Mexican boxer
Manuel Ramos
Born (1942-11-20 ) November 20, 1942Died June 6, 1999(1999-06-06) (aged 56) Other names Pulgarcito Statistics Weight(s) Heavyweight Height 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) Stance Orthodox
Boxing record Total fights 56 Wins 24 Wins by KO 19 Losses 29 Draws 3 No contests 0
Manuel Ramos (November 20, 1942 – June 6, 1999), nicknamed Pulgarcito (Tom Thumb), was a Mexican boxer and actor. He was the heavyweight champion of Mexico, a top world title contender in the late 1960s, and one of Mexico's most internationally successful heavyweights. On June 24, 1968, Ramos became the first Mexican to challenge for the heavyweight crown when he fought reigning champion Joe Frazier at Madison Square Garden in New York City.[ 1] [ 2]
Manuel Ramos was born in Hermosillo , Sonora, Mexico. He boxed professionally for two to three years in the early 1960s, but records of this period have not been preserved.[ 3] He defeated Indio Lopez for the Mexican heavyweight title on June 24, 1963, by first-round knockout. He next fought a series of American opponents in Los Angeles area venues, attaining a mixed record of 5-6-2.
His fortunes improved dramatically from 1966 to 1968, with a string of 13 victories, including a split decision over former title contender Eddie Machen [ 4] and a unanimous decision over former WBA champion Ernie Terrell .[ 5] [ 6] This led to him being ranked #4 by The Ring Magazine and set up a title match with NYSAC World Champion Joe Frazier .[ 3]
The bout was held at Madison Square Garden on June 24, 1968. The iconic arena had just opened four months earlier, and Ramos was the first Mexican fighter to appear there.[ 7] The match was an intense two-round battle,[ 1] [ 8] in which Ramos briefly staggered Frazier, but was then knocked down twice and lost by referee's stoppage when he signaled that he was unable to continue.[ 3] This was to be Ramos's only world title fight.
He continued to be ranked as a top heavyweight through the end of the 1960s, but losses to George Chuvalo , Jack O'Halloran ,[ 9] and Chuck Wepner (in which Ramos inflicted serious cuts on his opponent but went on to lose by unanimous decision)[ 1] [ 10] marked the beginning of his decline. After a period as a gatekeeper for up-and-coming heavyweights in the early 1970s,[ 11] he lost 15 straight fights and retired from boxing in 1977.
Outside of the ring, Ramos had roles in the Mexican films Nosotros los feos (1973) and El Loco Bronco (1989).
He worked as an office manager in the Mexican Navy , resigning in 1995.[ 2]
Manuel Ramos died from a heart attack in Mexico City on June 6, 1999.[ 12]
Professional boxing record [ edit ]
24 Wins (19 knockouts, 5 decisions), 29 Losses (9 knockouts, 19 decisions, 1 disqualification), 3 Draws [ 13]
Res.
Record
Opponent
Type
Round
Date
Location
Notes
Loss
24-29-3
Bob Hazelton
TKO
2 (10)
June 30, 1977
Marshall , Texas
Loss
24-28-3
Ruben Rivera
KO
1 (10)
January 1, 1977
Monterrey , Nuevo León
date uncertain
Loss
24-27-3
Bernardo Mercado
KO
5 (8)
May 13, 1976
Civic Auditorium , Albuquerque , New Mexico
Loss
24-26-3
Fernando Montes
DQ
7 (10)
October 3, 1975
Nuevo Laredo , Tamaulipas
Loss
24-25-3
Moi Martinez
Decision
10 (12)
