Cristobal Arreola (born March 5, 1981) is an American
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 ...
who has challenged three times for the WBCheavyweight title. He was ranked by BoxRec as the world's No.8 heavyweight at the conclusion of 2007 and as No.7 heavyweight from 2008 to 2010.
Early life
Arreola was born in
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
to Mexican parents. As a child he met boxer Julio César Chávez a couple of times. Arreola said of it "I had a chance to go to his house in
Culiacán
Culiacán, officially Culiacán Rosales, is a city in northwestern Mexico, the capital and largest city of both the Culiacán Municipality and the state of Sinaloa. The city was founded on 29 September 1531, by the Spanish conquerors Lázar ...
because my father was from near there and my aunt lived in Culiacan. I used to go and watch him train."
Amateur career
Arreola grew up in East Los Angeles. His father was a boxer and started him boxing at the age of eight with trainer Hector Rodríguez. At 16, he had "about 200 amateur bouts" before losing interest and quitting. In 2001 at 20 he got back into boxing and after only three months of training managed to win the
National Golden Gloves
The Golden Gloves is the name given to annual competitions for amateur boxing in the United States, where they are awarded a belt and a ring. And the title of nations champion is awarded. The Golden Gloves is a term used to refer to the Nationa ...
at the Light Heavyweight division. To win, Chris beat Dallas Vargas, who had about 300 amateur fights at the time.
After another hiatus from boxing, this time for two years, he tried to come back for the 2003 Golden Gloves but arrived shortly after the check-in deadline prompting him to turn pro.
Professional career
Early career
In 2003, Goossen-Tutor promoted him and turned him pro at heavyweight with little fanfare. Looking back he says: "I really didn't know if boxing was going to be my career. I wasn't sure about turning pro and once I did, I just took it one fight at a time. But then I starting knocking guys out and I gradually started thinking, 'Hey, maybe I can make some money doing this'."
In 2005, he fought Domonic Jenkins who despite his record of only 6–3 held a win over Malcolm Tann (and later KOd amateur stars
Victor Bisbal
Victor José Bisbal Melero (born 2 July 1980) is a Puerto Rican professional boxer. As an amateur, he won a gold medal at the 2002 Central American and Caribbean Games in the heavyweight divisionPaese, Gabrielle (2003)Puerto Rico ...
and Carlos Barnett). After trailing for six rounds he turned the fight around and won by KO.
In 2006, he stopped Sedreck Fields, Cuban Damian Norris (who later defeated the unbeaten Roderick Willis) and in a match of unbeaten Californian prospects Damian Wills (coming in at 22–0–0–0).
In 2007, he KOd former amateur star Zakeem Graham (11–0). He was scheduled to fight undefeated Olympian
Devin Vargas
Devin Vargas (born December 25, 1981) is an American professional boxer. As an amateur, he won a bronze medal at the 2003 Pan American Games and competed at the 2004 Olympics, both in the heavyweight division.
Amateur career
Vargas had a ...
, brother of his amateur foe Dallas Vargas, but knocked out late sub Malcolm Tann when Vargas got injured in training, in May 2007 on ShoBox. He KO'd Thomas Hayes (record 27–0–0–0) in September 2007, in round 1.
On June 21, 2008, Arreola faced fellow undefeated prospect Chazz Witherspoon (23-0) and defeated him via disqualifaction.
On November 29, 2008, Arreola faced
Travis Walker
Travis Walker (born June 22, 1979) is an American professional boxer. As an amateur, he won the 2003 National Golden Gloves.
Amateur career
He became the 2003 National Golden Gloves Super Heavyweight Champion beating among others a 17-year-o ...
and knocked him out early in the 3rd round, improving Arreola's record to 26–0.
By June 2008, Arreola was ranked in the top 10 by all four major governing bodies.
Arreola defeated the previously retired heavyweight veteran Jameel McCline (40-8 23 KO's) on April 11, 2009, with a knockout at 2:01 of the 4th round.
