Top Five (5) Mexican Fighters in Boxing History

Mexico has a proud and wildly successful history in the sport of boxing, with at least one world champion in nearly every generation of fighters coming from Mexican boxing traditions, many of them in contention for all-time great status. But who are the absolute best of the best? Of all the great Mexican boxers, which ones rise a little farther and burn a little brighter than their fellow champs? Well, nobody can answer that for sure, but here’s my list of the Top 5 greatest Mexican boxers of all time.

Top 5 Mexican Boxers of All Time

5. Canelo Alvarez

Image Credit: @canelo

First up on this list we have the newest in a long line of Mexican superstars, Santos Saúl Álvarez Barragán, better known as Canelo Alvarez. Despite his recent loss to Dimitry Bivol at light heavyweight, many still consider Canelo the greatest boxer currently alive, and for good reason. He’s a slick and powerful counterpuncher who takes all comers and never backs down from a fight. Time will only tell how far he goes, with plenty of historical fights in the making for the young superstar.

4. Erik Morales

Image Credit: @la_vida_lucha

Erik "Terrible" Morales is a beloved household name in the storied halls of Mexican boxing fame, and it's not hard to see why. Morales, who was born and raised above a boxing gym in Tijuana, MX, has an incredible boxing record of being the first Mexican boxer to win titles in four different weight divisions. His charisma, his willingness to risk it all to give fans the slug fests they wanted, his wins over the likes of Manny Pacquiao, and his legendary trilogy with Marco Antonio Barrera made Morales an intelligent and powerful boxer. His iron chin and the kind of one punch comeback potential were something that you would see in boxing movies.

3. Marco Antonio Berrera

Image Credit: @marcobarrerat

The ‘Baby Faced Assassin’ has an incredible record and is my personal favorite of all the famous Mexican boxers listed here. With wins over Erik Morales and Naseem Hamed and a massive 67-7 record, he fought with a combination of strong fundamentals and a pure heart that was almost cinematic in motion. If you haven’t watched him fight before, I highly recommend one of his bouts with Morales or Hamed.

2. Salvador Sanchez

Image Credit: TOPCLASSBOXING

Salvador Sanchez is widely considered one of the greatest featherweights of all time as well as one of the best aggressive technicians, and there’s no question why. This man was a ghost and a serpent in the ring, dancing in and out of danger and constantly attacking you. His movement was truly something to behold and it's not hard to see how he had a massive 27 fight undefeated streak directly following his sole loss. I can only imagine what it was like to see him box in person as he is a marvel to watch in highlight videos and see what optimal boxing looks like.

1. Julio Cesar Chavez Sr.

Image Credit: @jcchavez115

Of course, no conversation about great Mexican boxers would be complete without Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. topping the list. With 107 wins and only 6 defeats, Chavez’s record speaks for itself, especially when looking at the names on that resume. Defeating the likes of Roger Mayweather and Hector Camacho (as well as his HIGHLY contested draw against Whittaker) would be enough to earn him ATG status even without his massive record and amazing personal story of rising from the bottom.

Los Mejores Boxeadores Mexicanos

And that’s it for our top 5 but there are a TON of amazing Mexican champion boxers that we couldn’t fit on this list. From Juan Manuel Marquez’ rivalry with Pacquiao to the minimumweight reign of Ricardo Lopez, to the storied careers of fighters like Ruben Olivares and Carlos Serna, there is no shortage of incredible Mexican boxers. Do you think we left someone out that should have been on this list? Be sure to let us know in the FightCamp Community!