# Víctor Galíndez

Víctor Emilio Galíndez (2 November 1948 in Vedia – 25 October 1980 in Veinticinco de Mayo, Buenos Aires) was an Argentine boxer who was the third Latin American to win the world Light Heavyweight championship, after Puerto Rico's José Torres and Venezuela's Vicente Rondon.
Galíndez was born in Vedia in the Leandro N. Alem Partido of the Buenos Aires Province in Argentina in 1948. He aspired to become both a boxer and a stock car pilot since an early age, but he was more interested in boxing. As an amateur, he compiled a winning record and participated in the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, where he lost in a preliminary round bout to Aldo Bentini of Italy. A year earlier he claimed the silver medal at the 1967 Pan American Games.
Galíndez then turned professional, and on 10 May 1969, he debuted as a paid fighter with a win over Ramon Ruiz by a knockout in four at Buenos Aires. After one more win, he faced Adolfo Cejas in Azul, Argentina, in a fight which resulted in a ten-round draw.
In 1970, Galíndez had 10 fights, a span during which he went 5-3-1, with one no contest. He suffered his first loss, at the hands of Juan Aguilar, by a decision in ten, and had a second and third fight with Aguilar, of which the second ended in a first round no contest, and the second in another Aguilar decision win. He began his five fight rivalry with Jorge Ahumada knocking Ahumada out in five rounds, and lost the Argentine Light Heavyweight title with a twelve-round decision defeat against Avenamar Peralta.
He and Peralta had an immediate, non-title rematch in 1971, and Galíndez won by a ten-round decision. 1971 was a year of rematches for Galíndez, the only new boxer he met that year being Pedro Rimovsky, and he too, had a rematch with Galíndez before that year was over. He lost to Ahumada in the second of the five fights between them, by a decision in Mendoza, Argentina, then beat him in fight three by a knockout in nine, and in fight four by a knockout in six, both the third and fourth fight being held in Buenos Aires. He and Rimovsky had a first round no contest in their first bout, and drew over the ten round distance in the rematch, and then Galíndez had two more fights with Peralta, losing by a knockout in nine and a decision in 10.
In 1973, Galíndez had eight fights, winning seven and drawing one. He was finally able to obtain Argentina's Light Heavyweight title, by beating Aguilar by a decision in twelve. He beat Aguilar once again, by a knockout in six, and he also beat Eddie Owens, Eddie Duncan and Raul Loyola, the latter being beaten twice, one time defending his Argentine title.
He began 1974 with a step up in class, meeting former world title challenger Ray Anderson, beating him by a knockout in two. After six more consecutive wins, he was given his first shot at a world title, facing Len Hutchins for the WBA's vacant world Light Heavyweight championship. Galíndez then joined Torres and Rondon as the only Hispanic Light Heavyweight world champions in history, and Carlos Monzón as the only Argentine world champions of that era, with a TKO of Hutchins in the thirteenth round to become the WBA's world Light Heavyweight champion.
Galíndez, who never fought outside Argentina before becoming a world champion, became a traveling fighter after that. After he beat Johnny Griffin in Buenos Aires by knockout in six in a non-title bout, it was off to South Africa, for his first international fight, which was, at the same time, his first world title defense. He beat Pierre Fourie there by a decision. Next was Las Vegas, for his first fight in the United States, another non title affair. He knocked out Ray Elson in eight there. Next stop was the Madison Square Garden in New York, where he and arch-rival Ahumada met for a fifth time, this time with the world title on the line. After beating Ahumada by a decision in 15, Galíndez returned to South Africa, where he once again beat Fourie by decision in 15.
1976 saw a trip to Norway, where he beat Harald Skog by a knockout in three to retain the title, and to Denmark, where he beat Jesse Burnett by a decision in ten in a non tite affair. Then came a third trip to South Africa, where he knocked out challenger Richie Kates in the 15th and last round, and, after a fight with Billy Douglas in Buenos Aires, (a win by decision in ten) he found himself in South Africa once again, where he beat Kosie Smith by a decision in fifteen to once again, retain the title.
After beginning 1977 by beating Guillermo Aquirrezabala by a knockout in four in Mendoza, he and Kates had a rematch in Rome, Italy, where Galíndez once again beat Kates by decision over 15. Next, the Argentine champion and challenger Yaqui López faced-off in a 15-round title bout, once again in Italy, and Galíndez retained the title by a decision in Rome. Galíndez' last fight of '77 took him to Italy for a third time, and he beat future world champion Eddie Mustafa Muhammad (then Eddie Gregory) by a decision in fifteen.
