Miguel Berchelt

Miguel Ángel Berchelt Cervera (born 17 November 1991) is a Mexican professional boxer who has held the WBC super featherweight title since 2017. As of May 2020, he is ranked as the world's best active super featherweight by the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board,[1] The Ring[2] and Boxrec.[3]

Miguel Berchelt
Statistics
Real nameMiguel Ángel Berchelt Cervera
Nickname(s)El Alacrán ("The Scorpion")
Weight(s)Super featherweight
Height5 ft 7 in (170 cm)
Reach71 12 in (182 cm)
NationalityMexican
Born (1991-11-17) 17 November 1991
Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico
StanceOrthodox
Boxing record
Total fights39
Wins37
Wins by KO33
Losses1
No contests1

Amateur career

Berchelt tried out at the age of 16 for the football club he supported as a child, Pumas UNAM. He turned to boxing after being rejected.[4] During his amateur career, he was a three-time Mexican National Boxing Champion in the Elite category. Berchelt never represented his country internationally as Óscar Valdez was the highest-ranked boxer in the featherweight division at the time. The two never faced each other as amateurs.[5]

Professional career

Early career

Berchelt turned pro at the age of 18, moving from his native Cancún to Mérida. He debuted on his 19th birthday, defeating Armin Chan by way of technical knockout in the 2nd round. Berchelt lived in a single room above a gym with six other boxers during this time.[5] He was considered the boxer of the year in 2011 by the World Boxing Council.[6] He amassed a 15-0 record with 13 knockouts before getting his first chance to compete for a belt in September 2012. Berchelt defeated Berman Sánchez for the WBC Youth Intercontinental super featherweight by technical knockout after 2 rounds. Berchelt made his US debut in March 2013 beating Claudio Ríos by TKO in the first round in the undercard of Ríos-Alvarado II at the Mandalay Bay. Berchelt's career suffered a surprising setback when he was knocked out in just one round by Luis Eduardo Florez. Berchelt struggled getting inside the range of his taller opponent. He was knocked down by a left hook and struggled to beat the count before the referee waved the fight off.[7]

However, Berchelt would get his career back on track by rattling off seven consecutive wins by way of knockout and winning the NABO super featherweight title. Berchelt first fought for a world title by facing George Jupp for the vacant interim WBO super featherweight. Berchelt won the title, defeating Jupp with a round 6 TKO in Mérida, his adopted hometown. Jupp was outmatched, having taken the fight at seven days' notice.[8] Berchelt defended his title against Chonlatarn Piriyapinyo before vacating it to challenge WBC champion Francisco Vargas.

Berchelt vs. Vargas

On 2 December 2016 it was announced that Berchelt and Vargas would meet on 29 January 2017 at the Fantasy Springs Casino in Indio, California for the Vargas' WBC super featherweight title.[9] Vargas and Berchelt traded punches in the early rounds, with cuts from Vargas' previous fights with Takashi Miura and Orlando Salido re-opening. On the latter rounds, Vargas started to slowly fade and Berchelt started to dominate the defending champion. The referee stopped the fight with 2:19 minutes elapsed in the round 11. According to CompuBox Stats, Vargas landed 330 of 1032 punches thrown (32%) and Berchelt landed 430 of his 947 thrown (45%). In the post fight interview, Berchelt said, "I wanted to fight the best of the best, and this fight happened because of that. Francisco is a great champion, he has fought the best and has been in two Fight of the Year contests. I knew what I was getting into I left my heart and soul on the mat. I am young and hungry. I want to thank Vargas for this incredible opportunity." Vargas stated he lost the fight due to cuts and would eventually want a rematch.[10][11][12] The fight averaged 497,000 viewers and peaked at 561,000 viewers.[13]

Initial defences

Berchelt's first defense came on 15 July at The Forum in Inglewood, California against former WBC super featherweight champion Takashi Miura. Miura lost his title to Vargas in The Ring's 2015 Fight of the year. Miura had defeated Miguel Román in the Vargas vs. Berchelt undercard to become the WBC's mandatory challenger. Berchelt knocked down Miura in the first round and proceeded to out-point the former champion en route to a comfortable win by unanimous decision (120-109, 119-108, 116-111). This fight marked only the third time that a Berchelt bout went to the scorecards. Miura announced his retirement 2 weeks after this bout.[14]

In October 2017, it was announced that Berchelt would close out the year by defending his title against Orlando Salido.[15] On 14 October, Sean Gibbons, Salido's manager, told the LA Times that the fight had been finalized to take place on 9 December, meaning it would fall on the same day as Vasyl Lomachenko vs. Guillermo Rigondeaux.[16] On 23 October, sources indicated that Berchelt was still having issues with his right hand and would not be able to fight.[17] Berchelt was informed by the WBC that he would be allowed a voluntary defence before fighting the winner of Salido vs. Roman.[18]