November 17, 1974
Reynosa , Tamaulipas
Loss
24-24-3
Duane Bobick
TKO
7 (10)
September 15, 1973
Scope Arena , Norfolk , Virginia
Loss
24-23-3
Armando Zanini
Decision
8
June 15, 1973
Milan , Lombardy
Loss
24-22-3
Luis Faustino Pires
Decision
10
May 5, 1973
Ginásio Presidente Médici, Brasília , Distrito Federal
Loss
24-21-3
John Hudgins
TKO
4 (10)
March 24, 1972
International Amphitheatre , Chicago , Illinois
Loss
24-20-3
Ron Lyle
UD
10
October 9, 1971
Auditorium Arena , Denver , Colorado
Loss
24-19-3
Ron Stander
UD
10
August 26, 1971
City Auditorium, Omaha , Nebraska
Loss
24-18-3
Terry Daniels
UD
10
July 26, 1971
Astrodome , Houston , Texas
Loss
24-17-3
Elmo Henderson
Decision
10
May 14, 1971
Nuevo Laredo , Tamaulipas
Loss
24-16-3
Jack Bodell
Decision
10
April 13, 1971
Civic Hall , Wolverhampton , West Midlands
Loss
24-15-3
Jürgen Blin
Decision
10
April 2, 1971
Cologne , North Rhine-Westphalia
Win
24-14-3
Joe Murphy Goodwin
TKO
3 (10)
March 16, 1971
Oklahoma City , Oklahoma
Loss
23-14-3
José Roman
Decision
10
October 26, 1970
San Juan
Draw
23-13-3
Ron Stander
Decision
10
September 17, 1970
City Auditorium, Omaha , Nebraska
Loss
23-13-2
Jimmy Richards
Decision
10
August 29, 1970
Ellis Park Stadium , Johannesburg , Gauteng
Loss
23-12-2
Oscar Bonavena
KO
1 (10)
May 9, 1970
Luna Park , Buenos Aires
Loss
23-11-2
Joe Bugner
Decision
8
March 24, 1970
Wembley Stadium , London
Win
23-10-2
Dub GW Manis
TKO
8 (10)
March 3, 1970
Oklahoma City , Oklahoma
Loss
22-10-2
Chuck Wepner
UD
10
January 26, 1970
Madison Square Garden , New York , New York
Loss
22-9-2
Jack O'Halloran
KO
7 (10)
October 17, 1969
The Forum , Inglewood , California
Win
22-8-2
Tony Doyle
UD
10
September 11, 1969
Olympic Auditorium , Los Angeles , California
Loss
21-8-2
George Chuvalo
TKO
5 (10)
September 26, 1968
Madison Square Garden , New York , New York
Win
21-7-2
Earl Averette
TKO
4 (10)
August 27, 1968
Municipal Auditorium , San Antonio , Texas
Loss
20-7-2
Joe Frazier
TKO
2 (15)
June 24, 1968
Madison Square Garden , New York , New York
NYSAC heavyweight title fight
Win
20-6-2
Ron Reiter
KO
1 (10)
May 4, 1968
Nogales , Veracruz
Win
19-6-2
Everett Copeland
Decision
10
March 17, 1968
Culiacán , Sinaloa
Win
18-6-2
Ernie Terrell
UD
10
October 14, 1967
Estadio Azteca , Mexico City
Win
17-6-2
Johnny Featherman
TKO
3 (10)
August 9, 1967
Mérida , Yucatán
Win
16-6-2
Floyd Joyner
KO
2 (10)
May 25, 1967
Puebla , Puebla
Win
15-6-2
James J. Woody
KO
2 (10)
January 29, 1967
El Toreo de Cuatro Caminos, Mexico City
Win
14-6-2
Max Martinez
KO
2 (10)
December 19, 1966
Reynosa , Tamaulipas
Win
13-6-2
Don Koontz
KO
2 (10)
October 22, 1966
El Toreo, Mexico City
Win
12-6-2
Dave Centi
KO
3 (10)
September 11, 1966
Plaza de Toros, Ciudad Juárez , Chihuahua
Win
11-6-2
Wayne Heath
KO
2 (10)
August 7, 1966
Plaza México , Mexico City
Win
10-6-2
Eddie Machen
SD
10
June 3, 1966
Sports Arena , Los Angeles , California
Win
9-6-2
Archie Ray
TKO
8 (10)
May 16, 1966
Veterans Memorial Coliseum , Phoenix , Arizona
Win
8-6-2
Lars Olof Norling
TKO
8 (10)
May 5, 1966
Olympic Auditorium , Los Angeles , California
Win
7-6-2
John Henry Jackson
KO
2 (10)
April 23, 1966
Pacific International Arena, Portland, Oregon , Oregon
Win
6-6-2
Jerry Simms
KO
6 (10)
