The widow of former world champion Johnny Tapia has remarried. Though an active professional, Tapia belonged to a street gang and began using cocaine as a young man. Hes like a walking contradiction, Teresa tells me while Johnny is out of earshot. Like so many athletes once their careers have ended, Tapia returned to the only real vocation hed known and opened a boxing gym in Albequerque. A Warner Bros. Out of it, their influence held sway. He took the wedding cash and dumped her in a cheap hotel. Tapia won by a unanimous twelve-round decision, adding the IBF title to his WBO belt. But he insists the best of him is still to come, writes Declan Taylor. They were united by grief, welded with misery. Get in on the latest boxing conversations in our Forum and comment on articles. Tapia ruled down in round eleven. Benitez first won the 140-pound WBA light-welterweight title from Antonio Cervantes on March 6, 1976, at the age of 17. In 2010, at age 43, Tapia learned that apparently, his father was alive. Their rivalry had begun many years earlier when Romero's father trained both boxers. Miguel, an amateur boxing champion, taught him pugilistic skills. Seven years later Johnny was on a bus that crashed, killing the pregnant woman who sat alongside him. Johnny Tapia had an incredibly tragic early life, the details of which are difficult to transcribe, to say nothing of experiencing them firsthand. Johnny Tapia, left, in 2007 during one of his comebacks. Less than a year after his mothers death, he recounted, his uncles were making him fight older boys in matches they bet on. Johnny Tapia, a prizefighter who won world titles in three weight classes in a chaotic life that included jail, struggles with mental illness, suicide attempts and five times being declared clinically dead as a result of drug overdoses, was found dead at his home in Albuquerque on Sunday. Yet again, Tapia was facing death. Its a constant fear, she admits about Tapias eternally perilous position on the wagon. If you change your mind, go to Notifications in the menu to enable browser notifications. Realizing his habits, she at first resisted. He was knocked out only once. He held multiple world championships in three weight classes, including the unified IBF and WBO super flyweight titles between 1994 and 1998, the unified WBA and WBO bantamweight titles between 1998 and 2000, and the IBF featherweight title in 2002. His life, which ended at just 45, was spent trying not to fall into the abyss. Data may be incomplete and inaccurate. 2023 EHM PRODUCTIONS,INC. . Tapia is a 5-time world champ. Montreal is The Fight City. As I walk away, I wonder if he still will be after a night gliding through the silky temptations of Vegas. It doesnt matter where I am, Tapia tells me the following day when I ask if the city is the best place for a reformed drug addict to hang out. Johnny Tapia died, for the final time, of heart failure at 45, an age much too young for a final exit. It wasnt okay and he would never be able to make up for that.. Tapia was deducted 1 point in round 2 for a deliberate head butt. Tapia died at his Albuquerque home in 2012. Tapia claimed what the police found was only a soap bar, and the charges were eventually dropped. Scores: 98-92, 96-94, 99-93. Raised thereafter by his grandmother, Tapia turned to boxing at the age of nine.Tapia had an outstanding amateur career, winning the 1983 New Mexico State Golden Gloves, the 1983 and 1985 National Golden Gloves tournaments at light flyweight and flyweight, respectively.Tapia's professional boxing career began on March 25, 1988, when he fought Effren Chavez in Irvine, California. The murderer had died in 1983 after stumbling drunk into the middle of a busy Albuquerque street where he was hit by three cars and dragged to his death. Your email address will not be published. The fight took place on July 18. I dont want it and theres the difference. Using DNA evidence, investigators solved the crime, pinning it on the last man to have been seen with her. If he says Im just going to run down the store to get a Dr Pepper, you cant help but think you should go with him, and wonder what is going to happen. Tapia, a five time world champion, might be one of the greatest television fighters ever, a distinction he shares with fellow 90s legend Arturo Gatti. Tapia fell to the canvas, clutching his ribcage, as referee Genaro Rodriguez reached the count of 10. Showing Editorial results for johnny tapia. His life was marked by tragedy. from host boxrec.com from host www.boxrec.com: Linked from: fr.wikipedia.org Johnny Tapia. Cops say the death does not appear suspicious, but an official cause has not been determined. At the age of eight, he looked out of his bedroom window and saw his mother chained up in the back of a pick up truck, being driven away by her lover. All Rights Reserved. Las Vegas is a City of Sin, the best and worst of humankind, mixed together to form a sickly but irresistible trail of destruction. Tapia said he thought his tattoos of angels kept him from passing into the next world. Tapia himself never thought he would live past the age of 40. Bohol down twice in Round 2. Still undefeated after 18 more bouts, he beat Nana Konadu to win the bantamweight title (118 pounds) and become a two-division world champion. If I could take that all back I would.. He also remembers the misery that attacked the highs and hauled everything down. Johnny sees things well, Freddie Roach, Tapias trainer and a member of the World Boxing Hall of Fame, said in an interview with Sports Illustrated in 2002. From the age of eight, he has wanted to die. After three and a half years away from the ring, he returned to win five fights before defeating Henry Martinez to win the world super flyweight title (115-pound limit). He had made that his motto after he thought he had outgrown his first, baby-faced assassin.. Teresa was waiting for him when he was released. All fights list 2023, champion titles, age, height, reach and weight, KO ratio of the boxer Johnny Mi Vida Loca Tapia. He left the title vacant so he could face Lineal & The Ring champion Marco Antonio Barrera, who beat Tapia by unanimous decision. The torment threatens to break his voice but he manages to resist. Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube. His laughter is curly and instantly infectious. Raised to fight to the death.. Tapia spokesman Julian Jiron says the marriage came "out of love, respect, and the preservation of the family and Johnny's legacy." [17] Tapia died of heart failure. NOTE: Johnny Tapia died one year later, in May 2012, from heart failure. He has been the editor of Boxing News since 2015. Bohol down twice in Round 2. An insightful and revealing documentary, Tapia shows both his darkness and his better nature as it presents a life thats too complex to judge. WHAT IS TAPIA'S REACH? A family member came home, found him deceased and called us, Officer Robert Gibbs, an Albuquerque, New Mexico, police spokesman, said Monday. In 1988, he began is professional career, which was interrupted by bouts outside the ring with substance abuse followed by treatment in rehab centers. Required fields are marked *. Blanco lost one point in round nine for low blows. But I found out hed been killed, hed been run over twice. According to Johnny, his grandfather was a rugged, tough, macho man and his influence resonated with his grandson, who quickly gained a reputation as a fearsome street fighter. Cocaine became my mistress. According to his wife, no drugs were found in his system. Johnny was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA, on February 13, 1967. Undefeated and only 23-years-old, the drug was his undoing when he tested positive in June of 1990 and then did so again several more times in the ensuing months. Tapia down in round 6, Pastrana down in round 8. Thus, death reclaimed its place of prominence for Tapia, who deemed himself responsible for what happened. An explosive combination puncher who backed up his suicidal tendencies with athleticism, he repeatedly waged all-out war in the ring and punctuated each miraculous victory with his trademark back-flip. Tapia said the news about his mothers killer upset him and might have contributed to his loss in the fight, but he considered it a blessing to finally know the truth. Co-caine. He hangs on the name of the white powder and sighs, remembering the dangerous euphoria that rushed through his body and infected his mind. Though boxing would provide no more thrills, there was a surprising development in his life. In 2002, Tapia traveled to London, where he knocked out Eduardo Enrique Alvarez in the first round; after the bout, he was interviewed by former rival Romero. After that, the fight with Romero was set for Las Vegas. He won three more fights by knockout, and then he faced Oscar Aguilar on the Michael CarbajalJosu Camacho undercard in Phoenix for the NABF super flyweight title, winning in three rounds. [7], On January 17, 2007, Tapia held a press conference stating that he would face Ilido Julio on February 23 in his home town of Albuquerque, New Mexico, then retire. The last fight of Johnny Tapia took place on June 4, 2011 against Mauricio Pastrana. Thats why me and Paulie got fight of the year because all we did was bang.. At the end of the film he is at a local radio station, accompanying one of his young fighters to promote an upcoming card. He fought seven times in 1994 and in October he took the WBO super flyweight title from Henry Martinez in his hometown of Albuquerque. He was born on Feb. 13, 1967, so he will turn 46 in -10 month and -11 day. Johnnys bout ended in a draw by majority decision (MD). In 1990, he had just won a $1 million commercial for Pepsi when he tested dirty and got kicked out, losing his boxing license, said his wife and manager, Teresa Tapia, in the same 2004 interview. She couldnt leave him. His past regularly came back to haunt him. KOB-TV reports representatives for Teresa Tapia confirmed Sunday that she married Johnny Tapia's half-brother, Jeffrey Padilla. Not included in the police report was young Johnnys memory of being awakened by screaming and looking out the window to see his mother chained in the back of a pickup truck driving by the house, Sports Illustrated said. While the Martinez title-winning fight might be his greatest moment, there were other notable wins. Johnnylost again and this would be the final time he hovered close to boxings zenith. In 2007 Johnny overdosed again and was taken to hospital where he lay in a coma. Johnny Tapia looks to get back into title contention following yet another disputed loss to Paulie Ayala, taking on Famosito Gomez in the main event of Showt. > Tapia was inducted during 2017, posthumously, to the Internation It was a cruel blow for wife Terese to take. Updated He had many tattoos, which were prominent when he was fighting. 2023 Cable News Network. When he trains she follows him, at his request, to the gym in Albuquerque. Tapias mother, Virginia, died on May 28, 1975, according to a police report that said her body was found stabbed 26 times with scissors and a screwdriver. The first time was a mistake but the second time was a habit, he confesses. Tapia's heart simply stopped beating and, unlike his previous brushes with death, this one was for real. Its my fault, Tapia said. Get TMZ breaking news sent right to your browser. 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