If there was any time I didnt want to be with him it was in that year, Teresa softly imparts. Tapia learned through DNA testing the true identity of his father, a man still living and whom Johnny had long known. He won 59 fights, 30 by knockout; lost 5; and drew 2. Today, as the giddy Vegas gamblers follow the hypnotic neon lights in search of making their fortune, Teresa is still hoping her marriage will hit the jackpot. Fortunately, he was allowed to resume his career in 1994. He has also written about boxing for The Guardian and the Daily Mirror and has been used by the BBC, Sky Sports, BT Sport, HBO Boxing and Talk Sport as a boxing analyst. Out of it, their influence held sway. Johnny always makes sure were with him when he goes anywhere. Tapia never ran from his own darkness so much as he perpetually hovered over it. The day after he was admitted, his brother-in-law and nephew were killed in a car accident on their way to visit him. Tapia began 1998 by successfully defending his championships for the 11th time against former world champion Rodolfo Blanco of Colombia via decision, and then he vacated his world titles in order to move up in weight. Boxersk rekord pro Arthura Johnsona z BoxRec; Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; . His wife somehow stayed. On October 12, 1994 at The Pit, Albuquerque, New Mexico, Tapia defeated Henry Martnez in eleven rounds to win the vacant WBO super flyweight title. He is easily distracted as we all sit together deep inside the mysterious green labyrinth that is the MGM Grand. In 1996, he fought six more times, keeping his undefeated record and defending the title five additional times during that period, which included wins against Giovanni Andrade, Ivan Alvarez, future champion Hugo Rafael Soto, Sammy Stewart and Adonis Cruz. Bohol down twice in Round 2. We will be paid a commission, with no extra cost to you, if you use those links to make a purchase. Its more natural to embrace it. The lone walker, probing the wilderness as though in search of existential meaning, is Johnny Tapia, who was born in Albuquerque but given his chance at life in the ring. Tapia was deducted 1 point in round 2 for a deliberate head butt. In a performance that summoned all of his skill, showmanship and gall, Tapia outfought and outlasted Romero and won a unanimous decision. . He was famous for being a Boxer. Updated For more information, see our Cookie Policy. One of them said Mi Vida Loca ("My Crazy Life"), the nickname he adopted. > ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. Police have made an arrest in the shooting of Johnny Tapia, the son of the boxing legend of the same name. A metropolis where hundreds of young warriors train and battle each day in its many gyms, it is where Archie Moore, Sugar Ray Leonard, Roberto Duran and Bernard Hopkins all found greatness. No longer a top boxer, Tapia returned to the ring several more times before his final fightin June, 2011, when, overweight and sporting the weathered face of someone ten years older, he won by knockout in Albuquerque. Foul play is not suspected. He retained the title with a nine-round technical draw with Ricardo Vargas and a decision in twelve against his onetime nemesis in the amateur ranks, Arthur Johnson. Tapia won his first 22 professional fights, then was suspended from boxing after failing three drug tests. Johnny Tapia died, for the final time, of heart failure at 45, an age much too young for a final exit. Johnny was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA, on February 13, 1967. Back then I needed it, it took me away from everything. She wrestles with her unconditional adoration for Johnny every single day. In his first defeat, Tapia lost the bantamweight crown to Paulie Avala in June 1999 in what The Ring magazine called the fight of the year. He narrowly defeated Manuel Medina in 2002 to win the featherweight (126 pounds) title. On April 15, 2005, he sustained an injury to his left eye, but was able to continue and win a repeat match-up with Frankie Archuleta. I dont miss her, Tapia claims. He was born on Feb. 13, 1967, so he will turn 46 in -10 month and -11 day. As a wife, as a woman, Ive learnt theres good and bad in everyone and you have to accept them. Tapia was the 1983 National Golden Gloves light flyweight champion, and the 1985 Golden Gloves flyweight champion. appreciated. Home That was a very, very emotional time and the hardest time for me, and for him, because he knew he had gone too far. 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. Johnny Tapia had an incredibly tragic early life, the details of which are difficult to transcribe, to say nothing of experiencing them firsthand. A family member came home, found him deceased and called us, Officer Robert Gibbs, an Albuquerque, New Mexico, police spokesman, said Monday. Family members say Albuquerque police were summoned to Tapia's house at 7:45 PM Sunday by a family. The two had circled each other for years and when they finally met at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas an extraordinary police presence was required because of the fear that violence would erupt between gang members. Johnny Tapia made his professional debut in March 1988, so he has been a pro for 34 years. Within weeks of Johnny being incarcerated, Teresas mother and grandmother passed away, and Johnnys grandfather died. [17] Tapia died