Fernando Montiel Martínez (born March 1, 1979) is a Mexican
professional boxer
Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional bouts are supervised by a regulatory autho ...
. He is a multiple-time former
world champion in three weight classes, having held the
WBO
The World Boxing Organization (WBO) is an organization which sanctions professional boxing bouts. It is recognized by the International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF) as one of the four major world championship groups, alongside the World Boxing ...
flyweight
Flyweight is a weight class in combat sports.
Boxing
Flyweight is a class in boxing which includes fighters weighing above 49 kg (108 lb) and up to 51 kg (112 lb).
Professional boxing
The flyweight division was the last of bo ...
title from 2001 to 2002, the WBO
junior bantamweight title twice between 2002 and 2008, and the unified
WBC and WBO
bantamweight
Bantamweight is a weight class in combat sports. For boxing, the range is above and up to . In kickboxing, a bantamweight fighter generally weighs between . In MMA, bantamweight is .
The name for the class is derived from bantam chickens. Bra ...
titles from 2010 to 2011.
Early life
Fernando Montiel is the youngest child of Manuel Montiel Sr., a former professional boxer and Fernando's current trainer. Fernando has four brothers that are former professional boxers: Eduardo Montiel, Alejandro Felix Montiel, Pedro Montiel and Manuel Montiel Jr. Fernando learned the sport of boxing in his father's gym located in
Los Mochis, Sinaloa
Los Mochis () is a coastal city in northern Sinaloa, Mexico. It serves as the municipal seat of the municipality of Ahome. As of the 2010 census, the population was 362,613, which was 61 percent of the municipality's population.
Los Mochis is the ...
,
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...
alongside fellow boxer,
Jorge "Travieso" Arce.
Regarding his nickname, Fernando has explained that one of his father's sister could not pronounce his father's name, Manuel de Jesus, when she was of younger age, so she called her brother "Cochul." The nickname was later on passed to Fernando in diminutive form, since "Cochulito" roughly translates into "Little Cochul." The nickname has no relation to a rooster, as many have argued.
Professional career
Early years at flyweight
Montiel made his professional debut on December 6, 1996, at the age of 16. He accumulated a record of 20–0–1, which included a win over future champion
Cruz Carbajal
Cruz Carbajal (born 3 May 1974) is a Mexican former professional boxer who competed from 1992 to 2012. He is the younger brother of Hall of Fame boxer Michael Carbajal.
Professional career
After making his debut in 1992, Carbajal won 14 of his ...
, before challenging
WBO
The World Boxing Organization (WBO) is an organization which sanctions professional boxing bouts. It is recognized by the International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF) as one of the four major world championship groups, alongside the World Boxing ...
Flyweight
Flyweight is a weight class in combat sports.
Boxing
Flyweight is a class in boxing which includes fighters weighing above 49 kg (108 lb) and up to 51 kg (112 lb).
Professional boxing
The flyweight division was the last of bo ...
Champion
Isidro García. Montiel won the bout by seventh-round TKO to become champion at age 20. He defended the Flyweight title three times against Olympic medalist
Zoltan Lunka, former champion Juan Domingo Córdoba and future champion
Jose "Carita" Lopez.
Super flyweight
In his next bout, Montiel moved up to the
super flyweight Super flyweight, also referred to as junior bantamweight, is a weight class in professional boxing, contested from and up to .
History
The first title match in this division was in 1980, when the World Boxing Council responded to pressure from Asi ...
division and defeated WBO Champion
Pedro Alcázar, who died as a consequence of the blows suffered during their bout. He defended the super flyweight title against Roy Doliguez and also defeated former champion
Ruben Sánchez León
Reuben or Reuven is a Biblical male first name from Hebrew רְאוּבֵן (Re'uven), meaning "behold, a son". In the Bible, Reuben was the firstborn son of Jacob.
Variants include Rúben in European Portuguese; Rubens in Brazilian Portugu ...
, but then lost the title to
Mark Johnson by majority decision.
Montiel won all three of his bouts in 2004 then regained the WBO title by knocking out champion
Ivan Hernández, who had recently knocked out Johnson. Montiel defended his super flyweight title against Evert Briceno (21–2) and Pramuansak Posuwan (29–0–1). In his next bout, he moved up to the bantamweight division and challenged WBO Champion
Jhonny González
Jhonny González Vera (born September 15, 1981) is a Mexican professional boxer.. Retrieved 26 September 2016. He is a three-time former world champion in two weight classes, having held the WBO bantamweight title from 2005 to 2007, and the ...
, but lost the bout by split decision. Montiel returned to the super flyweight division and continued defending his title by defeating
Z Gorres
Zeta Celestino Oliveros Gorres (born 18 April 1982) is a Filipino former professional boxer who challenged once for the WBO super-flyweight title.
Personal life
Gorres has a brother named Jun Gorres who was formerly a boxer but was stabbed to ...
(26–1–1), Cecilio Santos (22–7–2), Luis Melendez (25–2–1), and former champion
Martín Castillo
José Martín Castillo (born 13 January 1977) is a Mexican former professional boxer. He represented his native country of Mexico at the 1996 Summer Olympics, and is a former World Boxing Association (WBA) Super Flyweight champion.
Amateur caree ...
(33–2–0). On May 31, 2008, in
San Luis Potosí, Mexico, Montiel defeated Luis Maldonado by third-round technical knockout to successfully defend his WBO title for the eighth time. Montiel knocked Maldonado down in rounds one and three and the bout was stopped during Montiel's follow-up barrage.
Bantamweight
WBO champion
In his next match, he moved up to the
bantamweight
Bantamweight is a weight class in combat sports. For boxing, the range is above and up to . In kickboxing, a bantamweight fighter generally weighs between . In MMA, bantamweight is .
