Top 10 Greatest Filipino Boxers of All Time

In the Philippines, boxing is considered one of its most popular sports together with basketball due to the history of Spaniards and Americans coming to the Philippines. Now, the country has produced an overall 45 major world champions in different weight divisions. As a Filipino, you should be proud of that.

Here are the top 10 Filipino boxers of all time

1. 1. Small Montana

      Benjamin Jamito Gan is known professionally as Small Montana, was a Filipino boxer. Montana, who stood 5 feet and 4 inches (163 cm) tall and never weighed more than 112 pounds, won the Flyweight Championship of the World as recognized by New York state.

      Real name	Benjamin Jamito Gan
      Born	February 24, 1913 Bacolod, Negros Occidental, Philippines
      Weight(s)	Flyweight
      Height	5 ft 4 in (1.63 m)
      Stance	Southpaw
      Died	August 4, 1976 (aged 63) La Carlota, Negros Occidental, Philippines
      Boxing record
      Wins	83
      Wins by KO	18
      Losses	24
      Draws	10
      Total fights	118

   2. Dodie Boy Peñalosa

      Dodie Boy Peñalosa (born November 19, 1962) is a Filipino former professional boxer who won the IBF light flyweight and flyweight titles. Diosdado “Dodie Boy” Peñalosa is Gerry’s older brother.

      Born	November 19, 1962 (age 59) San Carlos, Negros Occidental, Philippines
      Nickname	Dodie Boy
      Weight	Light flyweight Flyweight Super flyweight
      Height	5 ft 5 in (165 cm)
      Stance	Southpaw
      Boxing record
      Wins	31
      Wins by KO	13
      Losses	7
      Draws	3
      No contests	1
      Total fights	42

   3. Luisito Espinosa

      Luisito Pio Espinosa is a Filipino former professional boxer who competed between 1984 to 2005. He is a world champion in two weight classes, having held the WBA bantamweight title from 1989 to 1991 and the WBC featherweight title between 1995 and 1999.

      Born	June 26, 1967 (age 54) Tondo, Manila, Philippines
      Nickname	Lindol ("Earthquake")
      Weight(s)	Bantamweight Featherweight Super featherweight
      Height	5 ft 7.5 in (1.71 m)
      Stance	Orthodox
      Boxing record
      Wins	47
      Wins by KO	26
      Losses	13
      Total fights	60

   4. Pancho Villa

      1st ever Filipino to become a world champion. Francisco Villaruel Guilledo more commonly known as Pancho Villa was a Filipino professional boxer. Villa, who stood only 5 feet and 1 inch (154 cm) tall and never weighed more than 114 pounds (51 kg), despite the racial discrimination of that time, rose from obscurity to become the first Asian to win the World Flyweight Championship in 1923, earning the reputation in some quarters as one of the greatest Flyweight boxers in history. He was never knocked out in his entire boxing career, which ended with his sudden death at only twenty-three from complications following a tooth extraction.

      Born	August 1, 1901 Ilog, Negros Occidental, Philippines
      Nickname	Pancho Villa, Filipino Whirlwind , Little Brown Boy
      Weight(s)	Flyweight
      Height	5 ft 1 in (154 cm)
      Stance	Orthodox
      Died	14 July 1925 (aged 23) San Francisco, California, U.S.
      Boxing record
      Wins	89
      Wins by KO	22
      Losses	8
      Draws	4
      Total fights	103

   5. Ceferino Garcia

      Ceferino Montano Garcia was a champion boxer born in Naval, Biliran, Philippines. He holds the most victories ever achieved by a Filipino boxer and is also the only boxer from the Philippines to become world champion in the middleweight division.

      Born	August 26, 1906 Naval, Biliran, Philippine Islands
      Nickname	Bolo Punch Pedro
      Weight(s)	Middleweight
      Height	5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)
      Stance	Orthodox
      Died	January 1, 1981 (aged 74) San Diego, California, United States
      Boxing record
      Wins	120
      Wins by KO	76
      Losses	30
      Draws	14
      Total fights	164

   6. Gerry Peñalosa

      The most technical boxer in the Philippines. Geronimo “Fearless” J. Peñalosa is a Filipino former professional boxer who competed from 1989 to 2010. He is a two-weight world champion, having held the WBC and lineal super-flyweight titles from 1997 to 1998, and the WBO bantamweight title from 2007 to 2009.

