Johnny Tapia, Boxing Legend and Five Time Champ Dead at Age

Boxing champ Johnny Tapia was found dead in his Albuquerque his New Mexico home on Sunday.

Like many boxers, Johnny’s life was filled with turmoil and personal tragedies.  Despite winning five championships in 3 different weight classes, Tapia suffered from depression.  He was also a drug addict and an alcoholic.

When Tapia was 8 years old he saw his mom kidnapped and murdered.  He witnessed her being carried off into a pick up truck and her body was found by police stabbed 26 times with scissor and a screwdriver.

Tapia was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and spent time in and out of jail and drug treatment centers.  When he outgrew his name of “The Baby Faced Assassin”, he had “Mi vida Loca” tattooed on his stomach.  My Crazy Life.

He married Teresa Chavez who despite the many warnings from family and friends still wed Tapia just to find him overdosed in a bathroom with a needle in his arm.  He was so drugged up that his heart stopped beating completely and he was declared clinically dead before being revived.  This would happen 4 more times, each time Tapia was able to be resuscitated.

Teresa was a real ride and die chick.  She eventually became his manager and stuck it out with him until the very end.  His last professional fight was just under a year ago where he won a unanimous decision.

Sportswriter and good friend Dennis Latta said

 ” (His family is) just distraught. He’s come so close so often to death, so it’s hard to believe that it’s finally happened… To realise that now he’s gone, it’s really a surprise, I thought he was just invulnerable, it was water off a duck’s back every time he came close to death.”

Mike Tyson called Tapia one of the greatest fighters ever. He won 59 fights, 30 by knockout; lost 5; and drew 2. He was knocked out only once, until Sunday where he was knocked out for good.