On 23 January 2018 a deal was finalized for Berchelt to defend his WBC title against 31 year old Philippine boxer Carlo Magali (29-9-3, 12 KOs) on 10 February in Cancún, Mexico. Berchelt had not fought in front of his home fans since July 2011. Originally, Cristian Mijares was scheduled to challenge Berchelt, however a deal could not be reached.[19][20] A week before the fight, Magali was replaced by African boxer Maxwell Awuku (44-3-1, 30 KOs).[21][22] Berchelt dropped Awuku twice, winning the bout via TKO in round 3. The referee stopped the bout with 14 seconds remaining in the round. The first knockdown occurred following a straight right and then the second knockdown, which followed after Awuku beat the count, was from a hard jab. The fight was then stopped with Awuku pinned against the ropes receiving power shots.[23][24] The fight, which aired on TV Azteca in Mexico, was watched by 6 million viewers.

Berchelt vs. Barros

A couple days after defeating Awuku, it was reported that Berchelt would next fight his mandatory challenger Miguel Román (59-12, 46 KOs) in May 2018.[25] Roman's promoter Osvaldo Küchle was willing to go to purse bids. He revealed Zanfer Promotions made an offer, however it was not satisfactory. Küchle wanted to take the fight to a football stadium.[26] On 19 March, Zanfer Promotions announced that Berchelt would make a voluntary defence in Mérida, before fighting Román later in the year.[27] Argentine boxer and former featherweight world champion Jonathan Victor Barros (41-5-1, 22 KOs) became the front runner to challenge Berchelt on 23 June 2018.[28] The deal was confirmed on 25 May for the fight to take place at the Poliforum Zamna with ESPN+ covering the fight in the United States. Barros was coming off a loss entering this bout following his failed world title challenge against then-IBF champion Lee Selby in July 2017 and at the time ranked #9 at featherweight by the WBC.[29] n an easy title defense, Berchelt defeated Barros via TKO in round 3, successfully retaining his WBC title a third time. Berchelt dropped Barros in round 2 with a left hand to the head. Barros beat the count, however spent the remainder of the bout taking heavy shots. He was dropped again in round 3. Barros' trainer stepped up on the apron advising the referee to stop the bout. Despite Barros beating the count again and wanting to continue, the referee stopped the fight 1:53 of round 3.[30][31] On the same night, mandatory challenger Miguel Román (60-12, 47 KOs) defeated then-undefeated Michel Marcano via stoppage in round 2. Prior to their respective bouts, the WBC ordered Berchelt vs. Roman to take place.[32]

Berchelt vs. Román

Whilst a deal was being finalized for the Berchelt-Román fight, it was said that HBO, who had showcased both boxers recent fights, would likely not broadcast the fight as there was interest from Showtime, ESPN+ and DAZN.[33] On 24 August it was announced that ESPN+ had picked up the fight, to take place on 3 November 2018 in either Los Angeles or Texas.[34] The Don Haskins Center in El Paso, Texas was later confirmed as the venue.[35]

Personal life

Berchelt was arrested in 2012 due to domestic violence.[36]

