Mike Alvarado


Mike Alvarado is a former American professional boxer who held the WBO light welterweight title in 2013.
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Early life

Alvarado was born in Denver, Colorado. He is the cousin of featherweight prospect Ricky López and his biological father was 17-0 boxing prospect Ron Cisneros who, when Alvarado was young, separated from his mother.

Amateur career

Alvarado was a two time Colorado Class 4A state high school wrestling champion at Skyview High School. Alvarado decided not to wrestle in college and instead selected a boxing career. In a span of about three years, Alvarado compiled a record of 36–5. Among his defeated opponents were Chad Aquino and eventual 2004 Athens Olympian Andre Dirrell, both of whom he defeated to take the Ringside National Championship in 2001.

Professional career

Alvarado vs. Malignaggi cancellation

Alvarado was going to fight Paulie Malignaggi but he suffered an elbow injury and withdrew from the fight set for June 27, 2009.
He served a 5-month prison sentence and made a return to boxing with a 2nd-round KO of Lenin Arroyo. Alvarado was to fight on Latin Fury 15 but was back in jail for parole violations, he had been on probation for "traffic and driving offenses and another charge." Alvarado then made a successful return to the ring by knocking out the veteran Joshua Burns. Up to this point in his career, Alvarado had beaten fighters such as Carlos Molina, Michael Clark, Michel Rosales, César Bazán, Emmanuel Clottey, and Juaquin Gallardo.
Alvarado beat Ghana's Raymond Narh, to win the WBC Continental Americas Light Welterweight Championship, which he would later vacate just before his fight with Gabriel Martínez. This bout was on Showtime's televised portion of the Pacquiao vs. Mosley undercard. Alvarado's next victory was against Gabriel Martínez, to win IBF Latino Light Welterweight Championship. The bout took place on July 30, 2011, in Denver, Colorado.

Alvarado vs. Prescott

Alvarado fought Breidis Prescott on November 12, 2011, in Las Vegas, Nevada, on the undercard of Manny Pacquiao vs. [Juan Manuel Márquez III]. Prescott started out the fight fast, and was able to successfully out-box Alvarado for the first 5 rounds, building a lead on the scorecards. In the middle and late rounds, Alvarado became the main aggressor, and cut the distance, effectively trading shots with Prescott on the inside, and winning the middle and late rounds. By the 10th round, Prescott seemed out of gas and Alvarado took advantage, launching a large offensive attack in the opening minute of the round. Then, with 1:43 left in the fight, Alvarado knocked Prescott down with left and right uppercuts. Prescott was able to get up, but Alvarado came back with two hard rights sending Prescott to the ropes, and then landed 3 straight right uppercuts. Prescott was leaning forward, hanging onto Alvarado and not returning fire, prompting the referee to stop the fight with 1:07 left in the bout. Alvarado was down 87–84, 87–84, and 86–85 at the time of the stoppage, in what was a close fight.

Alvarado vs. Herrera

Alvarado's next fight was against a top light welterweight contender in Mauricio Herrera, at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino, also located in Las Vegas, Nevada. Herrera was coming off solid wins over Mike [Dallas Jr.] and Ruslan Provodnikov prior to his bout with Alvarado. Herrera started off well, successfully beating Alvarado to the punch, and slipping most of Alvarado's attack in the first round. In the 2nd round, Herrera decided to stand and trade with the bigger Alvarado, in a round where Alvarado controlled the pace and landed the harder punches. The pace would continue in the early and middle rounds, with Alvarado taking Herrera to the ropes and landing the harder punches, but with Herrera landing combinations of his own on Alvarado. By the later rounds, Alvarado had seized control, and began to tee off on Herrera, whose eye was completely closed by rounds 9 and 10. The fighters ended the fight in the 12th round, trading blows in the middle of the ring. Alvarado was awarded the clear unanimous decision win, with scores of 99–91, 97–93, and 96–94. After the fight, Alvarado said he wanted a big fight with Mexican Champion Juan Manuel Márquez, saying he's paid his dues and deserves a big fight at this point.
He was named to "The Gatti List" on The Fight Game with Jim Lampley on HBO in May 2012. The list consists of the Top 10 most entertaining fighters.

