Guillermo Rigondeaux
Guillermo Rigondeaux (2011)
Guillermo Rigondeaux Ortiz (born 30 September 1980 in La Prueba, the municipality of Songo - La Maya, Santiago de Cuba Province) is a Cuban boxer.
Amateur career
Rigondeaux denied almost 400 fights, of which he lost only twelve and was from 2000 to 2006 seven times in a row Cuban bantamweight champion. In the finals of 2006 he defeated this Idel Torriente clear on points. At the Junior World Championships in 1998 in Buenos Aires, he was defeated in the quarterfinals of the Kazakh featherweight Olympic champion from 2000 Beksat Sattarchanow.
In 2000 he took part in the Olympic Games in Sydney for Cuba. On the day of his twentieth birthday he achieved his final victory over the Russians Raimkul Malachbekow and thus the first time winning the gold medal. At his second Olympic participation at the Games in Athens, he succeeded in title defense.
Even with his previous appearances at Amateur World Championships he was successful, he won at the championships in Belfast in 2001 and 2005 in the Chinese Mianyang. At the 2003 World Championships in Bangkok, he had, however, after four years, a series of previously 142 fights without losing accept defeat again. He was defeated there in the second round of the tournament to the eventual champion, the Azerbaijanis Agasi Məmmədov.
During his amateur career Rigondeaux suggested, inter alia, Yankiel León, Gennady Kovalev, Detelin Dalakliew, Rau'shee Warren, Bahodirjon Sultanov, Yordenis Ugas, Gary Russell Jr. and Abner Mares
Another significant successes
- Goodwill Games - 2001
- Chemistry Cup - 2001-2005
- World Cup 2002, 2006
- Pan American Games - 2003
- Pan American Championship - 2005
- Central American and Caribbean Games - 2006
Escape attempt and successful escape
In July 2007, Rigondeaux took to Cuba participate in the Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro, and sat down with his teammate Erislandy Lara on the Cuban team. His upcoming quarter-final fight was automatically counted as a defeat because of his failure to appear. Since its last defeat in 2003, he previously 104 victories were thus succeeded in a row, a total he reached in his amateur career, a record of 378 wins in twelve defeats. Ringondeaux and Lara were taken thereupon by the Hamburg boxing stable Arena Box-Promotion, who a few months previously could commit their countrymen Odlanier Solis, Yuriorkis Gamboa and Yan BARTHELEMI, under contract. There were expired in the meantime with the end of the Pan American Games their Brazilian visas, they were arrested by the Brazilian Federal Police on charges of illegal stay. The two boxers presented contrary to expectations, no asylum applications, but returned to Cuba, where they were busy but with lifelong prohibition. In February 2009, Rigondeaux made a second, this time successful, attempt to escape and reached the U.S. stronghold of Cuban exiles in Miami.
Professional career
In the U.S., was signed Guillermo Rigondeaux from a purely Cuban boxing stable " Caribe Promotions". He lives in Los Angeles, where he trained in the " Wild Card Boxing Club" of the experienced trainer Freddie Roach.
On 22 May 2009 Rigondeaux won in Miami his first professional fight against Juan Noriega (USA). In his seventh professional fight he defeated in the battle for the WBA interim world championship in the super bantamweight 13 November 2010 Ricardo Cordoba of Panama on points. The interim title he defended subsequently in March 2011 with a technical knockout in the first round against the previously unbeaten Irishman Willie Casey. On January 20, 2012 Rigondeaux boxed against the WBA titlist Rico Ramos to the full World Cup and won by KO in the sixth round due to a left hook liver. He defended his title in the same year twice against mediocre opponents. For 13 April 2013, a unification fight with WBO champion Nonito Donaire has been agreed. Rigondeaux won this fight in spite of a precipitate in the tenth round unanimous decision.