In 1978, Galíndez went to Italy again, retaining the title with a fifteen-round decision in a rematch with Lopez, and then he made a series of non-title bouts in Argentina before he went on the road again, this time losing his title to Mike Rossman by a knockout in 13, in the same undercard where Muhammad Ali recovered the world Heavyweight title for the third time by beating Leon Spinks at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans.
After his first fight in 1979, beating Roberto Aguilar by a knockout in six back home, he and Rossman were supposed to have a rematch in February of that year, but Galíndez refused to fight, arguing that the judges selected for the rematch would probably favor Rossman. However, the rematch did come off later that year, and Galíndez recovered the world championship, once again in New Orleans, knocking Rossman out in 10 rounds. This time, however, he wouldn't last long as king of the Light Heavyweights, and he lost the title in his first defense, by a knockout in 11 to Marvin Johnson, a boxer who would later join Muhammad Ali, Sugar Ray Robinson and Carlos De León among others as one of the few boxers to be world champions three times in the same category. The fight with Johnson also took place in New Orleans.
He had a boxing record of 52 wins, 9 losses and 4 draws with 2 no contests, and 34 wins by knockout. He successfully defended the WBA world light heavyweight title ten times against seven boxers.
In 2002, Galíndez was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

## Death

After losing a rematch with Burnett in 1980 by a decision in twelve in Anaheim, California, Galíndez was forced to retire because of two operations to repair his detached retinas, and then he tried to pursue his other dream of becoming a stock-car race driver. On 25 October of that year, he participated in what would be his first and last Turismo Carretera race, as a co-driver. After a mechanical failure shortly after the start of the race, Galíndez and his driver Antonio Lizeviche headed towards the pits, walking alongside the road. A car of another competitor lost control and hit Galíndez and Lizeviche, killing them on the spot.

## Professional boxing record

| 68 fights | 55 wins | 9 losses |
| By knockout | 34 | 3 |
| By decision | 21 | 6 |
| Draws | 4 | 4 |
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
| 70 | Loss | 55–9–4 (2) | Jesse Burnett | UD | 12 | Jun 14, 1980 | Disneyland Hotel, Anaheim, California, US | |
| 69 | Loss | 55–8–4 (2) | Marvin Johnson | KO | 11 (15), 0:20 | Nov 30, 1979 | Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana, US | Lost WBA light heavyweight title |
| 68 | Win | 55–7–4 (2) | Mike Rossman | RTD | 9 (15), 3:00 | Apr 14, 1979 | Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana, US | Won WBA light heavyweight title |
| 67 | Win | 54–7–4 (2) | Roberto Aguilar | RTD | 8 (10) | Mar 9, 1979 | San Miguel, Argentina | |
| 66 | Loss | 53–7–4 (2) | Mike Rossman | TKO | 13 (15), 0:55 | Sep 15, 1978 | Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana, US | Lost WBA light heavyweight title |
| 65 | Win | 53–6–4 (2) | Marcos Antonio Tosto | KO | 6 (10) | Aug 19, 1978 | General Pico, Argentina | |
| 64 | Win | 52–6–4 (2) | Waldemar de Oliveira | KO | 9 (10) | Jul 8, 1978 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| 63 | Win | 51–6–4 (2) | Juan Antonio Musladino | KO | 9 (10) | Jun 16, 1978 | Ciudad Mendoza, Argentina | |
| 62 | Win | 50–6–4 (2) | Yaqui López | UD | 15 | May 6, 1978 | Lido di Camaiore, Italy | |
