Miguel Vázquez


Miguel Ángel Vázquez Bautista is a Mexican professional boxer who held the IBF lightweight title from 2010 to 2014.
𝕏 titerevazquez

Professional career

Early career

Vázquez made his professional debut on 20 January 2006 against Canelo Álvarez in a welterweight bout, losing a four-round split decision. He won his next eighteen bouts before losing a unanimous decision to Timothy Bradley on 27 July 2007, in a bout for the WBC Youth super lightweight title. Bradley would go on to say "I knew the fight was going to be tough—he's Mexican. I give him a lot of credit. He's a good fighter." In June 2008, Vázquez claimed the WBC FECARBOX light welterweight title, defeating veteran Aldo Valtierra by technical knockout after eleven rounds. The local commission later came under criticism by a ringside doctor, as the fight was too one-sided and risked the wellbeing of Valtierra. A rematch against Álvarez was fought on 28 June 2008, this time at light middleweight, in which Vázquez lost a ten-round unanimous decision.
On 17 July 2009, Vázquez won a ten-round split decision over then-undefeated world-ranked prospect Breidis Prescott. Prescott scored a knockdown early on but as the fight went, Vázquez accumulated rounds with his sharper boxing and ultimately got the nod over Prescott.

Lightweight title reign

On 14 August 2010, Vázquez fought Ji-Hoon Kim for the vacant IBF lightweight title. Vázquez beat Kim by unanimous decision to win the world title. His first successful title defense was against Ricardo Dominguez on 27 November 2010. Vázquez won the fight with another wide unanimous decision Vázquez made a second successful defense on 12 March 2011 against then-undefeated Leonardo Zappavigna, defeating him by a wide margin over the twelve-round distance. During the fight, Zappavigna landed a solid overhand right to the champion early, but Vázquez responded by opening up a cut over the challenger's left eye and outboxing him for most of the fight.
Vázquez made his third defense against Ammeth Díaz, scoring a knockdown in round 6 en route to another wide decision win. Vázquez headlined a show on HBO for the first, defeating Marvin Quintero via split decision. Vázquez notched a fifth successful defense against Mercito Gesta, whom he defeated by unanimous decision on the undercard of Manny Pacquiao vs. Juan Manuel Márquez IV.

Vázquez vs. Burns cancellation

On January 14, 2013, it was announced that Vázquez will meet lightweight titleholder Ricky Burns in a unification bout on March 16, the card would take place at Wembley Arena in London. Warren announced that he would reschedule the bout for April 20 because Vázquez suffered a viral infection due to food poisoning. After weeks of rumors about the fight being in doubt it fell apart.
In February 2014, Vázquez decisioned Denis Shafikov on Macau.
During his title reign, Vázquez often was criticised for being a boring fighter, as he focused on controlling the distance and keeping opponents at bay through his footwork and jab, as well as employing "dirty" tactics like headbutts and excessive clinching to outmaneuver his opponents.
On 13 September 2014, Vázquez faced Mickey Bey on the undercard of Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Marcos Maidana II. Vázquez lost the IBF title in a split decision, being defeated for the first time since 2008. The judges' scorecards were 119–109 and 115–113 for Bey, and 115-113 for Vázquez. Many ringside observers felt Vázquez had won the fight and criticized the decision, especially the 119–109 by Robert Hoyle.

Later career

Vázquez bounced back with a wide unanimous decision win over Jerry Belmontes. However, in October 2015 he suffered another setback, losing another controversial decision to Argenis Mendez. Vázquez won his next four fights against outmatched journeymen. In September 2017, it was announced that Vázquez would face Josh Taylor for the WBC Silver light welterweight title at the Royal Highland Centre on 11 November. Although Vázquez's style seem to pose problems for Taylor early on, Taylor wore him down as the fight went on. Vázquez went down in round 9 from body shots, and he failed to beat the count. This was Vázquez's first stoppage loss.
In his next more notable fight in the UK, Vazquez faced Ohara Davies. Vazquez lost the fight on a controversial points decision.
On 17 October 2020, Vazquez fought Lewis Ritson for the vacant WBA Inter-Continental light welterweight title. Vazquez boxed beautifully throughout the fight and seemed to be winning most of the rounds. Despite that, two of the referees scored the fight 117-111 and 115–113 in favor of Ritson, while the other referee had it 116-113 for Vazquez, awarding Ritson with a highly controversial split-decision victory. Promoter Eddie Hearn called it a disgrace of a card and terrible for the sport whilst the majority of observers also felt Vazquez won the fight clearly.

