Anyone who remembers the boxing career of former champion Carlos Baldomir can surely recall a lot.
Baldomir, age 48, is long since removed from any championship glory, but he certainly had a solid run as a professional. The Argentinean, via Santa Fe, debuted in February of 1993 and fought primarily local, before branching out to such places as America, South Africa, Denmark, the United Kingdom, Italy, while putting together an impressive winning streak in the welterweight division.
More and more appearances came on American soil, and soon Baldomir would find himself in with some big names in the sport. 2006 was the year and Baldomir was a big underdog against upstart champion Zab Judah.
Baldomir scored a huge upset over Judah in a rousing bout. His aggression and will to win was obvious as he charged at his Brooklyn foe inside of Madison Square Garden. Baldomir had Judah’s nose bleeding in the third and stunned him in round seven. He also connected on 161 out 417 punches compared to 91 out of 294 for Judah. It was a classic cinderella type of story.
He followed it up with another impressive performance six months later in scoring a TKO victory over fan favorite Arturo Gatti. In this fight, the Argentinean banger was destructive in battering the former champ. Baldomir’s 2006 campaign ended with a loss, but it was on the highest stage in a pay per view vs. Floyd Mayweather.
After the Mayweather loss, Baldomir lost his luster and faded from the sport, losing to guys like Vernon Forrest, Marco Antonio Rubio, Canelo Alvarez, and others while becoming just an opponent.
And while one can understand why he may be away from the sport, there was a shocking revelation recently when Baldomir was sentenced to 18 years in prison after being convicted of child abuse. This past Wednesday, according to report, Baldomir was hauled to court wearing handcuffs and a T-shirt that read “Triumph”.
Says that between 2012 and 2014, Baldomir abused a young girl between the age of seven and eight.
His trial took place on July 25 in Argentina, behind closed doors, but it obviously raised quite a few eyebrows, given the fact that he still has somewhat of a name due to his connection to such star fighters and past accomplishment.
Baldomir has actually been in arrest for almost three years in a Santa Fe prison called Coronda, which is reportedly where he will serve the remainder of his sentence. He pleaded not guilty, obviously to no avail.
Looking back at how everything transpired, this is shocking and saddening to see. First, for the victim who had to go through such abuse. Secondly, it’s tough to see a former champion who must resort to such things.
It’s definitely a far cry from when Baldomir was a champion in the sport, commanding big purses and fighting in front of millions.
