Israel Vázquez


Israel Vázquez Castañeda was a Mexican professional boxer who competed from 1995 to 2010. He was a three-time super bantamweight world champion, having held the IBF title from 2004 to 2005; and the WBC, The Ring titles twice from 2005 to 2008. Vázquez is best known for his series of four fights against fellow Mexican Rafael Márquez.

Professional career

In 1995, Vázquez made his professional debut in the bantamweight division at the age of 17. He stopped his first nine opponents before suffering a knock out loss himself. Fighting mainly in the U.S. and at junior featherweight, he beat 11 opponents, most notably Óscar Larios, before losing a split decision to Marcos Licona.
Vázquez scored 12 consecutive victories, and in 2002, he met Larios in a rematch for the interim WBC Super Bantamweight Title. This time, he was outboxed and stopped in the 12th round.
Vázquez rebounded with a stoppage of ex-world title holder Jorge Eliecer Julio and won the vacant IBF Junior Featherweight title against southpaw Jose Luis Valbuena in 2004.
In the first defence of his IBF title he knocked out undefeated Armenian Artyom Simonyan in the 5th round. In 2005, Vázquez opted to fight WBC champion Óscar Larios for a third time with the WBC belt on the line instead of defending his IBF belt. He won the rubber match by technical knockout in the third round — after the fight was stopped due to a large cut over Larios's left eye, thus becoming The Ring and Lineal Junior Featherweight champion and ending Lario's streak of nine consecutive title fight victories.
On June 10, 2006, Vázquez defeated former champion Ivan Hernández. Vázquez defeated the WBO Bantamweight champion Jhonny González on September 16, 2006 in a bout where Vázquez was knocked down twice before coming back to win the match by 10th round TKO.

Vázquez vs. Márquez

In his next bout, on March 3, 2007, Vázquez lost his title to the number one ranked Bantamweight Rafael Márquez. Although Vazquez scored a knockdown in the third round, he retired on his stool at the end of round seven because of breathing problems arising from a broken nose. In a rematch on August 4, 2007, Vásquez regained his title. Despite suffering cuts over both eyes, he scored a knockout against Márquez in the sixth round in a fight that was named Ring Magazine's fight of the year for 2007. The third round of this fight was also named Ring Magazine round of the year.
He fought Marquez for the third time on March 1, 2008, rising from a fourth round knockdown to prevail by split decision in another great fight. Márquez was docked one point for low blows in round ten and received an eight count in the final seconds of round twelve. The fight was named 2008's Fight of the Year by The Ring Magazine and the fourth round was named Ring Magazine round of the year. The Vázquez vs Márquez rivalry has been widely heralded as one of the best boxing rivalries in recent years.
On December 18, 2008, Vázquez was stripped of his WBC Super Bantamweight Championship after not defending the title for a certain period of time due to a detached retina he had suffered during his third fight with Márquez. Japanese fighter Toshiaki Nishioka's WBC Interim title was promoted to actual championship status after his victory over Genaro Garcia. After undergoing three surgeries, Vázquez was medically cleared to resume training on May 15, 2009.
Vázquez fought Marquez for a fourth time on May 22, 2010. The bout took place in the Featherweight division and was held at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, United States. The match was appropriately titled "Once and Four All" and carried live by Showtime. Marquez scored a third round TKO victory over Vázquez to even their series at two wins each.
Afterwards, Marquez stated: "The fifth one could be a possibility if the fans vote for it. That is what I live for. Israel Vázquez is a great fighter." However, it was felt by some observers that the much faded Vázquez should retire. Frank Espinoza, Vázquez's longtime handler, stated that his "career is over". The fourth installment of the Vázquez-Marquez rivalry was the last fight of Vázquez' career.

Personal life and death

In October 2024 Vazquez was diagnosed with stage 4 sarcoma; he died from cancer in Los Angeles on December 3, 2024, at the age of 46.

