PHOENIX, AZ — A small house on Fillmore Street in Phoenix is where it all started for Michael Carbajal, but the blueprint to becoming a six-time world champion boxer was actually in his blood.
"We see the whole stack of newspapers and we just went through them. I don't know why we're doing it, but we were. And then we seen a picture of the state Golden Glove champions, and my dad was in it. We took it to my dad. I didn't know... I didn't know he was a boxer. He taught us. He taught all of us how to fight," said Carbajal.
Carbajal spent most of his training hitting the heavy bag, leading to his first amateur fight where his fate was foreshadowed.
"My dad goes, 'Do you remember? Do you remember what you said?' I said, 'No. What are you talking about?' 'You said you're gonna be a world champion and retired a world champion,' 'I said that?' I think he wanted to get that confidence because I was nervous," Carbajal recalled.
Although he lost that fight, his love and undeterred dedication eventually landed him at the 1988 Seoul Olympics where he earned a silver medal.
"What's it like representing your country in the Olympics?" asked Soto.
"Unbelievable. I mean, that's probably the best out of everything. Out of all the world titles, that silver medal was... was the best. I mean, just the experience of the Olympics," Carbajal replied.
Carbajal returned home more determined than ever, believing he was robbed in the Gold Medal match. The Flyweight then worked hard to become the best finesse fighter with a heavy hand.
"Manitas de Piedra, little hands of stone. What does that nickname mean to you?" asked Soto.
"That nickname means a whole lot to me because I made it up by myself because of my idol Roberto Duran. He was Manos de Peidra, and he was the 'Hands of Stone' and guess what, what happened? He was my idol all these years and then I fight on his undercard and that was my professional debut," replied Carbajal.
After a 14-0 professional start, Carbajal got his first title fight.
"I just love to fight and get in there. I love a war. I love when they just stay there and we get down and just throw and just think of what you're throwing and just feeling the competition. I loved it," said Carbajal.
After winning a world title, Carbajal found himself entangled in legal troubles, from a weapons charge in Tempe to a scuffle in Scottsdale.
"I never, never did if I was around them. Then I would get in trouble because I was just there, but I never really got in trouble," said Carbajal.
Carbajal would go on to win many more world titles before retiring for a year. Then he decided to get back into the ring to fulfill his father's prophecy, challenging WBO world Junior Flyweight champion Jorge Arce.
"They thought Arce was going to beat me, which he was. He was winning the fight, and they said, 'You have to knock him out, Michael, to win this fight' because I was losing and I said, 'Yep. I'm going to have to' and then the eleventh round came when I caught him with the right hand," Carbajal recalled.
The gifted fighter retired after his sixth world championship with a 49-4 record.
Today you can find the International Boxing Hall of Fame Inductee training at Michael Carbajal's 9th Street Gym.
"I love it. I mean, there's nothing else for me to do except, you know, drive these kids and build champions. Build champions in life, not just boxing. That's what we're all about," said Carbajal.
His gym is also on Fillmore Street, just steps away from his childhood home where it all began. The City of Phoenix recently honored the boxer with a special designation "Michael Carbajal Way" on the street he grew up on.
"When they were unveiling that sign what were the thoughts going through your head?" asked Soto.
"You know, I was just nervous and then excited and all the people that showed up. They showed all that love. That made me cry. It still makes me cry," Carbajal replied.