Arreola vs. Klitschko
After his win, Arreola was the number one contender to challenge
Vitali Klitschko
Vitali Volodymyrovych Klitschko (; uk, Віта́лій Володи́мирович Кличко́ ; born 19 July 1971) is a Ukrainian politician and former professional boxer who serves as mayor of KyivWBC Heavyweight title belt. Arreola was happy with his draw when it was announced they would fight in Arreola's home town. The match took place on September 26, 2009, at the Staples Center in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
. It was broadcast on HBO. Arreola's corner and the referee stopped the fight before the start of the 11th round, giving Klitschko a 10th-round RTD ( TKO) victory. The final scorecards read 99–91, 99–91, and 100–89, all for Klitschko.
Rebuild after first unsuccessful WBC title challenge
Soon after his first career loss, Arreola fought Brian Minto as an undercard for the Paul Williams vs. Sergio Martínez fight. Chris landed well with his straight right hand and eventually floored Minto in the 4th round; Minto got up at 8 and continued to get hit with right hands before being dropped again. The referee stopped the fight when Minto rose at 9 and appeared to be in no condition to proceed with the fight.
Arreola lost his next fight, to former two-division world champion
Tomasz Adamek
Tomasz "Tomek" Adamek (; born 1 December 1976) is a Polish former professional boxer who competed from 1999 to 2018. He held world championships in two weight classes, including the WBC light heavyweight title from 2005 to 2007, and the IBF an ...
, by majority decision on 24 April 2010. Arreola was again looking out of shape for a professional boxer at the time of the fight.
Arreola in his next fight defeated
Manuel Quezada
Manuel Quezada (born October 13, 1977) is an American professional boxer and former kickboxer. In boxing he fights at heavyweight, while in kickboxing he fought at both heavyweight and super heavyweight.
Amateur Kickboxing Career
Quezada won ...
in
Ontario, California
Ontario is a city in southwestern San Bernardino County in the U.S. state of California, east of downtown Los Angeles and west of downtown San Bernardino, the county seat. Located in the western part of the Inland Empire metropolitan area, ...
by a 12-round unanimous decision. Quezada was down three times in the fight: twice in the 9th round and once in the 12th. The scores (117–108) and two judges had it (118–107). Before the fight Arreola had an interview on ESPN saying that his last two defeats were because he did not train well (as well as skipping days) and stepped into the training camp weighing nearly 300 pounds. He said that he now knew how to prepare for a fight, and realizes he needs to take the training camp seriously. He came in at 256 pounds (he fought the best at 230–240, and lost his previous two weighing over 250 pounds) and fought sluggishly against a tough opponent. At the end of the fight, Arreola said he gave himself a C− for overall performance.
After his knockout over American Joey Abell on
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). Th ...
, Arreola took out title contender
Nagy Aguilera
Nagy Aguilera De La Rosa (born May 28, 1986) is a Dominican professional boxer. He is perhaps best known for his upset first-round knockout win over former WBC heavyweight champion Oleg Maskaev.
Professional career
2009
Nagy Aguilera knocked ...
in the third round. This bout was televised on
Showtime
Showtime or Show Time may refer to:
Film
* ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film
* ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur
Television Networks and channels
* Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...
's
Andre Ward vs. Arthur Abraham
Andre Ward vs. Arthur Abraham was a Super Middleweight championship fight for the WBA Middleweight championship. The bout was held on May 14, 2011, at Home Depot Center, in Carson, California and was televised on Showtime. In the co-featured ...
undercard. Thirteen days after the fight with Aguilera, Cristobal knocked out tough veteran Kendrick Releford in the seventh round, as the main-event on
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). Th ...
.
He has since then won by a 10-round unanimous decision against Friday Ahunanya on July 9, and a third-round TKO over
Raphael Butler
Raphael Butler (born January 4, 1984) is an American retired Heavyweight boxer and mixed martial artist. A professional boxing competitor from 2004 until 2011, he fought fighters the likes of David Price, Malik Scott, Eddie Chambers, and Chris ...
on November 5, 2011, in Guanajuato Domo De La Feria,
Leon
Leon, Léon (French) or León (Spanish) may refer to:
Places
Europe
* León, Spain, capital city of the Province of León
* Province of León, Spain
* Kingdom of León, an independent state in the Iberian Peninsula from 910 to 1230 and again f ...
