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Antonio Margarito is disgraced, having been banished for trying to cheat against Shane Mosley. Marco Antonio Barrera and Erik Morales are semi-retired, long past their best days. Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., though popular, isn't regarded as a serious contender.
Rivals Israel Vazquez and Rafael Marquez are closer to the end than the beginning. The same goes for Juan Manuel Marquez, who, although one of the best fighters in the world, is 35.
Who, then, can carry the mantle as the next star fighter from boxing-mad Mexico?
Ask junior middleweight Alfredo Angulo and his handlers, and they'll tell you it's Angulo.
"He's got a chance to carry that banner," promoter Gary Shaw said. "There was Chavez [Sr.], Barrera, Morales. They carried that banner. Now, Angulo has a chance to follow in their footsteps."
Said manager Mike Criscio, "The Mexicans needs someone to fall in love with after Margarito got caught [trying to load his gloves against Mosley]. Alfredo can step into those shoes and be their hero."
With the quintessential Mexican fighting style -- aggression and a willingness to take two punches to land one -- Angulo wears his national pride on his sleeve. When describing his style, he says he is "a warrior who gives everything, like the majority of Mexican fighters. That's how we are."
Although Angulo lives in Southern California, he grew up in Mexico and represented his country as a middleweight in the 2004 Olympics, losing by decision to Ireland's Andy Lee in the opening round. As a professional, Angulo, nicknamed "Perro" or "Dog" for his relentless style, has been moved exceedingly fast by Shaw and Criscio. With a victory in his 16th pro fight -- against former welterweight titleholder Kermit Cintron (30-2-1, 27 KOs) on Saturday (HBO, 9:45 p.m. ET/PT) at the Seminole Hard Rock resort in Hollywood, Fla. -- Angulo will become titleholder Sergio Martinez's mandatory challenger.
"We moved him very fast. I put my guys in with the best I can find," Criscio said. "I don't believe in bringing a kid up fighting tomato cans. It builds false confidence. The way to build confidence is put him in with a good fighter. I don't want to baby my guys. This way, they can move faster."
Criscio did it with light heavyweight Chad Dawson and is doing it again with Angulo (15-0, 12 KOs), who will be making his fourth consecutive appearance in a year on HBO's "Boxing After Dark." HBO also has included the 26-year-old in an advertising campaign this year that features boxing's next generation of stars.
In the main event, Andre Berto (24-0, 19 KOs), from nearby Winter Haven, Fla., makes the third defense of his welterweight belt, against Colombia's Juan Urango (21-1-1, 16 KOs), a junior welterweight titlist moving up one division for the opportunity.
Alfredo Angulo
Naoki ***uda
Alfredo Angulo, right, has looked impressive even as the level of competition has improved.
The kind of exposure Angulo has gotten on HBO, combined with his crowd-pleasing style and friendly demeanor outside the ring, has made him a growing fan favorite.
One thing that makes Angulo such an endearing sort is the love he has for those fans.
"The most important thing in boxing is to give a good fight to the people, the people who come to see the fight in the arena or the people that are watching at home on TV," said Angulo, who is trained by Clemente Medina. "It's not just about getting a check for my fights. It's more important that the people come up to me and say they like the way I fight. That pays me more than the check I receive at the end of the fight."
His blossoming career, of course, has been helped by the fact that he has performed well even as his competition has improved, especially in his past three fights: knockouts of Cosme Rivera, Andrey Tsurkan and Richard Gutierrez. Cintron, a strong puncher in his own right, is yet another step up.
Not bad for a guy who didn't enter a gym until he was 17. Angulo, the father of 3-year-old daughter Rebecca, tried boxing because he was a fan of the sport. He wanted to follow in the footsteps of his heroes, Chavez Sr., considered the greatest Mexican fighter of all time, and Hall of Famer Ricardo Lopez.
"I went to the gym because I was a fan. I just loved it," said Angulo, who takes English lessons but, for now, still conducts interviews through an interpreter. "I saw the gym was the right place for me. Once I got in that ring, I decided that is where I wanted to follow my dreams."