Professional boxing record

No.ResultRecordOpponentTypeRound, timeDateLocationNotes
49Loss44–5Rafael MárquezKO3, 1:33May 22, 2010Staples Center, Los Angeles, California, U.S.For vacant WBC Silver featherweight title
48Win44–4Angel Antonio PrioloKO9, 2:10Oct 10, 2009Nokia Theatre L.A. Live, Los Angeles, California, U.S.
47Win43–4Rafael MárquezSD12Mar 1, 2008Home Depot Center, Carson, California, U.S.Retained WBC and The Ring super bantamweight titles
46Win42–4Rafael MárquezTKO6, 1:16Aug 4, 2007Dodge Arena, Hidalgo, Texas, U.S.Won WBC and The Ring super bantamweight titles
45Loss41–4Rafael MárquezRTD7, 3:00Mar 3, 2007Home Depot Center, Carson, California, U.S.Lost WBC and The Ring super bantamweight titles
44Win41–3Jhonny GonzálezTKO10, 2:09Sep 16, 2006MGM Grand Garden Arena, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.Retained WBC and The Ring super bantamweight titles
43Win40–3Ivan HernándezRTD4, 3:00Jun 10, 2006Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S.Retained WBC and The Ring super bantamweight titles
42Win39–3Óscar LariosTKO3, 2:52Dec 3, 2005Mandalay Bay Events Center, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.Won WBC and vacant The Ring super bantamweight titles
41Win38–3Armando GuerreroUD12May 31, 2005Ho-Chunk Sports and Expo Center, Lynwood, Illinois, U.S.Retained IBF super bantamweight title
40Win37–3Artyom SimonyanTKO5, 0:59Dec 28, 2004Sycuan Casino, El Cajon, California, U.S.Retained IBF super bantamweight title
39Win36–3José Luis ValbuenaTKO12, 0:34Mar 25, 2004Grand Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, U.S.Won vacant IBF super bantamweight title
38Win35–3Trinidad MendozaTKO7, 2:45Sep 19, 2003Centennial Garden, Bakersfield, California, U.S.
37Win34–3Jorge Eliécer JulioTKO10, 1:15May 22, 2003SBC Center, San Antonio, Texas, U.S.
36Win33–3Justo AlmazanUD8Sep 26, 2002Holiday Inn Express, National City, California, U.S.
35Loss32–3Óscar LariosTKO12, 1:57May 17, 2002Memorial Auditorium, Sacramento, California, U.S.For vacant WBC interim super bantamweight title
34Win32–2Osvaldo GuerreroUD10Feb 22, 2002Quiet Cannon, Montebello, California, U.S.
33Win31–2Felipe RamirezKO5, 0:48Oct 25, 2001Marriott Hotel, Irvine, California, U.S.
32Win30–2Ever BelenoKO2, 1:49May 19, 2001Fantasy Springs Resort Casino, Indio, California, U.S.Retained NABF super bantamweight title
31Win29–2Don Don ConcepcionTKO3, 1:31Jan 7, 2001Texas Station, North Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.Won vacant NABF super bantamweight title
30Win28–2Eddy SaenzKO2, 2:12Oct 27, 2000Quiet Cannon, Montebello, California, U.S.
29Win27–2Javier VarguezKO3, 1:54Aug 17, 2000Arrowhead Pond, Anaheim, California, U.S.
28Win26–2Amador VasquezTKO2, 1:54Jul 29, 2000Caesars Tahoe, Stateline, Nevada, U.S.
27Win25–2Eddy SaenzKO3 May 6, 2000Fantasy Springs Resort Casino, Indio, California, U.S.Won IBA Continental super bantamweight title
26Win24–2Héctor VelázquezSD10Feb 4, 2000Fantasy Springs Resort Casino, Indio, California, U.S.
25Win23–2Edel RuizUD8Jan 7, 2000Memorial Auditorium, Sacramento, California, U.S.
24Win22–2Adarryl Johnson6Oct 3, 1999Lady Luck Rhythm & Blues, Lula, Mississippi, U.S.
23Win21–2Nelson Ramon MedinaKO7, 1:26Aug 9, 1999Arrowhead Pond, Anaheim, California, U.S.
22Loss20–2Marcos Licona12Mar 27, 1999Tropicana Las Vegas, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.For vacant WBO–NABO super bantamweight title
21Win20–1Agustin LorenzoTKO8 Nov 30, 1998Arrowhead Pond, Anaheim, California, U.S.
20Win19–1Frank LizarragaUD6Oct 22, 1998Scottish Rite Center, San Diego, California, U.S.
19Win18–1Juan Manuel ChavezUD10Aug 10, 1998Arrowhead Pond, Anaheim, California, U.S.
18Win17–1Oscar Javier GarciaTKO4Jun 8, 1998Arrowhead Pond, Anaheim, California, U.S.
17Win16–1Antonio Ramirez6Mar 15, 1998Sycuan Casino, El Cajon, California, U.S.
16Win15–1Saul Briseno8Feb 21, 1998Mexico City, Mexico
15Win14–1Enrique AngelesTKO9Aug 30, 1997Mexico City, Mexico
14Win13–1Marcello NavaTKO4Jun 14, 1997Mexico City, Mexico
13Win12–1Óscar LariosKO1 Apr 12, 1997Arena Coliseo, Mexico City, Mexico
12Win11–1Erik LopezTKO3Mar 29, 1997Mexico City, Mexico
11Win10–1Abraham BarrientosTKO5Nov 30, 1996Mexico City, Mexico
10Loss9–1Ulises FloresTKO1Oct 5, 1996Mexico City, Mexico
9Win9–0Saul BrisenoTKO3Sep 7, 1996Mexico City, Mexico
8Win8–0Enrique MartinezTKO1May 3, 1996Salina Cruz, Oaxaca, Mexico
7Win7–0Joel NolascoKO2Apr 19, 1996Salina Cruz, Oaxaca, Mexico
6Win6–0Cecilio Marino JimenezKO7Mar 8, 1996Salina Cruz, Oaxaca, Mexico
5Win5–0Alejandro PantaleonKO3Feb 16, 1996Salina Cruz, Oaxaca, Mexico
4Win4–0Raul Gonzales4Sep 6, 1995Mexico City, MexicoGonzales disqualified for an intentional headbutt
3Win3–0Jesus RomeroTKO1Jun 21, 1995Mexico City, Mexico
2Win2–0Sergio Lopez1Apr 19, 1995Mexico City, Mexico
1Win1–0Eduardo Rosas1 Mar 29, 1995Mexico City, MexicoProfessional debut