| 61 | Win | 49–6–4 (2) | Ramon Reinaldo Cerrezuela | PTS | 10 | Apr 8, 1978 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| 60 | Win | 48–6–4 (2) | Eddie Mustafa Muhammad | UD | 15 | Nov 19, 1977 | PalaRuffini, Torino, Italy | Retained WBA light heavyweight title |
| 59 | Win | 47–6–4 (2) | Yaqui López | UD | 15 | Sep 17, 1977 | Palazzetto dello Sport, Roma, Italy | Retained WBA light heavyweight title |
| 58 | Win | 46–6–4 (2) | Ritchie Kates | UD | 15 | Jun 18, 1977 | Palazzetto dello Sport, Roma, Italy | Retained WBA light heavyweight title |
| 57 | Win | 45–6–4 (2) | Guillermo Aguirrezabala | KO | 4 (10) | Apr 6, 1977 | Ciudad Mendoza, Argentina | |
| 56 | Win | 44–6–4 (2) | Kosie Smith | UD | 15 | Oct 5, 1976 | Rand Stadium, Johannesburg, South Africa | Retained WBA light heavyweight title |
| 55 | Win | 43–6–4 (2) | Billy Douglas | UD | 10 | Aug 21, 1976 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| 54 | Win | 42–6–4 (2) | Richie Kates | KO | 15 (15), 2:59 | May 22, 1976 | Rand Stadium, Johannesburg, South Africa | Retained WBA light heavyweight title |
| 53 | Win | 41–6–4 (2) | Jesse Burnett | MD | 10 | Apr 8, 1976 | Forum, Copenhagen, Denmark | |
| 52 | Win | 40–6–4 (2) | Harald Skog | KO | 3 (15), 1:45 | Mar 28, 1976 | Ekeberg Hall, Oslo, Norway | Retained WBA light heavyweight title |
| 51 | Win | 39–6–4 (2) | Pierre Fourie | SD | 15 | Sep 13, 1975 | Rand Stadium, Johannesburg, South Africa | Retained WBA light heavyweight title |
| 50 | Win | 38–6–4 (2) | Jorge Ahumada | UD | 15 | Jun 30, 1975 | Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, US | Retained WBA light heavyweight title |
| 49 | Win | 37–6–4 (2) | Ray Elson | TKO | 8 (10), 1:34 | May 16, 1975 | Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, US | |
| 48 | Win | 36–6–4 (2) | Pierre Fourie | UD | 15 | Apr 7, 1975 | Ellis Park Rugby Stadium, Johannesburg, South Africa | Retained WBA light heavyweight title |
| 47 | Win | 35–6–4 (2) | Johnny Griffin | KO | 6 (10) | Feb 15, 1975 | Balcarce, Argentina | |
| 46 | Win | 34–6–4 (2) | Len Hutchins | RTD | 12 (15), 3:00 | Dec 7, 1974 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | Won vacant WBA light heavyweight title |
| 45 | Win | 33–6–4 (2) | Domingo Silveira | KO | 4 (10) | Oct 5, 1974 | Parana, Argentina | |
| 44 | Win | 32–6–4 (2) | Angel Oquendo | PTS | 10 | Sep 14, 1974 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| 43 | Win | 31–6–4 (2) | Domingo Silveira | KO | 5 (10) | Sep 1, 1974 | San Juan, Argentina | |
| 42 | Win | 30–6–4 (2) | Domingo Silveira | KO | 4 (10) | Jul 12, 1974 | San Salvador de Jujuy, Argentina | |
| 41 | Win | 29–6–4 (2) | Jose Gonzalez | UD | 10 | Jun 8, 1974 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| 40 | Win | 28–6–4 (2) | Ruben Macario Gonzalez | KO | 3 (10) | Apr 5, 1974 | Rio Cuarto, Argentina | |
| 39 | Win | 27–6–4 (2) | Ray Anderson | KO | 2 (10), 1:23 | Feb 16, 1974 | Balcarce, Argentina | |
| 38 | Win | 26–6–4 (2) | Eddie Duncan | KO | 2 (10) | Dec 8, 1973 | San Miguel, Argentina | |
| 37 | Win | 25–6–4 (2) | Raul Arturo Loyola | TKO | 8 (10) | Nov 10, 1973 | San Miguel, Argentina | |
| 36 | Win | 24–6–4 (2) | Raul Arturo Loyola | PTS | 12 | Sep 7, 1973 | San Miguel, Argentina | Retained Argentine light heavyweight title |
| 35 | Win | 23–6–4 (2) | Juan Aguilar | KO | 6 (10) | Aug 10, 1973 | San Miguel, Argentina | |
| 34 | Win | 22–6–4 (2) | Karl Zurheide | KO | 2 (10) | Jul 14, 1973 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| 33 | Win | 21–6–4 (2) | Eddie Owens | KO | 3 (10) | May 12, 1973 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| 32 | Win | 20–6–4 (2) | Juan Aguilar | PTS | 12 | Apr 14, 1973 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | Retained Argentine light heavyweight title |