As a regular at fight cards, Angulo often is mobbed by fans looking for an autograph or photo.
"My fans dedicate time to me, so I want to dedicate my time to them," Angulo said. "That's what keeps me motivated. I guess they like me because I'm a humble dude and do anything for them. I was in a position of being a nobody, and I appreciate that they think that I'm now a somebody. They like how I fight, always going forward like a real boxer should. No jumping, no running. It's not track. I tell my opponent, 'Step up and let's work.' That's what my fans like, to see me do my job the way it is supposed to be done."
Shaw has seen the frenzy Angulo can whip up when they are at fights.
"It's amazing how popular he has become, especially with the Mexican and Mexican-American fans," Shaw said. "When we were leaving the Mosley-Margarito fight at the Staples Center to go to the HBO postfight party, it took us literally one hour to go from our seats upstairs to the party because of how many people wanted his picture and autograph. You know what? He took every picture and signed every autograph. He gets angry if you try to rush him. That's how much he loves his fans."
Criscio also has seen Angulo's popularity blossom in the past year.
"They know who he is, and he is not afraid to put his face out in the crowd. He loves the limelight, that kid," Criscio said. "He loves to tell people who he is. To be a star, you have to get your name and face out there. He goes to every fight, and no matter where we go, they swarm to him. Mexicans love their fighters, and I think they saw him fight a few times because he's been on TV a lot between Showtime and HBO. Nobody with 15 fights has been on HBO or Showtime like six or seven times, but Alfredo has. The fans come up to him and cheer, 'Perro! Perro! Perro!' They know who he is. It's also [publicist] Fred Sternburg getting his name out there and me and Gary pushing for TV."
Angulo knows that a victory will land him a title shot.
"I'm very excited about being in that position," he said. "I will push forward as long as I have my people behind me. At this point, I don't fear anything, no hard punches. I am looking at this like Mexico vs. Puerto Rico [where Cintron is from]. I fear none of his hard punches."
And if the day comes when Angulo has won a title, has had memorable fights and is retired?
"What I hope for is that the day that I retire, people will remember Alfredo Angulo's name as a fighter that's very Mexican who gave everything in the ring and poured his heart out to give a great show to the people of Mexico."
Rivals Israel Vazquez and Rafael Marquez are closer to the end than the beginning. The same goes for Juan Manuel Marquez, who, although one of the best fighters in the world, is 35.
Who, then, can carry the mantle as the next star fighter from boxing-mad Mexico?
Ask junior middleweight Alfredo Angulo and his handlers, and they'll tell you it's Angulo.
"He's got a chance to carry that banner," promoter Gary Shaw said. "There was Chavez [Sr.], Barrera, Morales. They carried that banner. Now, Angulo has a chance to follow in their footsteps."
Said manager Mike Criscio, "The Mexicans needs someone to fall in love with after Margarito got caught [trying to load his gloves against Mosley]. Alfredo can step into those shoes and be their hero."
With the quintessential Mexican fighting style -- aggression and a willingness to take two punches to land one -- Angulo wears his national pride on his sleeve. When describing his style, he says he is "a warrior who gives everything, like the majority of Mexican fighters. That's how we are."
Although Angulo lives in Southern California, he grew up in Mexico and represented his country as a middleweight in the 2004 Olympics, losing by decision to Ireland's Andy Lee in the opening round. As a professional, Angulo, nicknamed "Perro" or "Dog" for his relentless style, has been moved exceedingly fast by Shaw and Criscio. With a victory in his 16th pro fight -- against former welterweight titleholder Kermit Cintron (30-2-1, 27 KOs) on Saturday (HBO, 9:45 p.m. ET/PT) at the Seminole Hard Rock resort in Hollywood, Fla. -- Angulo will become titleholder Sergio Martinez's mandatory challenger.
"We moved him very fast. I put my guys in with the best I can find," Criscio said. "I don't believe in bringing a kid up fighting tomato cans. It builds false confidence. The way to build confidence is put him in with a good fighter. I don't want to baby my guys. This way, they can move faster."