Professional boxing record

No.ResultRecordOpponentTypeRound, timeDateLocationNotes
56Loss44–12Timo SchwarzkopfUD104 Feb 2023Argensporthalle, Wangen im Allgaeu, Germany
55Loss44–11Gary CullyKO5, 0:4112 Mar 2022Nottingham Arena, Nottingham, England
54Win44–10Oliver FloresUD102 Oct 2021Verite Social Venue, Monterrey, MexicoWon vacant WBA Fedelatin lightweight title
53Win43–10Isai HernandezTKO7, 0:4316 Apr 2021Verite Social Venue, Monterrey, Mexico
52Loss42–10Lewis RitsonSD1217 Oct 2020East of England Arena, Peterborough, EnglandFor vacant WBA Inter-Continental light welterweight title
51Win42–9Jesus VelascoTKO5, 2:4528 Dec 2019Auditorio Chalchocoyo, Matlapa, Mexico
50Loss41–9Batyrzhan JukembayevUD1026 Sep 2019Montreal Casino, Montreal, Quebec, CanadaFor vacant WBA Continental and IBF Inter-Continental light welterweight titles
49Loss41–8Ohara Davies1028 Jun 2019York Hall, London, England
48Win41–7Ghislain MadumaSD1016 Mar 2019Montreal Casino, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
47Loss40–7Thulani Mbenge9, 3:008 Dec 2018Emperor's Palace, Kempton Park, South Africa
46Win40–6Cosme RiveraUD1013 Apr 2018Parque Revolucion, Culiacán, Mexico
45Loss39–6Josh TaylorKO9, 2:3011 Nov 2017Royal Highland Centre, Edinburgh, ScotlandFor WBC Silver light welterweight title
44Win39–5Jose Daniel RuizKO4, 2:092 Sep 2017Tlaquepaque, Mexico
43Win38–5Javier MercadoUD81 Jul 2017Arena Óscar Larios, Tonalá, Mexico
42Win37–5Armando PatinoKO2, 2:3229 Apr 2017Coliseo, La Barca, Mexico
41Win36–5Erick BoneUD1028 May 2016Cowboys Dancehall, San Antonio, Texas, U.S.
40Loss35–5Argenis MendezUD106 Oct 2015Cowboys Dancehall, San Antonio, Texas, U.S.
39Win35–4Jerry BelmontesUD1013 Mar 2015Citizens Business Bank Arena, Ontario, California, U.S.
38Loss34–4Mickey BeySD1213 Sep 2014MGM Grand Garden Arena, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.Lost IBF lightweight title
37Win34–3Denis ShafikovUD1222 Feb 2014Cotai Arena, Macau, SARRetained IBF lightweight title
36Win33–3Mercito GestaUD128 Dec 2012MGM Grand Garden Arena, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.Retained IBF lightweight title
35Win32–3Marvin QuinteroSD1227 Oct 2012Turning Stone Resort Casino, Verona, New York, U.S.Retained IBF lightweight title
34Win31–3Daniel AttahUD1016 Jun 2012Sun Bowl, El Paso, Texas, U.S.
33Win30–3Ammeth DiazUD1221 Jan 2012Coliseo Olímpico, Guadalajara, JaliscoRetained IBF lightweight title
32Win29–3Marlon AguilarKO2, 1:4618 Jun 2011Musica Hall, Toluca, Mexico
31Win28–3Leonardo ZappavignaUD1212 Mar 2011MGM Grand Garden Arena, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.Retained IBF lightweight title
30Win27–3Ricardo DominguezUD1227 Nov 2010Auditorio Municipal, Tijuana, MexicoRetained IBF lightweight title
29Win26–3Kim Ji-hoonUD1214 Aug 2010Energy Arena, Laredo, Texas, U.S.Won vacant IBF lightweight title
28Win25–3Breidis PrescottSD1017 Jul 2009Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.
27Win24–3Antonio ValenciaTKO3, 2:0028 Feb 2009Polideportivo Centenario, Los Mochis, Mexico
26Win23–3Manuel BocanegraTKO3, 2:3419 Dec 2008National Western Complex Arena, Denver, Colorado, U.S.
25Win22–3Rodrigo JuarezUD84 Oct 2008Expo Forum, Hermosillo, Mexico
24Loss21–3Canelo ÁlvarezUD1028 Jun 2008Palenque Calle 2, Zapopan, Mexico
23Win21–2Aldo ValtierraTKO11, 2:315 Jun 2008Roots Magic Club, Mexico City, MexicoWon vacant WBC FECARBOX light welterweight title
22Win20–2Jorge OrtizUD82 May 2008Pharaoh's Casino, Managua, Nicaragua
21Win19–2Francisco VillanuevaUD1223 Nov 2007Coliseo Olímpico, Guadalajara, MexicoWon vacant Jalisco light welterweight title
20Loss18–2Timothy BradleyUD1027 Jul 2007Omega Products International, Corona, California, U.S.For WBC Youth light welterweight title
19Win18–1Reyes SanchezUD824 May 2007Salon 21, Mexico City, Mexico
18Win17–1Juventino BarreraUD1230 Mar 2007Arena Jalisco, Guadalajara, MexicoWon vacant Jalisco welterweight title
17Win16–1Marco NazarethKO2 16 Mar 2007Guadalajara, Mexico
16Win15–1Victor MarquezKO4 16 Feb 2007Guadalajara, Mexico
15Win14–1Mario Alberto Altamirano BecerraKO4, 2:002 Feb 2007Arena Jalisco, Guadalajara, Mexico
14Win13–1Juan CarioKO1 19 Jan 2007Arena Jalisco, Guadalajara, Mexico
13Win12–1Juan Jose GarciaTKO2 8 Dec 2006Arena Jalisco, Guadalajara, Mexico
12Win11–1Juan AvilaUD824 Nov 2006Arena Jalisco, Guadalajara, Mexico
11Win10–1Javier ZavalaKO1 10 Nov 2006Arena Jalisco, Guadalajara, Mexico
10Win9–1Francisco Villanueva4 27 Oct 2006Arena Jalisco, Guadalajara, Mexico
9Win8–1Azael GonzalezUD613 Oct 2006Arena Jalisco, Guadalajara, Mexico
8Win7–1Luis RomeroKO1, 2:4729 Sep 2006Tonalá, Mexico
7Win6–1Leonardo Perez1 15 Sep 2006Guadalajara, Mexico
6Win5–1Baltazar MolinaUD618 Aug 2006Arena Coliseo, Guadalajara, Mexico
5Win4–1Alfonso EnriqueUD46 Jul 2006Salon 21, Mexico City, Mexico
4Win3–1Irving SidartaUD41 Jun 2006Salon 21, Mexico City, Mexico
3Win2–1Javier PrietoUD44 May 2006Salon 21, Mexico City, Mexico
2Win1–1Christian Juarez423 Mar 2006Salon 21, Mexico City, Mexico
1Loss0–1Canelo Álvarez420 Jan 2006Guadalajara, Mexico