BJ Flores
| BJ Flores | |
|---|---|
| Statistics | |
| Real name | Benjamin Flores |
| Nickname(s) | El Peligroso |
| Rated at | Cruiserweight |
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
| Reach | 80 in (203 cm) |
| Nationality | American |
| Born |
January 29, 1979 San Francisco, California, US |
| Stance | Orthodox |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 36 |
| Wins | 32 |
| Wins by KO | 20 |
| Losses | 3 |
| Draws | 1 |
| No contests | 0 |
Benjamin "BJ" Flores (born January 29, 1979) is an American professional boxer.
Personal life
Flores is the grandson of Ralph Flores, the pilot who crashed his small plane in the wilds of Canada's Yukon Territory.
Born into a boxing family, Flores began attending the gym at the age of four years while watching his father Frank Flores train his older brothers and assist Olympic coach Ken Adams train future champions Vince Phillips and Kennedy McKinney. Prior to graduating from Willard High School in Willard, Missouri, Flores was an all state selection in football and track & field. Flores was offered a full football scholarship to BYU.
Flores took two years off from BYU to serve a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Mexico Culiacan Mission.[1] For two years Flores lived in one of the poorest areas of Mexico and helped by assisting in building houses, roofs, and other labor work for those less fortunate.
While in Culiacán, Flores began training at the same gym where Julio Caesar Chavez trained as a child. After watching Flores hand out numerous beatings in sparring sessions, the locals began calling him "Peligroso" meaning "dangerous".[2]
Amateur career
Flores had a stellar amateur career prior to turning professional. In 1997, he won the National Golden Gloves light heavyweight championship. In 2001 and 2002, He won the National Amateur heavyweight championship.
Professional career
Flores made his professional debut on May 3, 2003, in Las Vegas, Nevada against Dallas Lane. Flores put three lefts together early in round one to send Lane to the canvas. He beat the count but crumpled quickly from an overhand right that caused the referee to stop the bout.
After winning his next two fights, Flores fought Gabriel Taylor on October 3, 2003, in Houston, Texas. Flores wobbled Taylor several times to the point that the referee stopped the fight in round two. Flores found himself in trouble in his next fight against Semisi Bloomfield after Flores was dropped twice in round two. However, Flores managed to come back and fight him to a draw.
Flores fought Christopher Hairston on January 24, 2004, at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Flores had Hairston on the canvas twice before Hairston refused to continue. Two months later, Flores defeated Eric French by unanimous decision. On May 8, 2004, Flores knocked out Brian Maclin with a left hook.
After winning his next eight fights, Flores fought Ali Supreme on May 13, 2006, at the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix, Arizona. Flores went on the offensive and knocked Supreme to the canvas with a vicious flurry late in the first round. Ali tried to stand but buckled, and the referee stopped the fight.
After defeating Gary Dydell, Flores fought Chris Thomas on January 19, 2007. Flores won by unanimous decision. Flores won his next two fights against Patrick Nwamu and Andy Sample.
Flores fought Darnell Wilson for the United States Boxing Association cruiserweight title on February 8, 2008, in Dover, Delaware. Flores used ring movement to avoid the aggression of Wilson on the way to a unanimous decision victory.
IBO Cruiserweight Championship
Flores lost to IBO Cruiserweight Champion Danny Green in November 2010 and by unanimous decision, the first loss of his career.[3]
Fight against Beibut Shumenov
On July 25, 2015 Flores took on Kazakhstan’s Beibut Shumenov in a Premier Boxing Champions fight night at the Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas. The fight was broadcast live on NBCSN. Flores pressed the action throughout, serving as the aggressor much of the night. Shumenov began ramping up his offense more in Round 8, throwing combinations and taking advantage of a tiring Flores. Flores crushed Shumenov with a hard right in Round 12 but it was too late in the fight for him to capitalize further, resulting in unanimous decision win for Shumenov and the capture of the interim WBA World cruiserweight title.[4]
Career as commentator
As Flores continued to climb the ranks in the 200-pound division, Flores began pulling double duty by 2012, working as a ringside analyst, and he is now part of the Premier Boxing Champions on NBC broadcast team.[5] In 2016, he served as part of NBC's team covering boxing at the Rio Olympics.
