Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $9.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Pancho Villa: The Filipino Legend
    Pancho Villa: The Filipino Legend
    Pancho Villa: The Filipino Legend
    Ebook64 pages41 minutes

    Pancho Villa: The Filipino Legend

    By F. Daniel Somrack

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    Pancho Villa, The Filipino Legend is the amazing story of the first world boxing champion from the Philippines.  Francisco Guilledo was born in Iloilo City, Philippines in 1901. As Pancho Villa, he began his professional boxing career in 1919 in Manila winning the Flyweight Championship of the Orient in his second year.

    In search of fame and fortune, Villa came to the United States in 1922 and won the Flyweight Championship of America. The following year, he captured the World Flyweight Championship with knockout win over the great Jimmy Wilde of Wales. Villa had four title defenses before his unexpected death at the age of twenty-three from Ludwig's angina.

     

    In 2002, Ring Magazine voted Pancho Villa one of the "80 Best Fighters of the Last 80 Years." The Associated Press voted Villa the #1 Flyweight of the 20th Century. Pancho Villa was inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame in 1994.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherF. Daniel Somrack
    Release dateJun 27, 2022
    ISBN9798201108984
    Pancho Villa: The Filipino Legend
    Author

    F. Daniel Somrack

    F. Daniel Somrack is a boxing historian who authored his first book for Arcadia Publishing entitled Boxing in San Francisco. His subsequent titles include The Eddie Futch Interview, Jack Dempsey “Nonpareil,” Pancho Villa: The Filipino Legend, Kid Gavilan: The Cuban Hawk, Cuban Legends of Boxing and The Great Benny Leonard. As a filmmaker, Somrack produced feature films and documentaries including the highly acclaimed Champions Forever that highlighted the life and times of boxing legend Muhammad Ali. Billboard Magazine listed Champions as one of the highest-selling, original sports video of the 1990s.

    Read more from F. Daniel Somrack

    Related to Pancho Villa

    Related ebooks

    Sports Biographies For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Walk On The Wilding Side

      Oct 12, 2023

      Walk On The Wilding Side
      2 min read

    • Article

      Jimmy Wilde’s London debut

      Jul 29, 2021

      THERE was a time when every boxer from UK shores who wanted to make his mark in the game needed to fight in London. The city was home to the National Sporting Club, which ruled British boxing with an iron fist in the early 1900s. From 1909, it issued

      2 min read

    • Article

      Impotent Wrath

      Nov 30, 2023

      Impotent Wrath
      2 min read

    • Article

      A Weekend Of Extremes

      Dec 1, 2022

      A Weekend Of Extremes
      4 min read

    • Article

      Bigger Than Valuev

      Aug 6, 2020

      @thealexdaley Historian & author JUST over a decade ago, David Haye made worldwide headlines when he relieved Russia’s Nikolay Valuev of his WBA heavyweight crown. The fight garnered great attention, not for its quality but for the gulf in size betwe

      2 min read

    • Article

      Golden Miller

      Mar 11, 2021

      Golden Miller
      6 min read

    • Article

      The Great Educator

      Oct 26, 2023

      The Great Educator
      2 min read

    • Article

      This Week In history

      Jul 9, 2020

      This Week In history
      3 min read

    • Article

      The Magnificent Seven

      May 8, 2024

      The Magnificent Seven
      5 min read

    • Article

      Victim Of Colour

      Nov 10, 2022

      BACK in 1935, the colour bar was firmly entrenched in British boxing and it was rigorously enforced, by both the Board and certain fighters. The British heavyweight champion (1931-32) Reggie Meen, for instance, when under contract to box the Canadian

      2 min read

    • Article

      The Tongan Terror

      Apr 15, 2021

      The Tongan Terror
      2 min read

    • Article

      Mister Wicks

      Sep 7, 2023

      Mister Wicks
      2 min read

    • Article

      What about Jim?