      Born	August 7, 1972 (age 49) San Carlos, Negros Occidental, Philippines
      Nickname	Fearless
      Weight(s)	Light flyweight Super flyweight Bantamweight Super bantamweight
      Height	5 ft 4 in (163 cm)
      Stance	outhpaw
      Boxing record
      Wins	55
      Wins by KO	37
      Losses	8
      Draws	2
      Total fights	65

   7. Donnie Nietes

      Donnie Liboon Nietes is a Filipino professional boxer. He is a world champion in four weight classes, having previously held the WBO mini-flyweight title from 2007 to 2011; the WBO and The Ring magazine junior-flyweight titles between 2011 and 2016; IBF flyweight title from 2017 to 2018; and the WBO junior-bantamweight title from 2018 to 2019.[2] He is the longest-reigning Filipino boxing world champion, surpassing in 2014 the record set in 1967 by Boxing Hall of Fame inductee Gabriel “Flash” Elorde. He was one of the first three Asian fighters with world titles in at least four weight classes alongside fellow Filipinos Manny Pacquiao and Nonito Donaire.

      Born	May 12, 1982 (age 40) Murcia, Negros Occidental, Philippines
      Nickname	Ahas (Snake)
      Weight(s)	Mini-flyweight Junior-flyweight Flyweight Junior-bantamweight
      Height	5 ft 3 in (160 cm)
      Boxing record
      Wins	43
      Wins by KO	23
      Losses	1
      Draws	6
      Total fights	50

   8. Flash Elorde

      Gabriel “Flash” Elorde was a Filipino professional boxer. Before Manny Pacquiao took the boxing world by storm, he was widely regarded as the best Filipino boxer in history. He won the lineal super featherweight title in 1960. In 1963, he won the inaugural WBC and WBA super featherweight titles. He holds the record at super featherweight division for longest title reign, spanning seven years. Wikipedia

      Born	March 25, 1935 Bogo, Cebu, Philippine Islands
      Nickname	Flash
      Weight(s)	Bantamweight Featherweight Super featherweight Lightweight
      Height	5 ft 5+1⁄2 in (166 cm)
      Stance	Southpaw
      Died	January 2, 1985 (aged 49) Quezon City, Philippines
      Boxing record
      Wins	89
      Wins by KO	33
      Losses	27
      Draws	2
      Total fights	118

   9. Nonito Donaire

      Nonito Gonzales Donaire Jr. is another Filipino professional boxer who was born in the Philippines but grew up in the United States. He has held multiple world championships in four weight classes from flyweight to featherweight, including the WBC bantamweight title since May 2021.

      Born	November 16, 1982 (age 39)
      Nickname	The Filipino Flash
      Weight(s)	Flyweight Super flyweight Bantamweight Super bantamweight Featherweight
      Height	5 ft 6 in (168 cm)
      Stance	Orthodox
      Boxing record
      Wins	42
      Wins by KO	28
      Losses	6
      Total fights	48

   10. Manny Pacquiao

       The only boxer in history to have won titles in all eight weight classes. Manny Pacquiao is the only boxer in history to have won twelve major world titles across eight weight classes.

       Emmanuel Dapidran Pacquiao Sr. is a Filipino politician and former professional boxer. Nicknamed “PacMan”, he is regarded as one of the greatest professional boxers of all time. He has been serving as a senator of the Philippines since 2016 and running for Presidency in the 2022 May 9 election in his country. Wikipedia

       Born	December 17, 1978 (age 43) Kibawe, Bukidnon
       Nickname	Pacman
       Weight(s)	Flyweight Super bantamweight Featherweight Super featherweight Lightweight Light welterweight Welterweight Light middleweight
       Height	5 ft 5+1⁄2 in (166 cm)
       Stance	Southpaw
       Boxing record
       Wins	62
       Wins by KO	39
       Losses	8
       Draws	2
       Total fights	72

See Also

• Top 10 Filipino Pool Players of All Time
• Top 10 PBA Players of All Time
• 10 Famous Celebrities with Filipino Ancestry

Those are your top 10 Filipino boxers of all time. Which are your favorite Filipino boxers? Leave a comment down below.