Professional boxing record

Professional record summary
39 fights 37 wins 1 loss
By knockout 33 1
By decision 3 0
By disqualification 1 0
No contests 1
No. Result Record Opponent Type Round Date Location Notes
40 N/A N/A Óscar Valdez N/A – (12) 20 Feb 2021 MGM Grand Conference Center, Paradise, Nevada, U.S. Defending WBC super featherweight title
39 NC 37–1 (1) Eleazer Valenzuela NC 6 (10), 1:13 27 Jun 2020 Gimnasio TV Azteca, Mexico City, Mexico Berchelt declared the winner by TKO, officially ruled an NC as the event was not sanctioned by Mexico City Boxing Commission
38 Win 37–1 Jason Sosa KO 4 (12), 2:56 2 Nov 2019 Dignity Health Sports Park, Carson, California, U.S. Retained WBC super featherweight title
37 Win 36–1 Francisco Vargas RTD 6 (12), 3:00 11 May 2019 Convention Center, Tucson, Arizona, U.S. Retained WBC super featherweight title
36 Win 35–1 Miguel Román TKO 9 (12), 2:58 3 Nov 2018 Don Haskins Center, El Paso, Texas, U.S. Retained WBC super featherweight title
35 Win 34–1 Jonathan Victor Barros TKO 3 (12), 1:53 23 Jun 2018 Poliforum Zamna, Mérida, México Retained WBC super featherweight title
34 Win 33–1 Maxwell Awuku TKO 3 (12), 2:46 10 Feb 2018 Grand Oasis Resort, Cancún, México Retained WBC super featherweight title
33 Win 32–1 Takashi Miura UD 12 15 Jul 2017 The Forum, Inglewood, California, U.S. Retained WBC super featherweight title
32 Win 31–1 Francisco Vargas KO 11 (12), 2:19 28 Jan 2017 Fantasy Springs Casino, Indio, California, U.S. Won WBC super featherweight title
31 Win 30–1 Chonlatarn Piriyapinyo KO 4 (12), 2:59 16 Jul 2016 Polideportivo Soraya Jiménez, Los Reyes La Paz, México Retained WBO interim super featherweight title
30 Win 29–1 George Jupp KO 6 (12), 1:55 12 Mar 2016 Poliforum Zamna, Mérida, México Won WBO interim super featherweight title
29 Win 28–1 Rolando Giono KO 3 (10), 1:50 19 Dec 2015 Coliseo Yucatán, Mérida, México
28 Win 27–1 Josué Bendana TKO 5 (10), 1:34 26 Sep 2015 Centro Convenciones, Puerto Peñasco, México
27 Win 26–1 Sergio Puente RTD 5 (10), 3:00 20 Jun 2015 Palenque, Comitán, México
26 Win 25–1 René González RTD 5 (12), 3:00 28 Mar 2015 Poliforum Zamna, Mérida, México Won vacant NABO super featherweight title
25 Win 24–1 Antonio Escalante TKO 3 (10), 2:36 11 Oct 2014 Coliseo Yucatán, Mérida, México
24 Win 23–1 Carlos Manuel Reyes KO 4 (10), 2:54 5 Jul 2014 La Inalámbrica, Mérida, México
23 Win 22–1 Armando Mariscal KO 3 (10), 2:28 31 May 2014 La Inalámbrica, Mérida, México
22 Loss 21–1 Luis Eduardo Florez TKO 1 (10), 1:39 15 Mar 2014 Palenque, México
21 Win 21–0 Omar Estrella KO 5 (10), 2:51 2 Nov 2013 Centro de Usos Múltiples, Hermosillo, México
20 Win 20–0 Cristóbal Cruz TKO 5 (10), 2:25 31 Aug 2013 La Inalámbrica, Mérida, México
19 Win 19–0 Weng Haya TKO 2 (10), 2:57 22 Jun 2013 La Inalámbrica, Mérida, México
18 Win 18–0 Carlos Claudio TKO 1 (8), 1:58 30 Mar 2013 Mandalay Bay Events Center, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.
17 Win 17–0 Oliver Flores KO 2 (10), 2:49 9 Nov 2012 La Inalámbrica, Mérida, México Retained WBC Youth Intercontinental super featherweight title
16 Win 16–0 Berman Sánchez TKO 2 (10), 0:57 7 Sep 2012 La Inalámbrica, Mérida, México Won vacant WBC Youth Intercontinental super featherweight title
15 Win 15–0 Sergio López TKO 1 (10), 1:39 6 Jul 2012 Unidad Deportiva Víctor Cervera, Mérida, México
14 Win 14–0 Carlos Ocampo UD 10 19 May 2012 Arena TKT, Puerto Vallarta, México
13 Win 13–0 Albert Chuc TKO 1 (8), 1:16 31 Mar 2012 Poliforum Zamna, Mérida, México
12 Win 12–0 Fernando Cruz KO 3 (8), 2:50 17 Dec 2011 Arena Jorge Cuesy Serrano, Tuxtla Gutiérrez, México
11 Win 11–0 Cristian Palafox UD 6 26 Nov 2011 Feria de Xmatkuil, Mérida, México
10 Win 10–0 Pablo Batres TKO 5 (6), 1:15 29 Oct 2011 Centro de Usos Múltiples, Hermosillo, México
9 Win 9–0 Miguel Ángel Chi DQ 5 (6), 2:17 10 Sep 2011 Centro de Convenciones Siglo XXI, Mérida, México
8 Win 8–0 Israel Barrón TKO 2 (6), 0:18 20 Aug 2011 Valle de Guadalupe, México
7 Win 7–0 Ricardo Hernández TKO 2 (6), 2:07 26 Jul 2011 Plaza de Toros, Cancún, México
6 Win 6–0 Freddy Hernández TKO 2 (6), 1:39 11 Jun 2011 La Inalámbrica, Mérida, México
5 Win 5–0 Alfredo de los Santos TKO 3 (6), 1:16 2 Apr 2011 Auditorio del Estado, Mexicali, México
4 Win 4–0 Aaron López TKO 1 (4), 2:30 2 Feb 2011 Plaza de Toros, Mérida, México
3 Win 3–0 Jonathan Quime TKO 3 (4), 2:57 18 Dec 2010 Estadio 20 de Noviembre, Campeche, México
2 Win 2–0 Eduardo Arévalo TKO 1 (4), 0:52 27 Nov 2010 Feria de Xmatkuil, Mérida, México
1 Win 1–0 Armin Chan TKO 1 (4), 1:26 17 Nov 2010 Feria de Xmatkuil, Mérida, México

