Carlos Monzón

Carlos Roque Monzón, known as “Escopeta” (Shotgun), was an Argentine professional boxer who ruled as the undisputed world middleweight champion for seven years. He defended that title 14 times against 11 different opponents. In 1972, both The Ring magazine and the Boxing Writers Association of America named him Fighter of the Year. As of May 2026, BoxRec rates him the seventh greatest boxer of all time, pound for pound.

Retirement

He entered the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990. Monzón was known for his speed, punching power, and relentless work rate. He finished his career with a record of 87 wins, 3 losses, 9 draws, and 1 no contest, with 59 knockouts. All three losses came early in his career, and he avenged each one.

In 2002, The Ring ranked him the 11th greatest fighter of the previous 80 years, and in 2011, the magazine voted him the best middleweight titleholder of the last 50 years. As of January 2018, his unified championship reign of nine consecutive defenses is the second longest in middleweight history. Argentinians adored Monzón throughout his career.

Personal life

The media and the public closely followed his glamorous and violent life. However, he was repeatedly accused of domestic violence by his two wives and several mistresses, as well as of assaulting paparazzi. In 1988, he was charged with killing his second wife, Alicia Muñiz, and sentenced to 11 years in prison. He died in a car crash in January 1995 while returning to jail after a weekend furlough.

Early life

Monzón was born in San Javier, Argentina, to a family of Mocoví descent. His parents were Roque Monzón and Amalia Ledesma. He grew up in poverty with twelve siblings. When he was six, his family moved to Barranquitas Oeste, a poor neighborhood in Santa Fe, the capital of Santa Fe Province.

To help support his family, he quit school in the third grade and worked as a shoeshiner, paperboy, and milkman. He earned extra money by winning street fights, which led him to amateur boxing to sharpen his skills. Ex-wrestler Amilcar Brusa trained and mentored him. At sixteen, he met Zulema Encarnación Torres, with whom he had his first son.

On 11 May 1962, he married Mercedes Beatriz García, nicknamed “Pelusa.” They were so poor they could not afford a marriage license. The couple had three children, one of whom was adopted. Monzón had his first amateur fight on 2 October 1959, which ended in a draw.

Boxing beginnings

After compiling a 73-6-8 amateur record, he turned professional three years later. His first professional bout took place on 6 February 1963, and he knocked out his opponent in the second round. Looking back on his early career, Monzón recalled that he could not even afford boxing boots and often got infections in his feet. In 1966, he won the Argentine middleweight title, and in 1967, he added the South American middleweight title.

After that, Argentine promoter Juan Carlos Lectoure pushed him onto the international stage by arranging fights with foreign boxers such as Douglas Huntley, Charles Austin, Johnny Brooks, Harold Richardson, Tommy Bethea, Bennie Briscoe (a ten-round draw), Manoel Severino, and Eddy Pace. World middleweight champion Nino Benvenuti had a long, distinguished career, holding titles in two divisions and scoring two wins over all-time great Emile Griffith. He had lost to American Tom Bethea in Australia the year before, but avenged that loss in a title fight in Yugoslavia. Few people expected Monzón to beat Benvenuti in their title match—very few even knew who he was.

Yet Monzón applied pressure from the start, and in the 12th round, a right hand landed perfectly on Benvenuti’s chin, changing the title. Monzón also beat Benvenuti in a rematch, this time in only three rounds in Monte Carlo, when Benvenuti’s corner threw in the towel. In 1971, Monzón became only the second man to stop former three-time world champion Emile Griffith, doing so in 14 rounds. He later outpointed Griffith over 15 in a close fight—before that bout, Monzón had to spar three rounds and run three miles just to make weight.

He then scored a win over tough Philadelphian Bennie Briscoe in their rematch, surviving a shaky ninth round in which Briscoe nearly knocked him out. He followed with a fifth-round knockout of European champion Tom Bogs, a seventh-round knockout of Cuban-Mexican José “Mantequilla” Nápoles in Paris, and a 10-round knockout of Tony Licata of New Orleans at Madison Square Garden—his only fight in the United States. In 1975, the WBC stripped Monzón of his middleweight title for failing to defend against mandatory challenger Rodrigo Valdez. Valdez, a Colombian, won the WBC title, while Monzón kept the WBA championship.

They finally met in 1976, world champion versus world champion. Valdez’s brother had been shot to death a week before the fight, and Valdez did not feel like fighting, but both were under contract. The bout took place in Monte Carlo.

Monzón beat Valdez badly, winning a 15-round unanimous decision and reunifying the world title. Facing a lack of strong challengers, Monzón was offered a large purse to fight the Colombian again. The second fight was a classic. Valdez came out aggressively, and in the second round, a right cross to the chin put Monzón down for the first and only time in his career.

Valdez built a lead early, but Monzón mounted a brilliant comeback, outboxing him over the last eight rounds to win a unanimous decision. That victory retained his title and marked his 14th title defense. Monzón retired after the second Valdez fight. His final record was 87 wins, 3 losses, 9 draws, and 1 no contest, with 59 wins by knockout.