Javier Castillejo facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Javier Castillejo |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Statistics | |
| Real name | Francisco Javier Castillejo Rodríguez |
| Nickname(s) | El Lince de Parla ("The Lynx of Parla") |
| Rated at |
|
| Height | 5 ft 11 in |
| Reach | 70 in |
| Nationality | Spanish |
| Born | 22 March 1968 Parla, Madrid, Spain |
| Stance | Orthodox |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 72 |
| Wins | 62 |
| Wins by KO | 43 |
| Losses | 8 |
| Draws | 1 |
| No contests | 1 |
Francisco Javier Castillejo Rodríguez (born on March 22, 1968), known as Javier Castillejo, is a famous Spanish former professional boxer. He competed from 1988 to 2009. Javier was a world champion in two different weight classes. He held the WBC and lineal light-middleweight titles from 1999 to 2001. He won the WBC light-middleweight title again in 2005. He also held the WBA middleweight title from 2006 to 2007.
At a regional level, he won the European light-middleweight title twice. This was between 1994 and 1998. He also held the European Union middleweight title in 2002.
Contents
Javier Castillejo's Boxing Journey
Starting His Professional Career
Javier Castillejo started his professional boxing career on July 22, 1988. His first fight was in Madrid, where he won against Ángel Díez. They had a rematch soon after, and Castillejo won by knockout in the fourth round. His first knockout win in the first round happened on November 4, 1988, against Juan Perez in Torrejón.
Castillejo won four more fights before his first loss. On August 19, 1989, he lost to Del Bryan in Benidorm. But after this loss, he went on an amazing winning streak. He won twenty-two fights in a row!
During this winning streak, he achieved some important victories. On October 19, 1990, he knocked out Alfonzo Redondo. This win made him the Spanish Welterweight Champion in Leganés. He kept this national title on July 5, 1991, by knocking out Domingo Sanchez in Lugo.
On April 10, 1992, Castillejo knocked out Harry Arroyo, a former champion from Puerto Rico. Then, on May 15, he beat Saoul Mamby from Jamaica. On December 12, 1992, he won the WBC's Mundo Hispano light middleweight title. He beat Enrique Areco in Oviedo.
First Shot at a World Title
Even though he hadn't fought much outside Spain, Castillejo got his first chance at a world title. On April 24, 1993, he challenged Julio César Vásquez from Argentina for the WBA light middleweight title. The fight was in Leganes. Vásquez won, ending Castillejo's streak of 22 wins.
After defending his regional title, Castillejo fought outside Spain for the first time. He beat Bernard Razzano in Dijon, France. This win earned him the European light middleweight title. He successfully defended this title four times. However, he lost it on January 3, 1995, to Laurent Boudouani in Épernay, France.
He had a rematch with Boudouani on January 6, 1996, but lost again. Castillejo then won six fights in a row. He regained the EBU light middleweight title on July 2, 1998. He knocked out Ahmed Dottuev in England.
Becoming a World Champion
On January 29, 1999, Javier Castillejo got his second chance to become a world champion. He faced Keith Mullings, who held the Lineal and WBC light middleweight titles. Castillejo won the fight, becoming one of the few world champions from Spain. Even though Mullings' team protested, the judges' decision stood. Castillejo was now the WBC champion!
Facing Oscar De La Hoya
After defending his title five times, Castillejo was set to fight Oscar De La Hoya. This was a very big fight, shown on Pay Per View. Many people thought Castillejo was just an easy opponent for De La Hoya. But Castillejo had a different idea. He famously said before the fight in Las Vegas, "I didn't come to Las Vegas to do tourism, but to defend my title."
The fight went all twelve rounds. Castillejo was knocked down just seconds before the end. He lost his world title to De La Hoya on June 23, 2001.
Six months later, Castillejo returned to boxing. He beat Xavier Moya by knockout on January 11, 2002. This win gave him the European Community's Junior Middleweight title in Barcelona.
On July 12, 2002, he won the WBC's "Interim" light middleweight title by beating Roman Karmazin in Madrid. However, he later lost this title because he couldn't fight the main WBC champion, Shane Mosley, who was injured.
Castillejo then won four fights in a row, all by knockout. He fought Fernando Vargas on August 20, 2005. This fight was not for a world title. Castillejo lasted ten rounds but lost to Vargas.
Winning a Middleweight Title
On July 15, 2006, Castillejo made a big comeback. He defeated Felix Sturm of Germany to win the WBA middleweight belt. Sturm was expected to win easily. But Castillejo, who was 38 years old, surprised everyone. He caught Sturm with a left hook in the 10th round. He then hit Sturm with three uppercuts, and the referee stopped the fight.
This made Castillejo the oldest person to win a recognized World Middleweight Championship at that time. He lost his title in his first defense against Mariano Natalio Carrera. However, Carrera later failed a drug test. So, Castillejo got his title back on February 23, 2007. He lost the title again on April 28, 2007, in a rematch against Felix Sturm.
He fought Mariano Natalio Carrera one more time on November 13, 2007. This time, Castillejo won by knockout in the 6th round.
Images for kids
-
Javier Castillejo, a Spanish boxing legend.
