Erislandy Lara Santoya (born 11 April 1983) is a Cuban-AmericanKeidel, Jason (July 11, 2014). "CBS Local Sports Q&A: Erislandy Lara 'Chopped' Alvarez's Pride To Get The Fight" . CBS Sports. CBS. Retrieved January 12, 2018. professional boxer. He has held multiple world championships in two weight classes, including the World Boxing Association (WBA) middleweight title since 2023 (Regular version from 2021 to 2023). Previously he held the WBA super welterweight title (Regular and Super versions) between 2014 and 2021.
In a career lasting over 16 years, Lara has long been regarded as one of the world's most technically skilled boxers.Hale, Andreas (April 7, 2018). "Is Erislandy Lara Hurting The 154-Pound Division?". BoxingScene. Retrieved September 28, 2024.Rafael, Dan (March 4, 2019). "An older Erislandy Lara is less mobile and more entertaining". ESPN. Retrieved September 28, 2024. He was captain of the Cuban national amateur team, winning a welterweight gold medal at the 2005 World Championships as well as three consecutive Cuban national championships from 2005 to 2007.
Amateur career In 2003 and 2004, Lara lost four times against two-time world champion Lorenzo Aragón.
In 2005 after Aragon stepped down, Lara bested his countryman Yudel Jhonson Cedeno repeatedly and was sent to the world championships. There he avenged an earlier loss to Russian Andrey Balanov, beat American Boyd Melson, upset top favorite and Olympic champion Bakhtiyar Artayev (31–22), and won Gold against Magomed Nurutdinov (BLR).
Lara has lost twice to another Kazakh, Bakhyt Sarsekbayev. In their only meeting, Lara beat American world champion Demetrius Andrade 9–4.
Highlights Boxing World Cup results 2005 Defeated Manon Boonjumnong (Thailand) 21–9 Defeated Stefan Dragomir (Romania) RSC–3 Defeated Bakhyt Sarsekbayev (Kazakhstan) 39–33 Lost to Andrey Balanov (Russia) 21–36
Defection Lara was considered a favorite to win the gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. However, in 2007, Lara and Guillermo Rigondeaux defected from Cuba during the Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Some weeks later, he was caught by Brazilian authorities and returned to Cuba where he was banned from practicing boxing indefinitely.
In 2008, Lara attempted a second defection, this time on a speed boat to Mexico. Lara was successful and made his way to Hamburg, Germany, where he joined former Olympic champions Odlanier Solis, Yan Bartelemí, and Yuriorkis Gamboa in the Arena Box-Promotion stable.
Professional career
Early career On 1 January 2009, Lara made his ESPN debut and scored a first-round Technical knockout (TKO) against Rodrigo Aguiar. Lara's following fight came on 20 February 2009, against Keith Gross. Lara dropped Gross with a left hand, but Gross beat the count on wobbly legs. Lara continued unleashing combinations to the head and body. A left uppercut finished the fight within round one. On 2 May 2009, on the Pacquiao vs. Hatton undercard, Lara faced Chris Gray. Lara won the fight via unanimous decision. On 22 May 2009, Lara faced aging Edwin Vazquez. Lara finished the fight with good combinations, prompting the referee to stop the fight in round four. On that same night, fellow Cuban boxer Guillermo Rigondeaux made his pro debut, which he also won via referee stoppage in the third round. After beating Edwin Vazquez, Lara went on to win nine straight fights punctuated by four consecutive first-round knockout victories.
Rise up the ranks
Lara vs. Molina, Williams On 25 March 2011, at The Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas, Lara fought Carlos Molina to a ten-round majority draw. Lara started by frequently targeting Molina's body with the left uppercut when Molina would attempt to close the distance. Early on, Molina seemed to predict and nullify much of Lara's attempted one-two combinations. Although Lara had trouble connecting with his signature straight left hand initially, he found the distance by the middle rounds and began to mix in short hooks to the head while blocking most of Molina's constant body work. Molina, on the other hand, was rarely able to find Lara's head throughout the entire fight. Relying on looping punches, Molina stayed close and took advantage of the clinches to land to the body. Visibly fatigued, Molina developed a cut under his left eye near the beginning of the ninth round as Lara landed a hard, clean, straight left hand and pushed the pace. Molina's higher output and pressure were favored by one judge while Lara's cleaner, sharper output and defense went largely unnoticed by ringside commentators. The final scorecards read: 95–95, 95–95, and 97–93 in favor of Molina.
Lara fought former WBO welterweight champion Paul Williams on 9 July 2011, in Atlantic City, New Jersey, where he lost a majority decision. Judges Don Givens (116–114) and Hilton Whitaker II (115–114) both favored Williams, while Al Bennett scored it even at 114–114. Most boxing analysts and fans believed that Lara clearly won the fight and had been unfairly judged. Lara was able to land hard, clean left hands throughout the fight while maintaining superb defense. Williams appeared hurt in the later rounds but did, however, keep up a high output of punches despite their relative ineffectiveness. CompuBox recorded Lara landing 49% of his power punches compared to 21% by Williams. Lara also landed 7 more jabs and 17 more power punches than Williams, despite the near two-fold activity by Williams. Consequently, the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board suspended all three judges, and Lara received his first loss as a professional fighter in a highly controversial fashion.