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
, on February 18, 2012. The opponent was heavyweight contender Éric Molina. Arreola won the fight by first-round KO.
After the knockout, Arreola created some stir in the post fight interview when he referred to Molina's promoter Don King as a "f—ing a–hole and a racist," prompting Showtime's Jim Gray to immediately terminate the interview. "Honestly Don King called me a wetback, and other Mexicans," Arreola told Fightnews.com. "That's a strong word. It's like me dropping N bombs. You don't say things like that."
Arreola vs. Stiverne I and II
Arreola had a chance at a rematch with Vitali Klitschko in April 2013 when he faced Bermane Stiverne. Although a favorite to win the fight, Arreola was knocked down in the third round and wound up losing a unanimous decision.
On September 7, 2013, Arreola beat Seth Mitchell in a single round.
After Klitschko vacated the title in December 2013, Arreola was signed to fight Bermane Stiverne for the vacant title. On May 10, 2014, Stiverne won the title after a sixth-round knockout.
Rebuild after second unsuccessful WBC title challenge
On March 13, 2015, Arreola made his return to the ring to face heavyweight Curtis Harper. The fight took place during the first Premier Boxing Champions on Spike TV broadcast at the Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario, CA. Arreola was awarded a victory by unanimous decision following 8 rounds of boxing.
On July 18, 2015, Arreola fought to a ten-round draw with Fred Kassi. The scores were 96–94 for Arreola, 95–95 on the remaining two cards.
Arreola's tight 12-round split decision victory over Travis Kauffman on Dec. 12 at the AT&T Center in San Antonio was changed to a no-decision on Jan. 5, after Arreola tested positive for marijuana.
Arreola vs. Wilder
Arreola made his third challenge for the WBC heavyweight title when he travelled to
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Birmingham is the seat of Jefferson County, Alabama's most populous county. As of the 2021 census estimates, Birmingham had a population of 197,575, down 1% fr ...
on July 16, 2016, to face WBC champion Deontay Wilder. Wilder eventually won by 8th round retirement to retain his title.
Arreola vs. Kownacki
After two consecutive wins following his loss to Deontay Wilder, Arreola faced the unbeaten Adam Kownacki in a thrilling fight on August 3, 2019. The two men put on a record-breaking heavyweight display at the Barclays Center, New York, combining to throw over 2100 punches over 12 rounds. Kownacki won a unanimous decision to give Arreola his sixth career loss, with scores of 118–110, 117–111, 117–111.
Arreola vs. Ruiz Jr.
Following Arreola's loss to Adam Kownacki, he next returned to the ring over a year later on May 1, 2021 to face former unified heavyweight champion Andy Ruiz Jr. on
Fox
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve sp ...
PPV
PPV, ppv or pPv may refer to:
Technology
* Pay-per-view on cable or satellite television
* People Powered Vehicle, a human-powered vehicle from 1970
* Police Pursuit Vehicles, the most common police vehicles in the United States and Canada
Scienc ...
. Ruiz Jr was ranked #6 by The Ring, #4 by the WBC and #5 by the WBA and WBO. Arreola started well and scored a second round knockdown, but ultimately lost a unanimous decision, with scores of 117–110, 118–109, 118–109.
Arreola was very unhappy with the judges' scorecards, which he expressed in his post-fight interview: "Did he uizwin? Fine. But don't tell me you're only going to give me two or three rounds. Fuck that! I'm gonna be like
Dr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young (born February 18, 1965), known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper and record producer. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and previously co-founded, co-owned, and ...
, all y'all can suck my motherfuckin' dick!" In the post-fight press conference, he proceeded to repeat his displeasure with the judges: "These motherfuckers just straight up like fucking
rape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ...
d me, and don't even kiss me dude, that's some fucked up ass shit."YouTube
Premier Boxing Champions
''Premier Boxing Champions'' (PBC) is an ongoing series of televised boxing events connected to manager Al Haymon.
PBC was initially promoted as an effort to return boxing to mainstream broadcast and cable television, as opposed to premium chann ...