of heart failure. Johnnys cocaine habit has caused his heart to stop beating on five separate occasions, he has been in three comas, and he has been in and out of prison. I want to hug my mama.. Johnnylost again and this would be the final time he hovered close to boxings zenith. Tapia was deducted 1 point in round 2 for a deliberate head butt. Teresa Tapia looks at Johnny, her husband of 18 years and the father of her three children, and smiles gently. In 1999, Tapia suffered his first loss in his 48-bout career, losing a decision and the WBA title to Paulie Ayala in what The Ring Magazine called its "Fight of the Year." Its my fault, Tapia said. If I didnt have her Id be dead in a heartbeat.. You want to talk about stabbing people in jail? Tapia ponders about his mindset at that dark time. He sniffs twice and swallows the build up of tears that bubble beneath the surface. Larry Merchant, the boxing analyst, told Playboy in 2004 that Tapia was a five-to-one underdog to survive his own childhood.. In a statement, Teresa Tapia said she decided thatmarryingPadilla would be best for the children, for a continuation of their sense of family. Then I outlived her after I said I wouldnt. He was at his lowest, he was living on the streets. *Links to streaming, pay-per-view or ticketing platforms provided on this page, if any, are affiliate links. Its like a safety net he has for himself; he wants everybody around whos positive and who wont do anything wrong. "A family member . If a human being is a vessel of emotions, Tapia was a powder keg, perpetually on the verge of implosion. He knows it will be the end of his marriage if that happens. 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. I have my beautiful wife with me, nothing will happen to me if shes here.. Four times they wanted to pull life support. Did you encounter any technical issues? Tapia, who was 5 feet 6 inches, said the raw fury he displayed in winning his world titles came from the horrific memory of seeing his mother being kidnapped and murdered when he was 8. For Tapia, it was cocaine. That is to say, he possessed the rare medley of talent, charisma, and recklessness that leaped through the screen to seize the viewer's heart. He won a unanimous decision. Tapia was inducted during 2017, posthumously, to the Internation Just two and a half weeks before his loss to Ayala in 1999, the phone rang in the gym where Tapia was training. Tapia's body is found at his home on Sunday night. Tapia beat Jorge Alberto Reyes by a knockout in the 4th round on March 6, 2010, at the Ohkay Casino, San Juan Pueblo, New Mexico, United States, in front of a sold-out crowd. But he insists the best of him is still to come, writes Declan Taylor. Id love to think that in 30 years, well be old together and surrounded by family. On the drive to visit him, his brother-in-law and nephew were killed in a car accident. 2023 Cable News Network. He leaps up, like a puppy dog, and gallops towards the fighters. 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. Theres times when I look at him and I think to myself, I believe were going to grow old together, I believe were going to see our kids and our grandkids and were going to beat the odds. But he went on with his careerand was paid two million dollars to face legendary champion Marco Antonio Barrera in 2002. Teresa nearly walked away from her man in 2007. Tapia had recently wed Teresa Chavez, who would exercise a calming and supportive influence in his life, and wins came quickly for the newly married man. This is perhaps the documentarys most poignant moment. On May 27 of 2012, Johnny Tapia was found dead. Glen Tapia (born December 11, 1989) is an American professional boxer. 2012527 () . The crazy life of Johnny Tapia a five-time world champion boxer who once wrote that he had been raised to fight to the death ended this week at age 45. Foul play is not suspected; an autopsy and toxicology tests will be carried out, Gibbs said. That win came by ten round split decision in Albuquerque. Boxer Johnny Tapia was found dead Sunday in New Mexico, this according to local police. If I could take that all back I would.. [3], Tapia was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico to Mexican American parents. He suffers from bipolar disorder and it makes it very difficult the highs are very high and the lows are very low. Tapia's heart simply stopped beating and, unlike his previous brushes with death, this one was for real. His life was marked by tragedy. johnny tapia boxrec - At johnny tapia boxrec we like to say " There is no fun like fun in the waterOur mission is to turn your little ones into professional-level swimmers. 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. Tapia is 5' 6" (5 Foot and 6 inch) which is 168 cm (1 meter and 68 centimeters). A police officer told him that his mothers killing had been solved. When he trains she follows him, at his request, to the gym in Albuquerque. When he was eight years old, his mother, Virginia, was kidnapped, raped, hanged, repeatedly stabbed, and left for dead by her assailant.Google+: https://plus.google.com/104715270079859886366Dailymotion: http://www.dailymotion.com/haNZAgodVimeo: https://vimeo.com/user41971768Highlights Knockouts Tribute------------------------------------------------haNZAgod HOW LONG HAS TAPIA BEEN FIGHTING? 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