See also

References

  1. "TBRB Rankings". Archived from the original on 6 December 2014.
  2. "Ratings - The Ring". The Ring. Retrieved 14 October 2017.
  3. "BoxRec: Ratings". boxrec.com. Retrieved 14 October 2017.
  4. http://www.mediotiempo.com/mas-deportes/2017/02/03/pumas-no-quiso-al-alacran-hoy-es-campeon-superpluma-del-cmb
  5. http://www.excelsior.com.mx/adrenalina/2016/03/11/1080240
  6. "SULJOSBLOG // El blog de boxeo mas importante del mundo » MIGUEL "ALACRÁN" BERCHELT, DE YUCATÁN, ES EL PRIMER BECADO DE RING TELMEX DE ESTE 2012". Archived from the original on 16 January 2012. Retrieved 24 April 2014.
  7. https://www.elheraldo.co/deportes/luis-florez-noquea-al-alacran-berchelt-en-mexico-146372
  8. http://www.boxnation.com/boxing-matches/miguel-berchelt-v-george-jupp/
  9. "Francisco Vargas vs. Miguel Berchelt Set For January 28, HBO". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
  10. "Vargas vs. Berchelt Results". fightnewswire.com. 29 January 2017. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
  11. "Miguel Berchelt beats Francisco Vargas to win WBC super featherweight title". Sky Sports. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
  12. "Berchelt takes junior lightweight belt in upset". ESPN.com. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
  13. Pugmire, Lance. "Showtime's Santa Cruz-Frampton card outdraws HBO's Vargas-Berchelt as ratings war heats up". latimes.com. Retrieved 3 January 2019.
  14. https://www.badlefthook.com/2017/7/29/16062548/takashi-uchiyama-and-takashi-miura-retire
  15. Deportes, Azteca. "Queda definida pelea Miguel Berchelt vs 'Siri' Salido". Azteca Deportes (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 10 February 2018. Retrieved 14 October 2017.
  16. "Miguel Berchelt vs. Orlando Salido on Dec.9 » Boxing News". Boxing News 24. 14 October 2017. Retrieved 14 October 2017.
  17. "Berchelt With Right Hand Issue, Pulled From Salido Fight - Boxing News". www.boxingscene.com. Retrieved 25 October 2017.
  18. "Berchelt is Allowed a Voluntary Before Salido-Roman Winner - Boxing News". www.boxingscene.com. Retrieved 15 November 2017.
  19. "Miguel Berchelt vs. Carlo Magali Finalized For February 10". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
  20. "Mijares Reacts To Berchelt, May Face Papito Vazquez on March 17". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
  21. "Miguel Berchelt vs. Maxwell Awuku Now Set - Magali is Out". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
  22. "Change of plans: Berchelt now facing Awuku". ESPN.com. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
  23. "Berchelt Drops Awuku Twice, Beats Him By Third-Round TKO". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
  24. "Miguel Berchelt retains title with TKO-3 win". Bad Left Hook. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
  25. "Miguel Berchelt vs. Miguel Roman is Targeted For May". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
  26. "Miguel Berchelt vs. Miguel Roman May Head To a Purse Bid". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
  27. "Berchelt To Make Another Voluntary Defense, Then Roman". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
  28. "Miguel Berchelt vs. Jonathan Victor Barros in Play For June 23". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
  29. "Berchelt vs. Barros Finalized For Merida, To Be Carried By ESPN+". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
  30. "Miguel Berchelt Crushes Jonathan Barros in Three Rounds". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 7 July 2018.
  31. "Berchelt dominates Barros in 3rd-round KO". ESPN.com. Retrieved 7 July 2018.
  32. "Miguel Roman Smashes Marcano in Two, Sets Up Berchelt Shot". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 7 July 2018.
  33. "Berchelt-Roman May Not Land On HBO, Other Networks Surface". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
  34. "Miguel Berchelt vs. Miguel Roman is Secured By ESPN+". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
  35. "Miguel Berchelt-Miguel Roman confirmed for November 3 in El Paso - The Ring". The Ring. 10 September 2018. Retrieved 11 September 2018.
  36. http://reporteroshoy.mx/wp/boxeador-del-ano-golpea-a-su-novia-y-le-fractura-la-nariz.html
Achievements
Vacant
Title last held by
Orlando Salido
WBO super featherweight champion
Interim title

12 March 2016 – November 2016
Stripped
Vacant
Preceded by
Francisco Vargas
WBC super featherweight champion
28 January 2017 - present
Incumbent
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