Alvarado vs. Ríos I & II

Coming in as two undefeated fighters, Alvarado faced Brandon Ríos on October 13, 2012, at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California. Alvarado was ahead on the scorecards up until the 6th round, in which Rios hurt him with a crushing right. Rios was able to stop him in the 7th as referee Pat Russell stopped the bout at 1:57 of the round. The fight was voted the 2012 Fight of the Year by Sports Illustrated.
A much anticipated rematch was held on March 30, 2013, at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada. Like the first fight, both came in with a lot of fireworks as they continued to go toe to toe, until Alvarado changed strategy and became a lot more evasive and harder to hit with fancy footwork. Alvarado defeated Rios by unanimous decision with scores of 115–113, 115-113 and 114–113 to even up the victory score with Rios, each fighter at this point giving the other their first loss. Top Rank promoter Bob Arum dismissed another rematch and suggested to let the two boxers face other fighters first.

Alvarado vs. Provodnikov

Alvarado lost his WBO Light Welterweight title to Ruslan Provodnikov on October 19, 2013, at the 1stBank Center in Alvarado's hometown of Denver, Colorado. Provodnikov was ahead on all three scorecards and had knocked Alvarado down twice in the eighth round, when Alvarado elected not to come out for the eleventh round. Before the fight, Alvarado was elevated by the WBO to full title holder, thus the fight against Provodnikov was his first defense of the full title.

Alvarado vs. Márquez

On May 17, 2014, at The Forum, in Inglewood, California, Alvarado was back in action in a welterweight bout against four-division champion and #6 ranked Ring Magazine pound for pound fighter: Juan Manuel "Dinamita" Márquez. The bout was contested for the WBO International Welterweight Championship. He lost the fight by unanimous decision.

Bare-knuckle boxing

Alvarado debuted with Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship on April 29, 2023, at BKFC 41 and lost to James Brown via knockout.

