This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations .(March 2013) |
Personal information | |||||||||
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Full name | Alberto Mercado | ||||||||
Nationality | Puerto Rico | ||||||||
Born | Cayey, Puerto Rico | January 2, 1961||||||||
Height | 166 cm (5 ft 5 in) | ||||||||
Weight | 51 kg (112 lb) | ||||||||
Sport | |||||||||
Sport | Boxing | ||||||||
Weight class | Flyweight | ||||||||
Medal record
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Alberto Mercado Monserrate [1] (born January 2, 1961) is a former Jr. Featherweight boxer who was on the verge of fighting for a world title at least twice in his career.
Mercado started boxing as an amateur at the age of 12, immediately winning a nationwide competition known as the "Olimpiadas Jíbaras de la Vivienda" ("Housing Complex Hillbillies' Olympics"). This motivated him to keep boxing as an amateur and hoping to win a world title in the future.
In 1978, Mercado represented Puerto Rico at the 1978 Central American and Caribbean Games held at Colombia. He won gold at these games and participated in a world cup tournament. Hoping to become the first Puerto Rican ever to win a gold medal at an Olympic Games, Mercado moved to Cuba periodically; there he trained hard towards that goal.
Around that era, Mercado befriended and worked alongside one of Jose Celso Barbosa's children; he criticized the Puerto Rican government which was led by Carlos Romero Barcelo of the Statehood supporting New Progressive Party and was fired from his job and taken by Puerto Rico Olympic Committee President German Rieckehoff Sampayo to live in Mexico for a while.
Mercado was one of only three American citizens to participate in the 1980 Olympics celebrated in Moscow, Soviet Union, bearing the flag [2] of and competing in boxing for Puerto Rico after having won the gold medal at the 1979 Pan American Games. The other two were also representants from Puerto Rico and boxers: Luis Pizarro and José Angel Molina.
Below is the record of Alberto Mercado, a Puerto Rican boxer who competed in the flyweight division at the 1980 Moscow Olympics:
In the professional ranks Mercado had a winning record, but also had some bad luck. He lost to Refugio Rojas in a USBA Featherweight title try on points by split decision, and on a fight to decide the IBF's #1 challenger, he lost by a knockout in 7 rounds to eventual world champion Antonio Rivera, after leading the fight on all scorecards at the end of round 6.
Mercado trained at the famous Bairoa gym at Caguas and he was friends with gym-mate Juan Carazo.
He had a professional record of 31 wins, 14 losses and 1 draw (tie), with 27 wins by knockout.
Mercado currently works at the gym of the University of Puerto Rico at Cayey. There were plans to build a small museum in Cayey dedicated to him; that museum, named "Casa Museo Alberto Mercado", was opened in 2018. [3] Alberto has three kids, who are Wilnelia Mercado, Gloribel Mercado and Luis Mercado. [4] (in Spanish)
Wilfredo Gómez Rivera, sometimes referred to as Bazooka Gómez, is a Puerto Rican former professional boxer and three-time world champion. He is frequently mentioned among the best Puerto Rican boxers of all time by sports journalists and analysts, along with Félix Trinidad, Miguel Cotto, Wilfred Benítez, Esteban De Jesús, Edwin Rosario, and Carlos Ortíz.
Sixto Escobar was a Puerto Rican professional boxer. Competing in the bantamweight division, he became Puerto Rico's first world champion.
José Louis "Chegüi" Torres was a Puerto Rican-born professional boxer. As an amateur boxer, he represented the United States and won a silver medal in the middleweight division at the 1956 Olympic Games in Melbourne. In 1965, he defeated Willie Pastrano to win the WBC, WBA, and lineal light heavyweight championships. Torres trained with the legendary boxing trainer Cus D'Amato. In 1997, he was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.
Juan Carazo Serrano is a former boxer from Caguas, Puerto Rico.
Juan Molina, better known as John John Molina in the world of boxing, is a former boxer whose career transcended boxing in Puerto Rico. A multiple time world champion, this boxer was also known as quite a socialite. Molina is a native of Fajardo, Puerto Rico.
Victor Callejas is a Puerto Rican former boxer who was world Junior Featherweight champion.
Wilfredo Vázquez Olivera is a Puerto Rican former professional boxer who competed from 1981 to 2002. He held world championships in three weight classes, including the WBA bantamweight title from 1987 to 1988, the WBA super bantamweight title from 1992 to 1995, and the WBA and lineal featherweight titles from 1996 to 1998. His son, Wilfredo Vázquez Jr., is also a former boxer and world champion.
Luis Ortiz Flores is a Puerto Rican former boxer.
Julian Solís is a former boxer from Puerto Rico. He was born in the San Juan area of Río Piedras, but because of the closeness of his birthplace to Caguas, he often trained at the Bairoa Gym in Caguas. His training base, however, was the Caimito Gym.
José Antonio Rivera was a Puerto Rican boxer. He was much better known as El Gallo Rivera or Tonito Rivera, and was a prominent boxer during the decade of the 1980s.
Pedro Nolasco was a Dominican boxer, who won the bronze medal in the men's bantamweight category at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, United States.
Gilberto Román was a Mexican professional boxer and a member of the 1980 Mexican Olympic team. Román was a two-time WBC and Lineal Super Flyweight Champion and is considered by many fans to be one of the great champions in this division. Gilberto was trained by Boxing Hall of Famer Ignacio Beristáin.
Carlos Iván Velásquez is a Puerto Rican former boxer best known for winning the featherweight title at the 20.Central American and Caribbean Games 2006 in Cartagena. He is the twin brother of Juan Carlos Velasquez.
Abner Cotto Román is a Puerto Rican professional boxer who currently competes in the lightweight division. He is a member of the Cotto family, which has produced a professional world champion and multiple amateur medalists. As an amateur, Cotto represented Puerto Rico in international competition. The pugilist compiled several national championships and recognitions, including his division's silver medal at the 2007 Pan American Games.
José Pedraza González is a Puerto Rican professional boxer and former two-weight world champion. He held the IBO super featherweight title in 2014, the IBF super featherweight title from 2015 to 2017, and the WBO lightweight title in 2018. As an amateur he represented Puerto Rico, winning medals in multiple international competitions. Among the awards he achieved are a bronze medal at the 2007 Pan American Games, silver at the 2009 World Championships and gold at the 2010 Central American and Caribbean Games, as well as participation in the 2008 Summer Olympics. As of June 2021, he is ranked as the world's eighth best active super lightweight by BoxRec.
Luis Pizarro in Río Grande, Puerto Rico is a retired boxer from Puerto Rico, who competed in the men's bantamweight and featherweight division during the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Andres "Puppy" Hernandez is a Puerto Rican former professional boxer who once fought Carlos Zarate for the World Boxing Council's world bantamweight title. Earlier in his career, he was known for being able to take many punches. His boxing nickname is "Puppy".
Rafael del Valle is a Puerto Rican former professional boxer who reigned, from May 13, 1992, to July 30, 1994, as the WBO's World Bantamweight champion. A puncher with a sturdy chin, del Valle was born and resides at Santurce, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Alberto Josué Machado Becerril is a Puerto Rican professional boxer who held the WBA (Regular) super featherweight title from 2017 to 2019. Machado is ranked as the world's third best active super featherweight by The Ring magazine, the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board, and Boxrec.
The history of the sport of boxing in Puerto Rico is a varied and extensive one. Boxing is a major sport in the Caribbean country, and the sport has produced many champions for the island, both in the amateur and professional ranks, and among men and women fighters.
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