“Boxing saved me and has given me the chance to save others who may be walking in the wrong direction. It’s a sport that has helped many children on their way to the darkness and put them on track and allowed me to make them better men. All my life I have sought out young people from a life of drugs, crime and gangs. This is very beautiful.” — Ignacio “Nacho” Beristain
“Nacho” Beristain has established himself as one of the all-time great trainers in the history of the sport and is widely regarded as the top teacher of the classic “Mexican” style of boxing. Rooted in solid fundamentals with a keen eye on balance, Beristain’s style is focused on creating opportunities for offense.
Born in a small town in Veracruz, Beristain has been around the sport of boxing since age 7. Despite some amateur and pro bouts, vision problems cut short his hands-on fighting experience, but he soon shifted over to training and found that he excelled as a teacher.
Beristain’s first world class fighter was 3-time WBC super bantamweight champ, Daniel Zaragoza. Along the way, he also had a part in training 20 champions, including 3 Hall of Famers: Zaragoza, Ricardo ‘Finito’ Lopez, and Humberto “Chiquita” Gonzalez. The outspoken trainer has also trained Juan Manuel Marquez, Rafael Marquez, Guty Espadas Jr., Melchor Cob Castro, Abner Mares, Eduardo Escobedo, Vicente Escobedo, and Oscar De la Hoya.
Beristain is to be officially inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame this weekend in Canastota, NY.
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