Lara vs. Hearns, Martirosyan On 20 April 2012, Lara made his comeback to the ring after nine months to fight Ronald Hearns for the WBC super welterweight semi-final eliminator spot at the Beau Rivage casino resort in Biloxi, Mississippi. The fight, which was scheduled to go ten rounds, simply lasted one minute and 34 seconds as Lara delivered an impressive TKO in the first round. Referee Keith Hughes decided to stop the fight after Lara had sent Hearns to the canvas with a clean left hook, following the eight-count by the referee, Lara immediately delivered two fast combinations (one of which also required a count) that seemed to be enough to overwhelm Hearns, who seconds before the stoppage appeared to be defenseless upon Lara's final combination.
On 10 November 2012, at the Wynn Resort in Las Vegas, Lara faced Vanes Martirosyan, who was undefeated at the time and known for his amateur wins over Andre Berto, Austin Trout, and Timothy Bradley. Lara connected on 42% of his power punches (40/95) while Martirosyan landed 16% of his (27/167) and only 6 jabs throughout the entire fight, according to CompuBox. Lara outlanded Martirosyan in overall punches, 74 to 33. After a clash of heads resulted in a gash over Martirosyan's left eye in the ninth round, the ringside doctor waved off the fight. The referee ordered the judges to score the final 26 seconds of the bout, which resulted in a technical draw (87–84 in favor of Lara, 86–85 in favor of Martirosyan, and 86–86). Dave Moretti was responsible for the tied scorecard and judged the ninth round as 10–10, disagreeing with the other two judges who scored the final 26 seconds as 10–9 for Lara.
WBA light middleweight champion
Lara vs. Angulo, Trout On 8 June 2013, at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California, Lara received the first two knockdowns of his professional career en route to earning a TKO victory over Mexico's Alfredo Angulo along with the interim WBA super welterweight title. Angulo's left hook was vicious as he rushed in, guarded and low. Lara, in return, was able to utilize zigzag formations and vary the speed of his movement to bait Angulo's aggression. However, Lara struggled with the aggression of Angulo at times and was put on the canvas in rounds 4 and 9 courtesy of Angulo's vaunted left hook. Lara landed 56% of his power punches while Angulo landed 31% of his, according to CompuBox. The fight was stopped in round ten when Angulo refused to continue after a straight left hand by Lara caused swelling around his right eye. Angulo's injury was later revealed to be a broken orbital bone.
On 7 December 2013, Lara fought Austin Trout at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Considered the favorite to win, Trout had recently beaten Miguel Cotto. Lara, however, put on a dominant performance as he immediately nullified Trout's offense using deft footwork and clean punching. In outclassing Trout, Lara scored a knockdown in round eleven via straight left hand. Trout was hurt for the remainder of the round as Lara pressed the action. Lara cruised to the unanimous decision (117–111, 117–111, and 118–109) and retained his WBA interim super welterweight title.
Lara vs. Álvarez Lara fought Canelo Álvarez on 12 July 2014, at the MGM Grand in a non-title match. Lara's WBA super welterweight title was not on the line as the fight took place at a 155-pound catchweight, and both fighters weighed in at precisely 155 pounds. Álvarez rehydrated to 171 pounds while Lara came into the ring at 166 pounds. In a very close and competitive fight that went to a split decision, Álvarez came out on top with two judges scoring 115–113 in favor of each fighter and the final judge scoring 117–111 in favor of Álvarez. The final scorecard was controversial as many observers considered it far too wide. According to CompuBox, Lara landed 55 jabs to nine from Álvarez, who landed the jab at a 5% connect rate. Álvarez managed to land 88 power punches (73 to the body) while Lara landed 53 power punches all to the head. Lara's clean punching along with his defense and movement were weighed against Álvarez's effective aggressiveness. Lara came out in dominant fashion, utilizing a stick-and-move style and capturing the early rounds. Álvarez was later able to hammer away to the body when he had Lara on the ropes but never adjusted to Lara's one-two combinations. Lara's lead hand played a huge role in this combination's effectiveness, but his output dropped in the middle rounds. Álvarez was able to cut Lara with a lead left uppercut in the seventh round. Although the decision remains controversial, any talk of a rematch in the future was dismissed by Oscar De La Hoya who went on to say, "No one wants a rematch." This fight resulted in Lara's second professional loss.
Lara vs. Smith On 12 December 2014, at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, Lara showcased his ability to move in range to punch and then swiftly escape without taking damage against Ishe Smith. Lara consistently landed the straight left hand after “blinding” or “occupying” Smith's guard with the lead hand. Lara would move in a forward direction towards Smith and escape in a linear direction, oftentimes sidestepping, while landing the one-two combination. This lateral movement was enhanced by Lara's wide boxing stance, which also enhanced Lara's punching power. Lara was frequently able to turn Smith into additional punches by stepping around Smith's lead foot, thus enabling Lara to set traps. Lara dominated the fight and successfully defended his WBA (Regular) super welterweight title by unanimous decision with the scorecards reading: 119–109, 119–109, and 117–111.
WBA and IBO super welterweight champion
Lara vs. Rodríguez, Zaveck On 12 June 2015, Lara defended his WBA (Regular) super welterweight title and won the vacant IBO title against Delvin Rodríguez at the UIC Pavilion in Chicago. In a technical exhibition, Lara's exquisite timing and fast hands allowed him to out land Rodríguez 233 to 63 in total punches and connect on 62% of his power punches. Lara was able to score a knockdown in round six via straight left hand. In a virtual shutout, Lara earned a unanimous decision with all three judges agreeing 120–107.