Professional boxing record
| 32 Wins (20 knockouts, 12 decisions), 3 Losses (1 knockouts, 2 decision), 1 Draw[6] | |||||||
| Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round | Date | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 32-3-1 |  Tony Bellew |
KO | 3 (12) | 15/10/2016 | Echo Arena, Liverpool, Merseyside |
For WBC Cruiserweight title |
| Win | 32-2-1 |  Roberto Santos |
UD | 6 | 21/05/2016 |  The Cosmopolitan, Las Vegas, Nevada |
|
| Loss | 31-2-1 |  Beibut Shumenov |
UD | 12 | 25/07/2015 | Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada |
For interm WBA Cruiserweight title |
| Win | 31-1-1 | Kevin Engel |
TKO | 3 (8) | 08/10/2014 | Beau Rivage Resort & Casino, Biloxi, Mississippi |
|
| Win | 30-1-1 | Anthony Caputo Smith |
UD | 8 | 27/06/2014 | Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada |
|
| Win | 29-1-1 | Adam Collins |
KO | 1 (6) | 10/05/2014 | USC Galen Center, Los Angeles, California |
|
| Win | 28-1-1 | David McNemar |
TKO | 2 (10) | 06/10/2012 | Shrine Mosque, Springfield, Missouri |
Retained WBO NABO Cruiserweight title/vacant WBA-NABA Cruiserweight title |
| Win | 27-1-1 |  Hugo Pineda |
TKO | 6 (10) | 28/01/2012 | Abou Ben Adhem Shrine Mosque, Springfield, Missouri |
|
| Win | 26-1-1 | Paul Jennette |
UD | 10 | 15/10/2011 | Drury University, Springfield, Missouri |
Won vacant WBC Continental Americas/vacant WBA Fedelatin Cruiserweight titles |
| Win | 25-1-1 | Nicholas Iannuzzi |
RTD | 5 (10) | 23/07/2011 | Drury University, Springfield, Missouri |
Won vacant NABA USA/interim WBO NABO Cruiserweight titles |
| Loss | 24-1-1 |  Danny Green |
UD | 12 | 17/11/2010 | Challenge Stadium, Mount Claremont, Western Australia |
For IBO Cruiserweight title |
| Win | 24-0-1 | Epifanio Mendoza |
TKO | 4 (10) | 15/08/2009 | Mississippi Coast Coliseum, Biloxi, Mississippi |
Retained WBO NABO Cruiserweight title |
| Win | 23-0-1 | Jose Luis Herrera |
UD | 10 | 21/03/2009 | Pensacola Civic Center, Pensacola, Florida |
Won WBO NABO Cruiserweight title |
| Win | 22-0-1 | Matt Hicks |
TKO | 3 (6) | 23/01/2009 | Plaza Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada |
|
| Win | 21-0-1 | Darnell Wilson |
UD | 12 | 08/02/2008 | Dover Downs, Dover, Delaware |
Won IBF USBA Cruiserweight title/World Cruiserweight title eliminator |
| Win | 20-0-1 | Andy Sample |
TKO | 2 (8) | 13/10/2007 | Abou Ben Adhem Shrine Mosque, Springfield, Missouri |
|
| Win | 19-0-1 | Patrick Nwamu |
UD | 12 | 02/03/2007 | Qwest Arena, Boise, Idaho |
Won IBA Super Cruiserweight title |
| Win | 18-0-1 | Chris Thomas |
UD | 12 | 19/01/2007 | Knox Arena, Olive Branch, Mississippi |
Won vacant WBF Super/NBA Super Cruiserweight titles |
| Win | 17-0-1 | Gary Dydell |
TKO | 1 (6) | 30/09/2006 | Edinburg Stadium, Edinburg, Texas |
|
| Win | 16-0-1 | Ali Supreme |
TKO | 1 (12) | 13/05/2006 | Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Phoenix, Arizona |
|
| Win | 15-0-1 | Jermell Barnes |