Professional boxing record

No.ResultRecordOpponentTypeRound, timeDateLocationNotes
45Loss40–5Arnold Barboza Jr.KO3, 0:49Apr 12, 2019Staples Center, Los Angeles, California, U.S.For NABF light welterweight title
44Win40–4Robbie CannonTKO2, 0:41Oct 13, 2018CHI Health Center, Omaha, Nebraska, U.S.
43Win39–4Martín Ángel MartínezRTD9, 3:00Jun 30, 2018Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, U.S.
42Win38–4Sidney SiqueiraKO4, 1:20Aug 19, 2017Pinnacle Bank Arena, Lincoln, Nebraska, U.S.
41Win37–4Matthew StrodeTKO2, 2:40May 26, 2017UIC Pavilion, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
40Win36–4Josh TorresMD8Jun 25, 2016The Bomb Factory Dallas, Texas, U.S.
39Win35–4Saul CorralKO3, 1:25Mar 18, 2016Arena Place, Houston, Texas, U.S.
38Loss34–4Brandon RíosRTD3, 3:00Jan 24, 20151stBank Center, Broomfield, Colorado, U.S.For vacant WBO International welterweight title
37Loss34–3Juan Manuel MárquezUD12May 17, 2014The Forum, Inglewood, California, U.S.For vacant WBO International welterweight title
36Loss34–2Ruslan ProvodnikovRTD10, 3:00Oct 19, 20131stBank Center, Broomfield, Colorado, U.S.Lost WBO light welterweight title
35Win34–1Brandon RíosUD12Mar 30, 2013Mandalay Bay Events Center, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.Won vacant WBO interim light welterweight title
34Loss33–1Brandon RíosTKO7, 1:57Oct 13, 2012Home Depot Center, Carson, California, U.S.For vacant WBO Latino light welterweight title
33Win33–0Mauricio HerreraUD10Apr 14, 2012Mandalay Bay Events Center, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.
32Win32–0Breidis PrescottTKO10, 1:53Nov 12, 2011MGM Grand Garden Arena, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.Retained IBF Latino light welterweight title
31Win31–0Gabriel MartínezUD10Jul 30, 2011Softball Country Arena, Denver, Colorado, U.S.Won vacant IBF Latino light welterweight title
30Win30–0Ray NarhRTD3, 3:00May 7, 2011MGM Grand Garden Arena, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.Won vacant WBC Continental Americas light welterweight title
29Win29–0Dean HarrisonRTD4, 3:00Feb 19, 2011Mandalay Bay Events Center, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.
28Win28–0Joshua BurnsTKO3, 0:43Nov 20, 2010WinStar World Casino, Thackerville, Oklahoma, U.S.
27Win27–0Lenin ArroyoTKO2, 0:42Apr 3, 2010American Bank Center, Corpus Christi, Texas, U.S.
26Win26–0Juaquin GallardoUD8May 2, 2009MGM Grand Garden Arena, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.
25Win25–0Emmanuel ClotteyKO10, 2:58Mar 7, 2009Mile High Event Center, Commerce City, Colorado, U.S.
24Win24–0Miguel Ángel HuertaTKO4, 2:22Dec 19, 2008National Western Complex Arena, Denver, Colorado, U.S.
23Win23–0Manuel GarnicaTKO4, 2:17Oct 3, 2008National Western Complex Arena, Denver, Colorado, U.S.
22Win22–0César BazánKO4, 2:46Jul 26, 2008MGM Grand Garden Arena, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.
21Win21–0Michel RosalesTKO7, 1:28May 9, 2008Isleta Casino & Resort, Albuquerque, New Mexico, U.S.
20Win20–0Jesús RodríguezUD10Feb 15, 2008Cicero Stadium, Cicero, Illinois, U.S.
19Win19–0Michael ClarkTKO1, 1:27Dec 1, 2007Tingley Coliseum, Albuquerque, New Mexico, U.S.
18Win18–0Jorge Alberto PadillaTKO8, 2:40Aug 24, 2007Congress Theater, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
17Win17–0Francisco CamposKO2, 1:50Jun 8, 2007Hudson-Campbell Fitness Center, Gary, Indiana, U.S.
16Win16–0Carlos Molina8Feb 16, 2007Cicero Stadium, Cicero, Illinois, U.S.
15Win15–0Edvan Dos Santos BarrosUD8Aug 18, 2006Convention Center, Pasadena, Texas, U.S.
14Win14–0Maximino Cuevas5, 3:00Jun 2, 2006Envy Nightclub, Tucson, Arizona, U.S.
13Win13–0Joel De La TorreUD8Mar 31, 2006Edgewater Hotel and Casino, Laughlin, Nevada, U.S.
12Win12–0Angel RomanUD6Oct 7, 2005The Aladdin, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.
11Win11–0Arthur BrambilaUD6Sep 17, 2005America West Arena, Phoenix, Arizona, U.S.
10Win10–0Chad LawsheTKO3, 1:44Aug 26, 2005D & I Colonial Ballroom, Houston, Texas, U.S.
9Win9–0Solomon TellezTKO3, 2:10May 6, 2005Fort McDowell Casino, Fountain Hills, Arizona, U.S.
8Win8–0Hilario Lopez6Mar 19, 2005MGM Grand Garden Arena, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.
7Win7–0Felipe CampanaTKO2, 2:53Feb 18, 2005Fort McDowell Casino, Fountain Hills, Arizona, U.S.
6Win6–0Fernando ChaconTKO3, 1:08Dec 17, 2004Dodge Arena, Hidalgo, Texas, U.S.
5Win5–0Andrew KeonKO1, 0:28Oct 16, 2004Radisson Graystone Castle Hotel, Thornton, Colorado, U.S.
4Win4–0Candelario GarciaTKO1, 1:29Sep 18, 2004Wings Over the Rockies [Air and Space Museum], Denver, Colorado, U.S.
3Win3–0Robert HowardKO1, 2:03Jul 3, 2004Douglas County, Castle Rock, Colorado, U.S.
2Win2–0Rudy Cruz1, 2:18Apr 17, 2004Pechanga Resort & Casino, Temecula, California, U.S.
1Win1–0Istafa Jihad1, 1:45Feb 28, 2004Radisson Graystone Castle Hotel, Thornton, Colorado, U.S.