Joan Guzman

At 48 years old, Joan Guzman has this physical status:

Joan Guzmán (born May 1, 1976) is a Dominican former professional boxer who competed from 1997 to 2014.

He held world championships in two weight classes, including the WBO junior featherweight title from 2002 to 2005, and the WBO junior lightweight title from 2006 to 2008.

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Amateur career

Guzman won 310 out of 320 bouts as an amateur after starting boxing at nine years old. At the 1995 Pan American Games, a gold medalist bout was included in these victories. In 1996, he competed in Atlanta, Georgia, where he lost to then-world champion Omar Andrés Narváez.

Professional career

Guzmán began his work in the United States. His debut fight, which took place in Phoenix, Arizona, was held on September 23, 1997. He knocked Juan Miguel Rivera out in two rounds. He returned to the Dominican Republic after winning in another second round knockout (this time at the Madison Square Garden in New York City).

He was off work for two years before returning to fight in his homeland for the first time. At Santo Domingo, he defeated Orlando Mateo over eight rounds on March 11, 1999. He battled six times before being granted a championship run for the Dominican featherweight championship.

He lost weight during his two-year layoff, from the featherweight division to the super bantamweight division.

He knocked out Francisco de Leon in round 11 on October 25, 1999, winning the national championship. He held the title once more with a two-round knockout of Santiago Matos. He defeated Hector Julio Avila in the second round of the vacant NABO regional super bantamweight title on August 9, 2001.

Another win was particularly significant, given that it was for the WBO's Latino title, as well as the WBO's coveted intercontinental championship and Guzman's NABO crown. Guzman won two new regional championships while retaining the one he already owned by defeating Edel Ruiz by decision in a fight held in Tacoma, Washington, on September 29, 2001.

Guzmán's name has been ranked No. 1 in the WBO's super bantamweight division. Agapito Sanchez, the WBO's world super bantamweight champion, travelled to Cardiff, Wales, to defend his title against Guzmán, but was diagnosed with a missing retina during a mandatory medical check-up days before the fight and was then stripped of the title. Sánchez resigned from boxing and Guzmán was battling Fabio Oliva for the vacant WBO world super bantamweight title on August 17, 2002. Guzmán won the championship with a 3rd-round knockout victory. Sánchez returned to boxing and defeated Guzmán on February 26, 2004, in San Diego, California, where he last defeated Guzmán. Guzmán retained the title after knocking out the former world champion in seven rounds. He later defended the award after defeating Fernando Beltrán, the country's first unbeaten man, by a unanimous vote on April 22, 2005. Guzmán advanced to the super featherweight division following his impressive win.

Jorge Rodrigo Barrios, the title holder who was going to fight for the WBO super featherweight championship on September 16, 2006, was subsequently barred from the WBO super featherweight title. Guzman retained the title and the fight by a split decision. Guzman won over Antonio Davis on December 18, 2006, and Humberto Soto, the future two division champion, all by unanimous vote.

Guzman opted to leave his WBO super featherweight title in order to continue his WBO career in the lightweight division in May 2008. On September 13, 2008, he was supposed to compete for Nate Campbell's unification WBA, WBO, and IBF titles. He was disappointed that he weighed in 312 pounds over 135 lb. There is a ceiling. Resultantly, the war was called off and Guzman was rushed to a hospital after suffering dehydration and coughing blood. Guzman's resignation was branded as an unethical gesture by a dismayed Campbell who went through such pain to defeat him. Guzman released an apology to his followers, relatives, and Campbell in particular for his loss due to his inability.

Guzman defeated Ameth Diaz for the WBA lightweight championship eliminator on December 20, 2008. Guzman maintained the weight limit through his bout with Campbell. Guzman secured his first match as a lightweight by unanimous vote.

Guzman challenged Ali Funeka in an attempt to capture a world championship in a third weight division on November 28, 2009, a vacant IBF lightweight title. The match ended in a majority draw, which most believed Funeka had won by a large margin.

On March 27, 2010, Guzman and Funeka met again for the same tournament. This time, however, only Funeka had a chance to win the title, though Guzman was 9 pounds heavier than the lightweight limit. Despite this, the match went off as expected. Guzman managed to lose by a split decision after scoring enough points to win by split decision, leaving the belt empty.

Guzman's steadfast efforts to reach the 135 lb lightweight record prompted him to compete for junior welterweight. On the undercard of Amir Khan vs. Marcos Maidana, he lost his first bout at 140 lbs against Jason Davis. The bout was ended by TKO in just the second round of Guzman's second bout, but he notably failed to make the weight for the second straight bout, clocking in at 144.5 lbs.

Guzman performed well with Furosemide, a diuretic banned by the Nevada State Athletic Commission, and the same model used by Ali Funeka in the rematch against Guzman, who was suspended for nine months. Guzman had been barred from boxing for eight months, but his most recent win was turned into a no-contest. Joan Guzman returned to the ring at 140 pounds after complying with an eight-month suspension for, admittedly, using a diuretic in an effort to slime down for his fight against Jason Davis in December, 2010. (Really young) in his homeland, Dominican Republic, was defeated by Colombian Florencio Castellano in January 2012. In the first round, Guzman knocked out Castellano, roughly 2:59 minutes into it. It was his first fight under Acquinity Sports (now Iron Mike Productions), a Florida-based promotion firm that has bet on the celebrity's potential, as well as his first knock-out in at least ten fights (Excluding Davis's turned no-contest). Guzman defeated Puerto Rican Jesus Pabón on March 2, 2012, a victory for the Guzman family. The contest was billed as the main event at ESPN2's Friday Night Fights. Several Dominican boxers, including Ed 'The Lion' Paredes and Juan Carlos Payano, attended the 'D-Day Dominican Domination' festival. Guzman was weighing in at his first official weigh-in, a quarter-pound heavier than the required 140 lbs., and he needed two more attempts to finally gain weight. Joan, on the other hand, was quite robust at 140. With a left hook, he knocked down Pabon in the first round; in the second and third rounds, he suffered in consecutive knock-downs. Although Joan won all rounds, critics complained about his lack of 'killer instinct' and showboating, which they suspect the ex-titlist may have used to mask the fact that he had been physically exhausted. Despite winning no rounds, Pabon showed some guts in rounds five and six, landing a few strong punches. Joan came out strong in round eight, and both boxers exchanged some punches. Pabon, the younger of the two boys, was stranded with a left hook that dropped him for good. Joan Guzman was undefeated in 35 professional bouts. His record stood at 33-0-1-1 and one No-contest (20 ko) before going to the contest.

Guzman defeated Khabib Allakhverdiev for the IBO and undisputed WBA super lightweight championship on November 30, 2012. Guzman suffered his knee injury while fighting in the eighth round, resulting from an accidental foul. The decision was a scientific decision in favour of Allakhverdiev. Guzman was knocked down in the third round as a result of a left; the boxer's nose was immediately flowing in the fifth gave the offense the tenacity. The Sycuan Warrior did not appear in his trademark elusive style until it was clearly too late in the war. Guzman used the exact same combat technique that had kept him undefeated throughout his career only in rounds 6 and 7. He circled, jabbed, and punched the Russian, clearly enraging him. Khabib tripped and broke his leg in the fall's 8th, but the impression was that he was the best fighter in the 8th. Guzman could not continue due to the leg injury, and the referee called the match off due to a 'accidental foul', which resulted in the score card determining the winner. Khabib was deemed the right man on the ring by two judges. Talks of a rematch resurfaced right away.

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