UD | 8 | 28/01/2006 | Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey |
|
| Win | 14-0-1 | James Johnson |
TKO | 5 (8) | 11/11/2005 | Abou Ben Adhem Shrine Mosque, Springfield, Missouri |
|
| Win | 13-0-1 | Nate Zeikle |
KO | 2 (6) | 20/08/2005 | Allstate Arena, Rosemont, Illinois |
|
| Win | 12-0-1 | Frank Walker |
UD | 8 | 15/07/2005 | Pechanga Resort and Casino, Temecula, California |
|
| Win | 11-0-1 | Cliff Nellon |
TKO | 4 (6) | 26/03/2005 | American Bank Center, Corpus Christi, Texas |
|
| Win | 10-0-1 | Thomas Cameron |
UD | 6 | 03/12/2004 | Bally's Atlantic City, Atlantic City, New Jersey |
|
| Win | 9-0-1 | Cruz Quintana |
TKO | 1 (6) | 25/09/2004 | Abou Ben Adhem Shrine Mosque, Springfield, Missouri |
|
| Win | 8-0-1 | John Turlington |
TKO | 4 (6) | 17/07/2004 | Reliant Center, Houston, Texas |
|
| Win | 7-0-1 | Brian Maclin |
KO | 1 (6) | 08/05/2004 | Casino Del Sol, Tucson, Arizona |
|
| Win | 6-0-1 | Eric French |
UD | 4 | 27/03/2004 | Alltell Arena, Little Rock, Arkansas |
|
| Win | 5-0-1 | Chris Hairston |
TKO | 1 (4) | 24/01/2004 | Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey |
|
| Draw | 4-0-1 |  Semisi Bloomfield |
PTS | 4 | 22/11/2003 | Reliant Park, Houston, Texas |
|
| Win | 4-0 | Gabriel Taylor |
TKO | 2 (4) | 03/10/2003 | Reliant Park, Houston, Texas |
|
| Win | 3-0 | Caesar Carbajal |
TKO | 1 (4) | 26/07/2003 | Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California |
|
| Win | 2-0 | Jim Franklin |
UD | 4 | 17/05/2003 | Trump Taj Mahal, Atlantic City, New Jersey |
|
| Win | 1-0 | Dallas Lane |
TKO | 1 (4) | 03/05/2003 | Flamingo Hilton, Las Vegas, Nevada |
|
MMA career
Flores has said "I'm beyond frustrated! All the cruiserweights in the world are just ducking me, what a bunch of cowards."[7] He follows former heavyweight champ James Toney, who recently signed a deal with the UFC, and Ricardo Mayorga into the sport of MMA. The fights could be at light heayweight (205-pounds) or middleweight (185-pounds), he signed with promotion company Shine Fights.[8]
References
- ↑ Amy Donaldson, "LDS boxer B.J. Flores hopes his next fight is for a title", Deseret News, May 19, 2013.
- ↑ "'Dangerous' Mormon headlines Plaza card". Las Vegas Sun. 2009-01-22. Retrieved 2009-01-27.
- ↑ "Green fighting back after Briggs farce". 16 November 2010.
- ↑ "Shumenov vs Flores Results & Highlights - Jul 25, 2015".
- ↑ "BJ Flores - Next Fight, Fighter Bio, Stats & News".
- ↑ http://boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=188315&cat=boxer
- ↑ "WSB: Week 6, Group B Derby Day on Super Saturday! ⋆ Boxing News". 17 January 2014.
- ↑ "Undefeated Boxer BJ Flores Signs with Shine Fights for MMA Debut - MMAFrenzy.com".
External links
- Professional boxing record for BJ Flores from BoxRec
- ESB Exclusive Interview: B.J. Flores, Changing Perceptions by Troy Ondrizek, 31 May 2006, East Side Boxing
- Official website of B.J. Flores
| Preceded by Michael Bennett |
United States Amateur Heavyweight Champion 2001-2002 |
Succeeded by Devin Vargas |