| 31 | Win | 19–6–4 (2) | Ruben Macario Gonzalez | KO | 3 (10) | Jan 29, 1973 | Salta, Argentina | |
| 30 | Draw | 18–6–4 (2) | Juan Aguilar | PTS | 10 | Dec 15, 1972 | Ciudad Mendoza, Argentina | |
| 29 | Win | 18–6–3 (2) | Oscar Wondryk | KO | 7 (10) | Nov 10, 1972 | Venado Tuerto, Argentina | |
| 28 | Win | 17–6–3 (2) | Avenamar Peralta | PTS | 12 | Oct 7, 1972 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | Won vacant South American light heavyweight title |
| 27 | Win | 16–6–3 (2) | Avenamar Peralta | PTS | 12 | Sep 2, 1972 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | Won Argentine light heavyweight title |
| 26 | Win | 15–6–3 (2) | Adolfo Jorge Cardozo | RTD | 4 (10) | Aug 19, 1972 | Teatro Real, Rosario, Argentina | |
| 25 | Win | 14–6–3 (2) | Juan Aguilar | PTS | 12 | Jul 22, 1972 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | Won Argentine light heavyweight title |
| 24 | Win | 13–6–3 (2) | Eddie Jones | PTS | 10 | May 6, 1972 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| 23 | Win | 12–6–3 (2) | Carlos A. Santagada | RTD | 8 (10) | Jan 22, 1972 | Nueve de Julio, Argentina | |
| 22 | Loss | 11–6–3 (2) | Avenamar Peralta | PTS | 10 | Dec 18, 1971 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| 21 | Win | 11–5–3 (2) | Juan Aguilar | PTS | 10 | Nov 20, 1971 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| 20 | Win | 10–5–3 (2) | Jorge Ahumada | KO | 6 (10) | Oct 30, 1971 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| 19 | Loss | 9–5–3 (2) | Avenamar Peralta | TKO | 9 (10) | Sep 11, 1971 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| 18 | Win | 9–4–3 (2) | Jorge Ahumada | KO | 9 (10) | Jul 31, 1971 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| 17 | Draw | 8–4–3 (2) | Pedro Rimovsky | PTS | 10 | Jun 12, 1971 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| 16 | Loss | 8–4–2 (2) | Jorge Ahumada | PTS | 10 | May 24, 1971 | Ciudad Mendoza, Argentina | |
| 15 | NC | 8–3–2 (2) | Pedro Rimovsky | NC | 1 (10) | Apr 7, 1971 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| 14 | Win | 8–3–2 (1) | Avenamar Peralta | PTS | 10 | Jan 9, 1971 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| 13 | Loss | 7–3–2 (1) | Avenamar Peralta | PTS | 12 | Nov 28, 1970 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | For Argentine light heavyweight title |
| 12 | Loss | 7–2–2 (1) | Juan Aguilar | PTS | 10 | Sep 18, 1970 | Ciudad Mendoza, Argentina | |
| 11 | NC | 7–1–2 (1) | Juan Aguilar | NC | 1 (10) | Aug 14, 1970 | Ciudad Mendoza, Argentina | |
| 10 | Win | 7–1–2 | Jorge Ahumada | KO | 5 (10) | Jul 22, 1970 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| 9 | Draw | 6–1–2 | Juan Aguilar | PTS | 10 | Jun 24, 1970 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| 8 | Win | 6–1–1 | Alfredo Segura | KO | 3 (10) | May 20, 1970 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| 7 | Win | 5–1–1 | Ramon Reinaldo Cerrezuela | TKO | 9 (10) | May 9, 1970 | Lujan, Argentina | |
| 6 | Loss | 4–1–1 | Juan Aguilar | PTS | 10 | Apr 8, 1970 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| 5 | Win | 4–0–1 | Ramon Rocha | KO | 9 (10) | Mar 13, 1970 | Rosario, Argentina | |
| 4 | Win | 3–0–1 | Adolfo Jorge Cardozo | KO | 5 (6) | Jan 17, 1970 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| 3 | Draw | 2–0–1 | Adolfo Cejas | PTS | 10 | Aug 16, 1969 | Azul, Argentina | |
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | Ruperto Robledo | KO | 3 (6) | Jun 28, 1969 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Ramon Ruiz | KO | 4 (6) | May 10, 1969 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |