

Salvador "Sal" Sánchez Narváez (January 26, 1959 – August 12, 1982) was a Mexican professional boxer born in the town of Santiago Tianguistenco, Estado de México. Sanchez was the WBC and The Ring featherweight champion from 1980 to 1982. Many of his contemporaries as well as boxing writers believe that had it not been for his premature death, Sánchez could have gone on to become the greatest featherweight boxer of all time. Sánchez died on August 12, 1982, in a car accident while driving from Querétaro to San Luis Potosí. He is also the uncle of Salvador Sánchez II. In 1991, Sánchez was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame. The Ring magazine named both him, and Sugar Ray Leonard, as Fighter of the Year in 1981. In 2002, he was named the 24th greatest fighter of the past 80 years by The Ring magazine. In 2003, The Ring rated Sánchez number 88 on the list of 100 greatest punchers of all time. Sánchez was voted as the #3 featherweight of the 20th century by the Associated Press.

4. Alfonso Zamora (b. 1954)

With an HPI of 44.37, Alfonso Zamora is the 4th most famous Mexican Boxer. His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Alfonso Zamora Quiroz (born 9 February 1954) is a Mexican former professional boxer who competed from 1973 to 1980. He was the Lineal and WBA bantamweight champion, and made five title defenses. As an amateur, he won a silver medal in the bantamweight event at the 1972 Munich Olympics.

5. Francisco Cabañas (1912 - 2002)

With an HPI of 43.99, Francisco Cabañas is the 5th most famous Mexican Boxer. His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

Francisco Cabañas Pardo (22 January 1912 – 26 January 2002) was a Mexican boxer. He competed in the flyweight class during the 1932 Summer Olympics and, although he lost the final against Hungarian István Énekes, he became the first Mexican athlete to ever win an individual Olympic medal.

6. Juan Manuel Márquez (b. 1973)

With an HPI of 43.71, Juan Manuel Márquez is the 6th most famous Mexican Boxer. His biography has been translated into 22 different languages.

Juan Manuel Márquez Méndez (born August 23, 1973) is a Mexican former professional boxer who competed from 1993 to 2014. He held multiple world championships in four weight classes, from featherweight to light welterweight, including the lineal championship at lightweight. In a career that spanned over twenty years, Márquez was known for being a fast and highly technical boxer who was exceptionally skilled at combinations and counterpunches, yet also willing to engage in slugfests with opponents. He was also credited for his toughness, and never lost a fight by stoppage. His most notable bouts include his four-fight saga with Manny Pacquiao and his fight against fellow Mexican Marco Antonio Barrera. Márquez was named The Ring magazine Fighter of the Year in 2012. He is considered to be one of the greatest boxers of all time, and is ranked by BoxRec as the thirteenth greatest boxer of all time and the fifth greatest Mexican boxer of all time, pound for pound. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in the class of 2020.

7. Fidel Ortiz (1908 - 1975)

With an HPI of 43.64, Fidel Ortiz is the 7th most famous Mexican Boxer. His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Fidel Ortiz Tovar, also known as Fidelón (10 October 1908 – 9 September 1975) was a Mexican boxer who represented his country in the 1928 and 1936 Summer Olympics. In the later competition, he defeated Swedish pugilist Stig Cederberg to win the bronze medal in the Bantamweight class.

8. Antonio Roldán (b. 1946)

With an HPI of 42.38, Antonio Roldán is the 8th most famous Mexican Boxer. His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

Antonio Roldán Reyna (born 15 June 1946) is a Mexican boxer who competed in the featherweight division (– 57 kg) during his career as an amateur. He was born in Mexico City.

9. Marco Antonio Barrera (b. 1974)

With an HPI of 41.52, Marco Antonio Barrera is the 9th most famous Mexican Boxer. His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Marco Antonio Barrera Tapia (born January 17, 1974) is a Mexican former professional boxer who competed from 1989 to 2011. He held multiple world championships in three weight classes between 1995 and 2007, from super bantamweight to super featherweight. After a brief retirement after losing twice to Junior Jones, Barrera revived his career with a trilogy against Erik Morales and a win against Naseem Hamed, earning him the Ring magazine featherweight title. He lost this title in his first fight against Manny Pacquiao. BoxRec currently Barrera 55th in its list of the greatest boxers of all time, pound for pound, while ESPN ranked Barrera as 43rd on their list of the 50 greatest boxers of all time. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2017.

10. Érik Morales (b. 1976)

With an HPI of 39.01, Érik Morales is the 10th most famous Mexican Boxer. His biography has been translated into 20 different languages.

Erik Isaac Morales Elvira (born September 1, 1976) is a Mexican former professional boxer who competed from 1993 to 2012. He is the first Mexico-born boxer in history to win world championships in four weight classes, ranging from super bantamweight to light welterweight. Morales defeated fifteen world champions during the course of his career, and is famous for his trilogies with fellow Mexican legend Marco Antonio Barrera, as well as Manny Pacquiao. ESPN ranked Morales at number 49 on their list of the 50 greatest boxers of all time. Morales was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in June 2018.

People

Pantheon has 15 people classified as Mexican boxers born between 1908 and 1995. Of these 15, 12 (80.00%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Mexican boxers include Julio César Chávez, Canelo Álvarez, and Alfonso Zamora. The most famous deceased Mexican boxers include Salvador Sánchez, Francisco Cabañas, and Fidel Ortiz. As of April 2024, 5 new Mexican boxers have been added to Pantheon including Salvador Sánchez, Antonio Roldán, and Misael Rodríguez.