Chicago's Picture of the Day ....

Angel "Toro" Hernandez trains for his March 25th bout with Joey "Twinkle Fingers" Hernandez. http://a5.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/181741_195998810429458_108101055885901_660853_432008_n.jpg More Info on "Toro" Angel “Toro” Hernandez Middleweight Pro Record: 30-9, 17 KOs Born: San Luis Potosí, Mexico Former NABF Light Middleweight Champion Former NABA Light Middleweight Champion Former IBA Americas Jr. Middleweight Champion Manager: Wasfi Tolymat Angel “Toro” Hernandez personifies the phrase “Mexican warrior.” Having fought in high profile bouts on HBO, HBO Latino, ESPN2, Showtime and Telemundo, Hernandez has enjoyed a “big time” boxing career. A former NABF and NABA champion, Toro has faced some of the best the sport has to offer at some of the highest profile boxing venues including Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Foxwoods in Connecticut and Chicago’s Allstate Arena. A fight fan’s dream, Toro enters every fight with a carefully laid out game plan. A skilled boxer when he chooses to be, the plan typically goes out the window once he is tagged and “the war” that Angel is notorious for is on. During his illustrious career, Toro has engaged in memorable battles with legends and stars including Winky Wright, JC Candelo, Kassim Ouma,Wilfredo Rivera, Frankie Randall, Antwan Echols and Kassim Ouma. After winning two prestigious Chicago Golden Gloves amateur titles, Toro made his professional debut in 1996 by scoring a first round knock out. With a record of 13-0, Hernandez, still a relative new comer, jumped way up in class to face Puerto Rican star Wilfredo Rivera (28-3), a fighter who was in the prime of his career. Hernandez would suffer his first loss, a 10-round decision, against Rivera, a fighter whose losses read like badges of honor. Two of Rivera's losses were against Hall of Famer, Pernell “Sweet Pea” Whitaker and another loss came at the hands of another superstar in his prime, Oscar De La Hoya. All three of those bouts were WBC world title bouts. Although he lost his bout against Rivera, Toro’s spectacular performance put the division on notice. There was another great Mexican warrior on the horizon. Since then, Toro has packed venues with fans who know exactly what they will witness when he steps in the ring- a Mexican warrior at work. In January of 2002, Toro won a 10-round unanimous decision over highly touted JC Candelo to claim the NABF light middleweight title and a top world ranking. In July of 2003, before a raucous hometown crowd of Chicagoan’s, Toro beat Victor Rosado and added the NABA light middleweight strap to his collection. Angel’s big shot came in November of 2003 when he was tapped to fight IBF light middleweight champion Winky Wright (45-3) in the co-main event of the HBO Pay-Per-View mega-fight, Roy Jones Jr. vs. Antonio Tarver I. In a display of heart and sheer will to win, Hernandez lost a 12-round decision to the sport’s most skilled and elusive boxer, but gained many new fans for his gut-check performance. On October 13, 2007, Toro fought Chicago’s Louis Turner in what ESPN’s Dan Rafael referred to as, “…pure violence disguised as a legal boxing match.” Fighting on the undercard of an HBO broadcast, Toro beat Turner in a bout that was so thrilling, it won top-10 honors as a “Fight of the Year” candidate from ESPN. Born in San Luis Potosí, Mexico, Angel’s father was a professional baseball player who pitched for the Mexico City Red Devils. Invited to try-out for the NY Yankees, Angel’s dad suffered a career ending injury before he could realize the dream of playing for the famed NY team. In 1992, after his father was killed in an auto accident, the family moved to Chicago. In Mexico, Toro dreamed of being a pitcher like his father, but turned to boxing not long after arriving in the Windy City. As an amateur, Toro won two prestigious Chicago Golden Gloves titles.