Rafael Ruelas (born 26 April 1971) is a Mexican real estate agent in Granada Hills, California. He was a professional boxer who held the IBF lightweight world championship from 1994 until 1995. Rafael is the younger brother of former WBC super featherweight champion Gabriel Ruelas. The brothers held their respective world titles concurrently and on January 28, 1995, they became the first pair of brothers to successfully retain their title on the same boxing card.Brothers Ruelas a Historic Act, L.A. Times article, 1995-01-29 Retrieved on 2024-12-22
Professional career Shortly after a TKO in 10 over Jorge Páez in 1992, Ruelas earned a shot at IBF lightweight titlist Freddie Pendleton, overcoming an early knockdown and winning by unanimous decision.
Ruelas was able to successfully defend his title prior to being challenged by the rapidly rising star Oscar De La Hoya. De la Hoya, despite having lost to Ruelas twice in golden gloves, defeated Ruelas, knocking him down twice and ending the fight in the second round.
Ruelas's career and success were driven by a tenacious, aggressive, and disciplined character. Ruelas retired in 1999 and went on to marry American beauty product business owner, Sabrina Ruelas. The couple have three children together. In an interview, Ruelas was quoted as saying that his wife and family are his biggest accomplishments, surpassing even his championship belts. Ruelas serves as a real estate agent in Granada Hills.
Professional boxing record
ResultRecordOpponentTypeRoundDateLocationNotes57Win53–4Hicklet LauSD10Aug 8, 199956Loss52–4Kostya TszyuTKO9 (12)Aug 15, 199855Win52–3Juan BaldwinRTD5 (10)Jun 19, 199854Win51–3Tim ScottTKO2 (?)Mar 21, 199853Win50–3Rodney WilsonTKO7 (10)Nov 14, 199752Win49–3Mike GriffithTKO2 (10)Jul 19, 199751Win48–3Jesus ArceTKO2 (10)Jan 23, 199750Win47–3Jaime BalboaKO5 (10)Dec 3, 199649Win46–3Livingstone BrambleUD10Aug 23, 199648Win45–3Mike WalshKO2 (10)Jul 10, 199647Win44–3Tomas BarrientesKO2 (10)Apr 30, 199646Loss43–3George ScottUD12Oct 7, 199545Loss43–2Oscar De La HoyaTKO2 (12)May 6, 199544Win43–1Billy SchwerRTD8 (12)Jan 28, 199543Win42–1Omar PachecoKO3 (10)Dec 8, 199442Win41–1Mike EvgenTKO3 (12)May 27, 199441Win40–1Freddie PendletonUD12Feb 19, 199440Win39–1Manuel HernandezKO1 (8)Oct 22, 199339Win38–1Conrado LopezKO1 (10)Aug 19, 199338Win37–1Darryl TysonUD10Jul 17, 199337Win36–1Robert RiveraTKO3 (12)Feb 23, 199336Win35–1Roberto BurgosKO1 (10)Jan 19, 199335Win34–1Jorge PáezRTD10 (12)Nov 6, 199234Win33–1Benny DominguezKO1 (10)Aug 25, 199233Win32–1Mauro GutierrezUD10Jul 7, 199232Win31–1Francisco OrtizTKO2 (10)May 26, 199231Win30–1Francisco LopezTKO1 (8)Apr 3, 199230Win29–1Rocky LockridgeUD10Jan 30, 199229Win28–1Juan De La PazTKO2 (10)Nov 26, 199128Loss27–1Mauro GutierrezKO2 (12)Jul 31, 199127Win27–0Narciso Valenzuela RomoUD10Jun 25, 199126Win26–0Fernando Soldadito TeranKO1 (10)May 17, 199125Win25–0Steve CruzKO3 (12)Mar 31, 199124Win24–0Vicente GonzalezUD10Feb 26, 199123Win23–0Tomas ValdezTKO3 (12)Jan 14, 199122Win22–0Richard AbilaKO7 (12)Nov 27, 199021Win21–0Felipe de JesusTKO7 (10)Sep 22, 199020Win20–0Job WaltersTKO9 (10)Aug 17, 199019Win19–0Rosendo AlonsoTKO1 (10)Jul 31, 199018Win18–0Abe GomezUD10Jun 18, 199017Win17–0Vicente GonzalezRTD5 (10)May 29, 199016Win16–0Arturo HernandezTKO1 (8)Apr 14, 199015Win15–0Antonio SanchezKO2 (?)Mar 8, 199014Win14–0Roberto RiosTKO2 (8)Feb 27, 199013Win13–0Simon ContrerasKO5 (?)Feb 5, 199012Win12–0Ricardo FloresKO1 (8)Nov 28, 198911Win11–0Margarito RuizDQ1 (6)Oct 24, 198910Win10–0Jose Luis VazquezKO1 (6)Sep 26, 19899Win9–0Joey QuinlanKO1 (?)Aug 29, 19898Win8–0Ben GomezKO3 (4)Jul 14, 19897Win7–0Chilo GuzmanKO3 (6)Jun 27, 19896Win6–0Benito RodriguezKO3 (?)Jun 16, 19895Win5–0Javier LaraKO3 (6)May 30, 19894Win4–0Margarito ArreolaMD4Apr 25, 19893Win3–0Leopoldo MayaTKO1 (4)Mar 28, 19892Win2–0Robert RayfordTKO3 (4)Feb 14, 19891Win1–0Marcos CovarrubiasUD4Jan 17, 1989
Pay-per-view bouts Date Fight Billing Buys NetworkDe La Hoya vs. RuelasLa Batalla330,000Pay-Per-View History at about.comHBO
References
External links
Ruelas' official page at Park Regency Realty