      Dec 9, 2021

      What about Jim?
      2 min read

    • Article

      Chicle

      Apr 30, 2022

      Chicle
      4 min read

    • Article

      Plucky Liege

      Jan 31, 2022

      Plucky Liege
      8 min read

    • Article

      Ziggy Of Texas

      Nov 12, 2020

      Ziggy Of Texas
      4 min read

    • Article

      Cautionary Tales

      Dec 23, 2021

      Cautionary Tales
      4 min read

    • Article

      Balls Of Steel

      May 11, 2023

      Balls Of Steel
      4 min read

    • Article

      Freddie Mills, The Promoter

      Jun 10, 2021

      Freddie Mills, The Promoter
      2 min read

    • Article

      Golden Years

      Jul 25, 2024

      FROM future stars such as Muhammad Ali, Sugar Ray Leonard, George Foreman and Oscar De La Hoya announcing themselves to the world with Olympic gold, to the historic achievements of Teófilo Stevenson, Félix Savón and László Papp, boxing at the Olympic

      8 min read

    • Article

      Heaven And Hell

      Nov 3, 2022

      Heaven And Hell
      3 min read

    • Article

      Ringside

      Sep 14, 2023

      Ringside
      7 min read

    • Article

      The BLOODIEST Of BATTLES

      Nov 9, 2023

      The BLOODIEST Of BATTLES
      4 min read

    • Article

      Behind Closed Doors

      Mar 21, 2024

      Behind Closed Doors
      3 min read

    • Article

      The Mighty Atom

      Nov 28, 2024

      The Mighty Atom
      3 min read

    • Article

      The late Anthony F Wilding

      Feb 2, 2022

      The late Anthony F Wilding
      2 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Pancho Villa

    0 ratings

    0 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      Pancho Villa - F. Daniel Somrack

      Chapter 1.

      Pancho Villa- World Flyweight Champion

      In the late spring of 1923, the weather in New York City was unseasonably cool for that time of the year. The Yankee's left the Polo Grounds and moved into their new stadium dubbed the house that Ruth built. The Yanks opened the season with a 4-1 win over the Red Sox on a Babe Ruth, three-run homer.

      After all, it was the Roaring Twenties and the country was celebrating its post-war prosperity. Jack Dempsey reigned as the heavyweight boxing champion and the daily papers covered his every move. It was headline news when he signed to fight Luis Angel Firpo Wild Bull of the Pampas.

      The renowned flyweight champion, *Jimmy Wilde of Wales was coming to the Polo Grounds to defend his world title against the Asian sensation, Pancho Villa of the Philippines. It was a classic matchup between the aging veteran and a young, celebrated contender.

      Wilde was the first universally recognized flyweight champion of the world. Nick-named The Tiny Atom, the frail and pail, 5 foot 2, 108 pound Wilde was considered a physical anomaly. His slight appearance belied his terrific punching power. In 131 professional contests, Wilde scored 100 knockouts and was considered one of the most devastating punchers in prize ring history.

      Born, May 15, 1892, Wilde went to work in the mines at fourteen to support the family.  He turned to prizefighting two years later, making a month's mining salary in a few short hours in the boxing booths of Jack Scarrott’s traveling fairs. Toppling men over twice his size, he earned the moniker, The Tylorstown Terror.

      He made his professional debut on New Year’s Day 1911 with a knockout win over Ted Roberts in his hometown of Pontypridd. Fighting several times a month throughout Great Britain, he built a ninety-fight winning streak that ended when Tancy Lee of Scotland stopped him in the 17th round in a bout for the British, European and World Flyweight Championship.

      Jimmy Wilde

      When Wilde defeated Joe Symonds on February 14, 1916, he was officially crowned the British Flyweight Champion. Wilde made several title defenses throughout the year including a revenge knockout win over Tancy Lee. On April 24 of the same year, Wilde won the IBU World Flyweight title (Europe) with an 11th round K.O. over Johnny Rosner.

      With his 11th round TKO win win over Young Zulu Kid of the United States on December 19, 1916, Wilde became universally recognized as the World Flyweight Champion. Wilde remained unbeaten in several title defenses while serving in the Army during world War I.  After a one-sided loss to the two-time bantamweight king Pete Herman in ‘21, Wilde segued into retirement with an astonishing ring record of 132-3-1 (100 KOs).

      Financially secure, Wilde opened a tavern in Wales and pursued business opportunities. In 1923, Jimmy was lured back into the fight game with a big-money offer of $65,000 from famed promoter *George Tex Rickard. Come back to America and defend the title you never lost in the ring, wrote Rickard. Against the best wishes of his manager, Jimmy agreed to take on the former American Flyweight Champion, *Pancho Villa.

      Villa, who hailed from a tiny village in the Philippines, was attempting to become the first Filipino to be crowned world boxing champion. His rise from obscurity to the number-one-rated contender had been nothing short of meteoric.  Discovered

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1