Joel Casamayor facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Joel Casamayor
Statistics
Real name	Joel Casamayor Johnson
Nickname(s)	El Cepillo ("The Brush")
Rated at	Super featherweight Lightweight Light welterweight
Height	5 ft 7 in
Reach	69 in
Nationality	Cuban American
Born	(1971-07-12) July 12, 1971 (age 53) Guantánamo, Cuba
Stance	Southpaw
Boxing record
Total fights	45
Wins	38
Wins by KO	22
Losses	6
Draws	1
Medal record Representing  Cuba Men's amateur boxing Olympic Games Gold 1992 Barcelona Bantamweight World Championships Silver 1993 Tampere Bantamweight Central American and Caribbean Games Bronze 1990 Mexico City Bantamweight Goodwill Games Silver 1994 Saint Petersburg Featherweight

Joel Casamayor Johnson (born July 12, 1971) is a former professional boxer from Cuba and the United States. He was known for his amazing skills in the boxing ring. Joel won important world titles in two different weight classes. He was the WBA super featherweight champion from 2000 to 2002. Later, he became the WBC and Ring magazine lightweight champion from 2006 to 2008. Before turning professional, Joel was an amateur boxer. He won a gold medal at the 1992 Olympics in the bantamweight division.

Joel Casamayor's Amateur Boxing Career

Joel Casamayor had a very successful amateur boxing career. He won 363 fights and only lost 30. This shows how talented he was even before becoming a professional.

Winning Olympic Gold

One of his biggest achievements was winning the gold medal at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. He competed in the bantamweight category.

• He beat Venkatesan Devarajan from India.
• He also defeated Riadh Klaai from Tunisia.
• Joel won against Roberto Jalnaiz from the Philippines by knockout.
• He had another win against Mohammed Achik from Morocco.
• In the final, he beat Wayne McCullough from Ireland to win the gold.

Other Amateur Achievements

Joel also won other important medals as an amateur:

• In 1989, he won a gold medal at the Junior World Championships.
• In 1993, he earned a silver medal at the World Amateur Boxing Championships in Tampere, Finland.
• He won a bronze medal at the World Cup in Bangkok, Thailand, in 1994.
• Also in 1994, he took home a silver medal at the Goodwill Games in St. Petersburg, Russia.

Becoming a Professional Boxer

Joel Casamayor started his professional boxing journey in 1996. He quickly made a name for himself.

First Titles and Challenges

In 1999, Joel won the NABF Super Featherweight title. Later that year, he became the WBA Super Featherweight champion. He won this title by stopping Jong-Kwon Baek in just 5 rounds.

In 2002, he lost his WBA title to Acelino Freitas. It was a close fight, and some people thought Joel should have won. In 2004, he fought Diego Corrales for the WBO Super Featherweight title. Joel had beaten Corrales before in 2003. However, this time, Corrales won by a very close decision. Later that year, Joel fought José Luis Castillo for the WBC Lightweight title. Many believed Joel won this fight clearly, but the judges disagreed.

Winning the Lightweight Title

After some tough losses, Joel Casamayor faced Diego Corrales again in October 2006. This time, Joel won by a split decision. This victory made him the WBC Lightweight champion and was recognized by Ring Magazine as the world lightweight champion.

He later defended his Ring Magazine title against Jose Armando Santa Cruz in November 2007. He won this fight by a split decision.

In March 2008, Joel fought Michael Katsidis, who was undefeated at the time. Joel became the first boxer to defeat Katsidis. He won the fight by a technical knockout (TKO) in the 10th round. With this win, Joel kept his Ring Magazine world title and also won the WBO interim lightweight title.

Later Fights

On September 13, 2008, Joel Casamayor fought Juan Manuel Márquez. Márquez defeated Joel by knockout in the 11th round. Joel showed good sportsmanship, saying, "Marquez was the best this night."

Joel Casamayor continued to box. In November 2009, he beat Jason Davis by a unanimous decision. His last professional fight was in 2011 against Timothy Bradley, where he lost.

Joel Casamayor had an impressive career, known for his unique southpaw style and exciting fights. He is remembered as an Olympic gold medalist and a two-division world champion.

Professional boxing record summary

Joel Casamayor had a professional record of 38 wins, 6 losses, and 1 draw. Out of his 38 wins, 22 were by knockout.

See also

In Spanish: Joel Casamayor para niños