This upcoming weekend, Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) will showcase one of the most stacked cards of 2025. The card will feature world champions such as Erislandy Lara, Lamont Roach, O’Shaquie Foster, Isaac Cruz, and Stephen Fulton. However, arguably, just as important, the event will be held in one of the more historic boxing cities in the United States, San Antonio, Texas.
The self-proclaimed Alamo, Mission, or River City has played host to some of boxing’s most prestigious names. Fighters from various eras, such as Salvador Sanchez, Oscar De La Hoya, Terry Norris, Gervonta Davis, Ryan Garcia, and Nonito Donaire, among numerous others, have all stepped in the ring in San Antonio.
De La Hoya, the now-famed promoter and social media antagonist, was, along with Mike Tyson, the biggest star in boxing in the 1990s. In one of the most pivotal years of his career, 1997, De La Hoya fought an unprecedented five times as his star power grew and he was in his prime. In one of those fights, the 1992 Olympic gold medalist stopped David Kamau in the second round at the Alamodome in the center of San Antonio.
Although De La Hoya only fought once in River City, the experience left such an impression on him that he views fighting in San Antonio as a rite of passage for the sport’s biggest stars.
“I’ve always said, now as a promoter, you’re not a true fighter unless you fight in front of this San Antonio crowd,’ De La Hoya said following the promotion of Garcia’s decision victory over Emmanuel Tagoe. A fight in which the Alamodome added an additional 3,000 seats to meet the demand of fan interest.
As the seventh-largest city in the U.S. and the second-largest in Texas, San Antonio is one of the few true ‘sweet science’ cities in the country, thanks to iconic venues like the Alamodome and Freeman Coliseum. Some of boxing’s most significant fights have been held within its various venues. We’ll take a look at some of the biggest and historic fights that have called San Antonio home, in no particular order.
Jermell Charlo (34-1, 18 KOs) vs Brian Castano (17-0-1, 12 KOs) I
AT&T Center, San Antonio, TX
July 17, 2021
Undisputed Junior Middleweight Championship
12-round Split Draw (117-111, 114-114, 113-114)
Top pound-for-pound fighters such as Terence Crawford, Oleksandr Usyk, and Naoya Inoue have made the undisputed status more common in today’s era. In total, there have been 11 male fighters who have earned undisputed status in the four-belt era. Jermell Charlo was attempting to become the sixth male fighter of this generation to hold all four major world titles when he faced off against Argentina’s Brian Castano.
The fight itself was one of the best of 2021, with both combatants having their moments. Castano’s aggression seemed to give him the edge in most rounds, and even with some moments where he looked hurt, the Argentine, to most observers, skimmed enough rounds to earn a decision victory. The judges scored the fight a controversial split draw, with one scorecard perhaps too wide in Charlo’s favor. However, despite the less-than-favorable result, the fight itself was a showcase for two fighters putting in a full effort to reach the peak of their weight class. Also, it wouldn’t be the first time the judges came up with a controversial draw in San Antonio.
Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (41-0-1, 30 KOs)vs. Austin Trout (26-0, 14 KOs)
Alamodome, San Antonio, TX
April 20, 2013
WBA, WBC, and Ring Magazine Junior Middleweight Titles
Álvarez UD12 (118–109, 116–111, 115–112)
In the post-Mayweather-Pacquiao world of boxing, no one has come close to reaching the star power of Canelo Alvarez. During his peak run from the Gennadiy Golovkin rematch in the fall of 2018 to winning the undisputed middleweight crown against Caleb Plant in November 2021, Alvarez was the rare fighter who was considered the best in the sport, and it’s biggest cash cow. However, there was a time when Alvarez was viewed as a farce or a promotional creation rather than a true elite fighter to be taken seriously.
The narrative changed for most pundits when Alvarez chose to face New Mexico’s Austin Trout. The southpaw technician had previously defeated Miguel Cotto in an upset at Madison Square Garden and was viewed as a dangerous match for the up-and-coming Alvarez.
“If Canelo’s not ready now, he’s never going to be,” Trout stated before the fight with Alvarez. “I’m excited to get in there, and I’m glad he put his foot down to make this fight happen.”
The fight, while extremely close, was eye-opening and a welcoming party for Alvarez, who displayed an unexpected upper-body movement-focused defense. In the seventh round, Alvarez dropped Trouth with a straight right hand, and in a close bout, it made the difference on most observers’ scorecards.
The bout wasn’t without its controversy. A pseudo-open scoring was held for the fight, with both combatants’ corners being given the judges’ scorecards after the fourth and eighth rounds. And, as would become a common occurrence in Alvarez’s career, judge Stanley Christodoulou’s lopsided scorecard in the Mexican star’s favor was heavily criticized. Despite the controversy, the fight as an event drew close to 40.000 fans to the Alamodome and established Alvarez as just as much a fighter as a commodity.
