Acelino Freitas

Infobox_Boxer
name = Acelino Freitas

---

image size=150px
realname = Acelino Freitas
nickname = Popó
weight = Lightweight
nationality = flagicon|BRA Brazilian
birth_date = birth date and age|1975|9|21|mf=y
death_date =
birth_place = Bahia, Brazil
home = Bahia, Brazil
style = Orthodox
total = 40
wins = 38
KO = 32
losses = 2
losses by quitting = 2
lbq% = 100%
draws = 0
quits = 2
no contests = 0

Acelino "Popó" Freitas (born September 21, 1975), is a native of Bahia, Brazil, who is a boxer and a former world junior lightweight and lightweight champion. His style of fighting in the ring has garnered him a reputation for being more of a brawler than a boxer.

His nickname, "Popó", was given to him by his mother, after the sound that babies make while drinking milk.Fact|date=May 2007

Freitas had a difficult childhood, often sleeping in a sandy floor at his house. Since early in his life, he dreamed of a better place to live for his family. A skilled soccer player, he was more inclined, however, towards the sport of boxing since an early age. Brazil's Eder Jofre, who is generally recognized as the greatest world champion to come out of that country, was one of Freitas' childhood heroes.

Amateur career

Freitas competed for his native country and won a lightweight silver medal at the Pan American Games 1995 in Mar del Plata.

Professional career

Early success

After the Pan American Games he turned into a professional boxer on July 14, 1995, against Adriano Jose Soares. With his win by knockout in the first round that night, Freitas set off a streak of 29 knockout wins in a row, which places as one of the longest knockout wins streak in boxing history. His first 10 wins were against low level competition, but for fight number 11, he took on the much more experienced Edwin Vazquez, knocking him out in the seventh round.

Between 1997 and 1998, Freitas won four more fights and then took on Francisco Tomas Da Cruz, a former world title challenger of Julio César Chávez. Freitas handled Da Cruz with a knockout in two rounds and then added three more knockout wins before getting his first world title try.

First World Title

That happened on August 7, 1999, when he challenged WBO world Jr. Lightweight champion Anatoly Alexandrov. Freitas became a world champion by knocking Alexandrov out in round one. Soon after, he signed a contract with cable TV giant Showtime, which began to telecast Freitas' fights to the United States. Freitas then made five defenses of his world title and one non title bout, all of which ended in knockout wins. Then, he went to London, and took only 45 seconds to beat Daniel Alicea (a former world title challenger of Naseem Hamed) in another non title affair. Freitas then beat the former world champion, Al Kotey, (brother of David 'Poison' Kotei) by a decision in ten.

Freitas vs Casamayor

On January 12, 2002, Freitas decided to sign for a unification bout with the WBA world champion, Joel Casamayor, a Cuban refugee who resides in Florida. In a rousing super featherweight unification title bout battle between unbeaten champions, a controversial knockdown and a blatant foul cost WBA champ Joel Casamayor (26-1, 16 KO's) his unblemished record and his crown in losing a close 12 round unanimous decision to WBO champ Acelino Freitas (31-0, 29 KO's).

In a classic boxing confrontation between the Brazilian bomber Freitas (129 1/2) and the Cuban boxer Casamayor (129 1/2), the fighters switched roles midway through their encounter in what was reminiscent of Sugar Ray Leonard's first historic face-off with Thomas "Hitman" Hearns back in 1981. The scientist Casamayor became the aggressive slugger, while the puncher Freitas turned into the boxer as once again the unpredictable transpired in a mega-fight.

A glancing right-hand to the neck of the off-balanced Casamayor in the 3rd round was ruled a knockdown by referee Joe Cortez and intentionally hitting on the break in the 6th saw the Cuban penalized another point. It was the difference in the finale tallies and the two point cushion that the tiring Freitas retained across the boards on all three judges scorecards. Ring officials Robert Byrd, Bill Graham and Dave Moretti having identical scores of 114 to 112 for the Brazilian.

After Casamayor

Next, he went to Phoenix, to fight Nigeria's Daniel Attah, with only the WBO belt on the line. Freitas kept his world title with a 12 round decision on August 3.

Freitas was able to reach his dream of buying his family a better place to live: He has become a national hero in Brazil, one that evokes memories of the idolatry many Brazilians felt for Freitas' childhood hero, Jofre. Because of that, he has become a campaign spokesman of many companies, to add an extra income to what he already earns from his world title fights.

He has been able to help his family financially, and, in addition to that, he built a soccer field in his own mansion, which allows him to practice his second favorite sport.

This avid autograph signer's fame in Brazil has reached such proportions, that when he got married, his wedding was televised live to all of Brazil.

Freitas retained the title in Chicago with a fourth round knockout of Juan Carlos Ramirez. Then, on August 9, 2003, he and Jorge Barrios engaged in what Showtime commentator Steve Albert called a "candidate for fight of the year". Freitas was floored in rounds eight and eleven, but retaliated with a knockdown of his own towards the end of the eleventh, and ended up retaining the title by knockout in round twelve.

Freitas' personal life took a downturn that year, however, when he divorced his wife. Their divorce was very public in Brazil.

Freitas began 2004 by winning a 12 round unanimous decision over Artur Grigorian on January 4, to become the WBO's world Lightweight champion.

On February 1 of that year, the WBA announced it had named Freitas their 2003 "fighter of the year".

Freitas vs Corrales

On August 7, 2004, Freitas lost for the first time, losing his WBO world Lightweight title to Diego Corrales by a tenth round knockout in Connecticut. Freitas quit the fight in that round after taking a severe beating, and has been scorned in the boxing community because of it.

Rise back to the Top

On April 29, 2006, Freitas defeated Zahir Raheem for the vacant WBO lightweight title by split decision. As with most split decisions, this decision was considered by some to be controversial.

Freitas vs Diaz

Freitas announced his retirement as a professional boxer on October 4, 2006. Later on, he announced his come back from retirement, and the WBO re-instated him as their lightweight champion.

On April 28, 2007 he lost his title to Juan Diaz by TKO after Freitas quit on his stool before beginning the 9th round. which drew boos from the crowd. The fight took place in Mashantucket, USA.

José Elias Flores Jr. http://www.fightnews.com/fightnews_2/headlines//EEVAAAApZuHhKCKMNU.html "Popó retires!"] 4 October 2006. "Fightnews.com". URL accessed 4 October 2006.]

See also

* List of lightweight boxing champions

* List of current world boxing champions

Notes and references

External links

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