Criscio did it with light heavyweight Chad Dawson and is doing it again with Angulo (15-0, 12 KOs), who will be making his fourth consecutive appearance in a year on HBO's "Boxing After Dark." HBO also has included the 26-year-old in an advertising campaign this year that features boxing's next generation of stars.
In the main event, Andre Berto (24-0, 19 KOs), from nearby Winter Haven, Fla., makes the third defense of his welterweight belt, against Colombia's Juan Urango (21-1-1, 16 KOs), a junior welterweight titlist moving up one division for the opportunity.
Alfredo Angulo
Naoki ***uda
Alfredo Angulo, right, has looked impressive even as the level of competition has improved.
The kind of exposure Angulo has gotten on HBO, combined with his crowd-pleasing style and friendly demeanor outside the ring, has made him a growing fan favorite.
One thing that makes Angulo such an endearing sort is the love he has for those fans.
"The most important thing in boxing is to give a good fight to the people, the people who come to see the fight in the arena or the people that are watching at home on TV," said Angulo, who is trained by Clemente Medina. "It's not just about getting a check for my fights. It's more important that the people come up to me and say they like the way I fight. That pays me more than the check I receive at the end of the fight."
His blossoming career, of course, has been helped by the fact that he has performed well even as his competition has improved, especially in his past three fights: knockouts of Cosme Rivera, Andrey Tsurkan and Richard Gutierrez. Cintron, a strong puncher in his own right, is yet another step up.
Not bad for a guy who didn't enter a gym until he was 17. Angulo, the father of 3-year-old daughter Rebecca, tried boxing because he was a fan of the sport. He wanted to follow in the footsteps of his heroes, Chavez Sr., considered the greatest Mexican fighter of all time, and Hall of Famer Ricardo Lopez.
"I went to the gym because I was a fan. I just loved it," said Angulo, who takes English lessons but, for now, still conducts interviews through an interpreter. "I saw the gym was the right place for me. Once I got in that ring, I decided that is where I wanted to follow my dreams."
As a regular at fight cards, Angulo often is mobbed by fans looking for an autograph or photo.
"My fans dedicate time to me, so I want to dedicate my time to them," Angulo said. "That's what keeps me motivated. I guess they like me because I'm a humble dude and do anything for them. I was in a position of being a nobody, and I appreciate that they think that I'm now a somebody. They like how I fight, always going forward like a real boxer should. No jumping, no running. It's not track. I tell my opponent, 'Step up and let's work.' That's what my fans like, to see me do my job the way it is supposed to be done."
Shaw has seen the frenzy Angulo can whip up when they are at fights.
"It's amazing how popular he has become, especially with the Mexican and Mexican-American fans," Shaw said. "When we were leaving the Mosley-Margarito fight at the Staples Center to go to the HBO postfight party, it took us literally one hour to go from our seats upstairs to the party because of how many people wanted his picture and autograph. You know what? He took every picture and signed every autograph. He gets angry if you try to rush him. That's how much he loves his fans."
Criscio also has seen Angulo's popularity blossom in the past year.
"They know who he is, and he is not afraid to put his face out in the crowd. He loves the limelight, that kid," Criscio said. "He loves to tell people who he is. To be a star, you have to get your name and face out there. He goes to every fight, and no matter where we go, they swarm to him. Mexicans love their fighters, and I think they saw him fight a few times because he's been on TV a lot between Showtime and HBO. Nobody with 15 fights has been on HBO or Showtime like six or seven times, but Alfredo has. The fans come up to him and cheer, 'Perro! Perro! Perro!' They know who he is. It's also [publicist] Fred Sternburg getting his name out there and me and Gary pushing for TV."
Angulo knows that a victory will land him a title shot.
"I'm very excited about being in that position," he said. "I will push forward as long as I have my people behind me. At this point, I don't fear anything, no hard punches. I am looking at this like Mexico vs. Puerto Rico [where Cintron is from]. I fear none of his hard punches."
And if the day comes when Angulo has won a title, has had memorable fights and is retired?
"What I hope for is that the day that I retire, people will remember Alfredo Angulo's name as a fighter that's very Mexican who gave everything in the ring and poured his heart out to give a great show to the people of Mexico."
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