Punchers from the Past: Kid Azteca

                     KID AZTECA

Real Name: Luis Villanueva Paramo

Born Mexico City 21 June 1913

Died Mexico City 16 March 2002 aged 88

Record: 252 fights, 192 wins (114 by KO/TKO) 47 losses 11 draws, 2 ND

Began boxing as an amateur at the age of 15

First recorded professional fight: 1 September  1929

Initially he was named Kid Chino because of his Asiatic features but then changed early in his career to Kid Azteca

Defeated: Battling Shaw, Baby Arizmendi, Ceferino Garcia*, Fritzie Zivic*,Izzy Jannazzo,

Lost To: Battling Shaw, Bep van Klavern, Ceferino Garcia, Fritzie Zivic, Sammy Angott*,Jackie Wilson*, and Baby Casanova

*Holders of a version of a world title

Retired: 3 February 1961

-One of the few fighters whose career spanned five decades (1920’s to 1960’s). Kid is unique in that he had at least one fight in every one of the thirty two years of his career unlike other five decade boxers such as Jack Johnson (1897-1931), Roberto Duran (1968-2001), Saoul Mamby (1969-2008) and South African Barney Maloney (1889-1923) each of whose career spanned five decades but each of who had a period/periods of inactivity within those decades

-Won the Mexican welterweight title in 1932 and held the title for 16 years making eleven defences

-Won over 100 fights by KO/TKO and scored a first round knockout in his last fight at the age of 47.

-Held a position in the Ring Magazine top ten welterweights for seven years and was ranked as No 1 for a time.

– Whilst still boxing he acted boxing themed films “El gran campeon” and “Kid Tabaco” and another  “Guantes de oro” .

The Kid was one of a family of 15 siblings. He related that when he was 15 he went swimming with a friend in the Rio Grande and saw a lot of people on the bank. It was a boxing show and they tried to get in for free but it ended up with Kid filling in for a fighter who had not turned up. Kid earned well during his career but bad investments meant he had to just go on fighting until his career tailed off with just one fight in 1960 and one in 1961. He died of cirrhosis of the liver and kidney failure in 2002.