Marco Antonio Barrera (57-3, 40 KOs) vs Manny Pacquiao (37-2-1, 28 KOs)
Alamodome, San Antonio, TX
The Ring Magazine Featherweight Championship
Pacquiao wins by 11th-round TKO
Manny Pacquiao’s list of accomplishments in boxing is outstanding and virtually peerless. It’s strange to imagine a time when Pacquiao was unknown and a mystery to most of the world. Yet, even before stepping in the ring against Marco Antonio Barrera, he was still a former two-division and lineal flyweight world champion.
Barrera in 2003 was at his career peak in terms of box office and accomplishments. He was rated as high as number three on several pound-for-pound lists and was a three-to-one favorite over Pacquiao. But what ensued inside the ring was what many still consider to be Pacquiao’s finest performance and his grandest victory.
Over the course of eleven rounds, Pacquiao waged war on Barrera, outlanding him five to one in punches, overwhelming the Mexico City native. The Filipino southpaw forced Barrera’s corner to stop the fight in the eleventh round, putting an end to a beating that grew substantially more brutal round after round. The first wave in what would become a tsunami of a career for Pacquiao began in San Antonio.
Adrien Broner (27-0, 22 KOs) vs Marcos Maidana (34-3, 31 KOs)
Alamodome, San Antonio, TX
WBA Welterweight Title
Maidana UD12 (115–110, 116–109, 117–109)
There are only a handful of matches that elicit joy almost universally among boxing fans. In the 2000s, Marco Antonio Barrera’s win over Prince Naseem Hamed is fondly remembered for the underdog giving one of the cockiest and braggadocious fighters a taste of humility. In the same vein, Marcos Madiana’s victory over Adrien Broner did the same for fans in the 2010s.
In 2013, Broner was viewed as the heir apparent—the next star in boxing and a future pound-for-pound mainstay. Whether it was the performances inside the ring or the natural self-promotion, Broner seemed to have a magnetic quality that drew attention from all corners, both positive and negative.
“Every boxer wants to be where I am right now,” stated Broner before facing Maidana. “I am the person who is going to take over boxing after Floyd Mayweather. Everybody wants this position.”
Maidana, a five-to-one underdog, was not intimidated in the slightest by Broner’s stature in the sport nor his trash talk. Following a one-sided loss to Devon Alexander, Maidana experienced a career resurgence when he teamed up with trainer and former world champion Robert Garcia. Under Garcia’s guidance, Maidana looked improved, utilizing a jab yet still exhibiting the same ferocious, exciting style in stoppage victories over Jesus Soto Karass and Josesito Lopez heading into the fight with Broner.
The crowd in San Antonio was electric and pro-Maidana in the Alamodome. In the second round with a left hook, Maidana sent Broner crashing to the canvas for the first time in his career, causing a near audience explosion. From this point forward, the audience was at a fever pitch in anticipation of seeing Maidana finish off Broner.
But Broner showed grit and resilience by not wavering and responding by firing back whenever Maidana tired. Another knockdown in the eighth round sealed the fight for Maidana en route to a unanimous decision and the WBA welterweight title. Broner left the ring after Maidana was announced the winner, which infuriated the San Antonio crowd to throw drinks and boo Broner.
Although Maidana’s victory was satisfying to watch for fans at home and in attendance, the fight’s exciting nature was also due to Broner’s heart and willingness to engage in a war with a power puncher.
Pernell Whitaker (32-1, 15 KOs) vs. Julio César Chávez (87-0, 72 KOs)
Alamodome, San Antonio, TX
WBC Welterweight title
12-round majority draw (115–113, 115–115, 115–115)
It’s few and far between when the two best fighters of an era meet inside the ring. Just as rare is when the titles on the line are secondary to what’s truly at stake. Legacy. Undoubtedly, the biggest and most important fight of arguably the 1990s and certainly in San Antonio boxing history was between Pernell Whitaker and Julio Cesar Chavez.
“We may be fighting for my title, but that’s not what everyone is talking about,” Whitaker told Sports Illustrated about fighting Chavez. “This is like going for the gold again.”
The historic battle at the Alamodome drew 65,000 fans, making it, at the time, one of the largest-attended boxing matches in history. Chávez, a three-division champion, fought Whitaker for his WBC welterweight title at a 145-pound catchweight.
Before the fight, many assumed Whitaker wouldn’t stand and trade with Chavez, but instead use lateral movement to mitigate exchanges. Instead, Whitaker befuddled Chavez by outlanding him and meeting him at times in the center of the ring to do so. In the most important fight of his career, Whitaker showcased his talent against another pound-for-pound star. After 12 rounds, it seemed apparent that Whitaker had one, but the judges instead scored the fight a majority draw.
The aftermath of the decision is often what Whitaker-Chavez is remembered for. In many ways, it overshadowed the event itself. But the fight, at the time, featured the top two pound-for-pound fighters in the ring relatively close to their prime, despite their promotional and network affiliations, in front of a large audience. The judges deserved all the criticism leveled at them. But events like Whitaker-Chavez are sparse and are unlikely to occur more than once in any era.
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