March 31, 1966
Olympic Auditorium , Los Angeles , California
Loss
5-6-2
Lars Olof Norling
TD
6 (10)
December 9, 1965
Olympic Auditorium , Los Angeles , California
accidental headbutt
Draw
5-5-2
George Johnson
Decision
10
November 4, 1965
Olympic Auditorium , Los Angeles , California
Loss
5-5-1
Joey Orbillo
UD
10
October 7, 1965
Olympic Auditorium , Los Angeles , California
Loss
5-4-1
Wayne Heath
SD
10
September 9, 1965
Olympic Auditorium , Los Angeles , California
Loss
5-3-1
Ski Goldstein
Decision
10
February 5, 1965
Olympic Auditorium , Los Angeles , California
Draw
5-2-1
Joey Orbillo
Decision
8
August 13, 1964
Olympic Auditorium , Los Angeles , California
Loss
5-2
Henry Clark
Decision
10
July 16, 1964
Olympic Auditorium , Los Angeles , California
Loss
5-1
Al Carter
Decision
10
May 12, 1964
Valley Garden Arena, North Hollywood , California
Win
5-0
Sam Pride
TKO
3 (10)
April 28, 1964
Valley Garden Arena, North Hollywood , California
Win
4-0
Al Carter
Decision
6
March 17, 1964
Valley Garden Arena, North Hollywood , California
Win
3-0
Larry McGee
KO
3 (6)
February 18, 1964
Valley Garden Arena, North Hollywood , California
Win
2-0
Kid Apache
KO
4 (8)
January 23, 1964
Olympic Auditorium , Los Angeles , California
Win
1-0
Indio Lopez
KO
1 (12)
June 24, 1963
Mexico City
Mexico heavyweight title
^ a b c Fernandez, Sr., Robert F. (August 6, 2014). Boxing in New Jersey, 1900-1999 . McFarland . pp. 137–138. ISBN 9781476616070 . Retrieved April 1, 2022 – via Google Books.
^ a b Roste, Travis (March 1, 2010). "Heavyweight Autographs" . Autograph Magazine . Archived from the original on June 30, 2014. Retrieved April 1, 2022 .
^ a b c "Manuel Ramos - Biography" . BoxRec . Retrieved August 10, 2022 .
^ Amato, Jim. "Manuel Ramos - Mexican Heavyweight" . Saddo Boxing . Retrieved April 1, 2022 .
^ "Ernie Terrell, Former Heavyweight Boxing Champ, Dies At 75" . The Huffington Post . December 19, 2014. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved April 1, 2022 .
^ Ryan, Joe (February 21, 2013). Heavyweight Boxing in the 1970s: The Great Fighters and Rivalries . McFarland . p. 39. ISBN 9780786470747 . Retrieved April 1, 2022 – via Google Books.
^ "Margarito a imitar a otros mexicanos en el Madison" [Margarito to imitate other Mexicans at the Madison]. Mediotempo (in Spanish). December 1, 2011. Retrieved April 1, 2022 .
^ Ryan, Joe (February 21, 2013). Heavyweight Boxing in the 1970s: The Great Fighters and Rivalries . McFarland . p. 132. ISBN 9780786470747 . Retrieved April 1, 2022 – via Google Books.
^ Scott, Vernon (July 21, 1987). "Former Prizefighter A Heavyweight Movie Villain" . Sun-Sentinel . Archived from the original on August 15, 2017. Retrieved April 1, 2022 .
^ "Liston: One More Shot" . The Miami News . June 30, 1970. p. 4-B. Retrieved April 1, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ Ryan, Joe (February 21, 2013). Heavyweight Boxing in the 1970s: The Great Fighters and Rivalries . McFarland . p. 95. ISBN 9780786470747 . Retrieved April 1, 2022 – via Google Books.
^ "Sports Roundup: Boxing" . Miami Herald . June 9, 1999. p. 223. Retrieved April 1, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Manuel Ramos - Record" . BoxRec . Retrieved August 10, 2022 .