The name for the class is derived from bantam chickens. Bra ...
division and defeated future champion
Juan Alberto Rosas
Juan Alberto Rosas (born 28 November 1984) is a Mexican professional boxer and the former IBF Super Flyweight champion. Juan Alberto fights out of Navojoa, Sonora, Mexico.
Professional career
IBF Super Flyweight Championship
On July 31, 2010 Ro ...
. On March 28, 2009, he defeated Diego Oscar Silva (24–1–3) by third round knock out to win the
Interim WBO Bantamweight title. On April 25, Montiel became a three division champion after being elevated to full Bantamweight Champion.
On September 12, 2009, Montiel faced fellow Mexican Alejandro Valdez (21–3–2) at the Palenque de la Feria in Tepic,
Nayarit
Nayarit (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Nayarit ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Nayarit), is one of the 31 states that, along with Mexico City, comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 20 municipalities and its ...
. The bout ended via technical draw at the 3rd round. On February 13, 2010, Montiel defeated
Filipino prospect
Ciso Morales (14–0) via KO at the 1st round, successfully defending his WBO Bantamweight title.
Unified WBC and WBO champion
On April 30, 2010, Montiel faced
WBC Bantamweight Champion
Hozumi Hasegawa
is a Japanese former professional boxer who competed from 1999 to 2016. He is the first Japanese boxer to win world titles in three weight classes, having held the WBC bantamweight title from 2005 to 2010; the WBC featherweight title from 2010 ...
in
Tokyo, Japan
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
. Montiel, who was a heavy underdog leading up to the bout, knocked out Hasegawa in the fourth round, putting an end to the Japanese fighter's 5-year title reign. With the win, Montiel unified the WBC and WBO Bantamweight titles.
On October 30, 2010, Montiel successfully defended his titles against
Rafael Concepción. Montiel dropped Concepcion to the canvas twice in the second round before knocking him out in the third round.
Losing the titles to Donaire
On October 4, 2010, promoter
Bob Arum
Robert Arum (born December 8, 1931) is an American lawyer and boxing promoter. He is the founder and CEO of Top Rank, a professional boxing promotion company based in Las Vegas. Prior to becoming a boxing promoter, Arum was employed as an attorn ...
announced that Fernando Montiel and
Nonito Donaire
Nonito Gonzales Donaire Jr. (; ; born November 16, 1982) is a Filipino American professional boxer. He has held multiple world championships in four weight classes from flyweight to featherweight, and is the oldest boxer in history to win a ...
are on course for a February 19, 2011 bout. Before his bout with Donaire, Fernando had a 10-round non-title bout against fellow Mexican Jovanny Soto, on December 10, 2010 in
Saltillo,
Coahuila
Coahuila (), formally Coahuila de Zaragoza (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Coahuila de Zaragoza ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Coahuila de Zaragoza), is one of the 32 states of Mexico.
Coahuila borders the Mexican states of N ...
. Montiel defeated Soto via KO in the second round.
On February 19, 2011, the fight against
Nonito Donaire
Nonito Gonzales Donaire Jr. (; ; born November 16, 1982) is a Filipino American professional boxer. He has held multiple world championships in four weight classes from flyweight to featherweight, and is the oldest boxer in history to win a ...
took place at the
Mandalay Bay
Mandalay Bay is a 43-story luxury resort and casino at the south end of the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. It is owned by Vici Properties and The Blackstone Group and operated by MGM Resorts International. It was developed by Circus Circu ...
in
Las Vegas
Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Veg ...
,
Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...
. Montiel suffered his first TKO loss in the second round.
Further setbacks
Montiel announced in the Mexican media that he would return to the ring in the
super bantamweight Super bantamweight, also known as junior featherweight, is a weight class in professional boxing, contested from and up to .
There were attempts by boxing promoters in the 1920s to establish this weight class, but few sanctioning organizations or ...
division, as he had difficulties making the 118 pound
bantamweight
Bantamweight is a weight class in combat sports. For boxing, the range is above and up to . In kickboxing, a bantamweight fighter generally weighs between . In MMA, bantamweight is .
The name for the class is derived from bantam chickens. Bra ...
limit during his fight against Donaire. He rebounded with wins over future champion
Nehomar Cermeno and Alvaro Perez, then faced
Victor Terrazas for the vacant WBC Silver Super Bantamweight title, but was defeated by 12 round decision in what was considered an upset.
After putting together an 8 fight winning streak, during which he moved up to the Featherweight division and secured a win over former champion
Cristobal Cruz, he faced
Lee Selby
Lee Selby (born 14 February 1987) is a Welsh former professional boxer who competed from 2008 to 2022. He held the IBF featherweight title from 2015 to 2018, and previously the British, Commonwealth, and European featherweight titles between ...
for the IBF World Featherweight Title but lost a 12 round decision. In his following fight, Montiel suffered a first round knockout loss to Jorge Lara.
Professional boxing record
See also
*
List of boxing triple champions
*
List of Mexican boxing world champions
In Mexico, boxing is considered a major sport, having produced over 200 world champions in professional boxing. Mexico ranks first worldwide between countries with most boxing world champions and is the second country to have world champions accred ...
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Montiel, Fernando
1979 births
Mexican male boxers
Bantamweight boxers
Flyweight boxers
Super-flyweight boxers
Living people
Boxers from Sinaloa
Sportspeople from Los Mochis
World Boxing Organization champions
World flyweight boxing champions
World super-flyweight boxing champions
Super-bantamweight boxers
Featherweight boxers
World Boxing Council champions
World bantamweight boxing champions