Mike Ayala (born January 19, 1958) is an American former professional

boxer Boxer most commonly refers to: *Boxer (boxing), a competitor in the sport of boxing * Boxer (dog), a breed of dog Boxer or boxers may also refer to: Animal kingdom * Boxer crab * Boxer shrimp, a small group of decapod crustaceans * Boxer snipe ee ...

who competed from 1975 to 1991. He is the former NABF

super bantamweight Super bantamweight, also known as junior featherweight, is a boxing weight classes, weight class in professional boxing, contested from and up to . There were attempts by boxing promoters in the 1920s to establish this weight class, but few sanct ...

and NABF

featherweight Featherweight is a weight class in the combat sports of boxing, kickboxing, mixed martial arts, and Greco-Roman wrestling. Boxing Professional boxing History A featherweight boxer weighs in at a limit of . In the early days of the division, ...

champion.

Amateur career

Ayala won the 1973 National Golden Gloves flyweight championship and the 1974 National AAU

bantamweight Bantamweight is a weight class in combat sports and weightlifting. For boxing, the range is above and up to . In kickboxing, a bantamweight fighter generally weighs between . In mixed martial arts, MMA, bantamweight is . The name for the class ...

championship.

Professional career

Championship bouts

On June 17, 1979, at

San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...

, Ayala and Danny Lopez fought what boxing book ''The Ring: Boxing in the 20th Century'' called one of the best fights of that year. Lopez retained the title with a 15th-round knockout, but the fight was marred by the finding afterwards that Ayala had been fighting under the influence of

drugs A drug is any chemical substance other than a nutrient or an essential dietary ingredient, which, when administered to a living organism, produces a biological effect. Consumption of drugs can be via inhalation, injection, smoking, ingestio ...

. Nevertheless, this did not affect the fight's result, but left many to speculate about how the fight would have ended had Ayala not been drugged during it. Ayala himself admitted to have been, in his own words, "loaded" on the day of the fight. This bout was Ring Magazine's Fight of the Year for 1979. On April 19, 1985 Ayala faced

Juan Meza Juan Meza (born Jesus Fernández, March 18, 1956 – July 20, 2023), also known for his nickname Kid Meza, was a Mexican professional boxer who was world Super Bantamweight champion. Meza was born in Mexicali, Mexico. Short biography Juan Meza ...

for the WBC

title losing by TKO in round 6. In his final title attempt Ayala challenged WBA jr featherweight champion Louie Espinoza losing by KO in the ninth round.

Personal life

Mike is the brother of former boxers Sammy, Paulie, Tony Jr. and the son of trainer Tony Ayala, Sr. Shortly after his father Tony Ayala Sr.'s death, Ayala's teen son was diagnosed with cancer. Ayala works as an air conditioner and heating repairman in San Antonio and he owns a local company, Mike Ayala Air Conditioning.

References

External links