Hall of Famer and multi-time former world champion Michael Carbajal has released the following statement due to his name and family name being linked to the upcoming fight between Leo Santa Cruz and Keenan Carbajal:
Michael Carbajal releases this statement to clear any misconceptions that suggest or imply his support or endorsement of Keenan Carbajal. Any assumptions that he is rooting for Keenan Carbajal are completely unfounded. To the contrary, Michael Carbajal will be rooting for Leo Santa Cruz to win and expects an early knockout victory.
The animosity between Michael Carbajal and the Keenan Danny Josephine Carbajal faction absolutely cannot be understated. There is no merit to any claim that Michael has any involvement, association, or affiliation with Keenan, his fight career, or any part of his life.
Further, Michael is not involved with Keenan’s trainer, Danny Carbajal (Michael’s estranged brother), or Keenan’s mother, Josephine Carbajal (Michael’s estranged niece), in any way, shape, or form. Michael Carbajal has never had and will never have any association with Keenan or any member of his team known as “Familia Carbajal”, which has misrepresented and violated the actual Carbajal Family.
Michael Carbajal
so he is saying he supports his every move..check
the carbajal story is compelling in his squandering of one of the best boxing stories ever. the media loved him and he blew it. His career was short. He should have listened to the experts and not gang banger danny
What did that have to do with Danny stealing his money?
How did he blow it? By making the Boxing Hall of Fame? He accomplished quite a bit in a 10 year career. I mean I guess he could have become even greater than he was.
The irony is, by releasing a statement like this, Michael is giving his nephew free press. I didn’t even know who Keenan was till I read this.
I remember watching his very exciting fights but lost track of his story after that. I’ll have to look this up but I’m not in a rush to hear another sad tale from our beloved sport.
Michael Carbajal was a great TV fighter, meaning his fights were exciting and he was a good interview. I really have not followed the Flyweight since but never missed watching Michael Carbajal fighting on live TV. I get very sad when relatives hate on each other. I grew up an only child with all my relatives overseas or dead.
Michael Carbajal hope you find happiness! big fan
light flyweight
I want to be at that house this Thanksgiving.
The backstory has to be pretty wild.
10 minutes later: I read briefly on the backstory. Does not look good. Accusations of Danny stealing millions from Michael and some pretty dark stuff. Money, money, money. SMH.
Holly shit !! There’s love in this family !!
What’s Ms. Holm got to do with it?
This is terrible. I love me some Michael Carbajal, but this is the type of stuff you keep private. We get it, you hate your family, so do millions of other people.
I thought the same thing when I read this. Why would he need to make a public statement about it like this? After doing a little research on it, it’s easy to see why he’d be pissed off/hurt about what happened. I guess the public statement is a way of venting in grand fashion, which is better than going after him physically to get revenge I suppose, but you’re right, keeping this private may have been best.
The 108 pound division was never more exciting than when Michael Carbajal & Chiquita Gonzalez were at their peaks. Always looked forward to their fights, and they produced a classic in their first fight against one another. Hard to imagine that weight division ever getting the same kind of spotlight again….
That was it! That was the peak of that division and even if they end up with an undisputed champion, and they may at some point, it won’t be like it was back then.
Wished Ricardo Lopez had come up and at least fought one of them.
Lopez was a great fighter. P4P top 5 around that time for sure. There was also Scotty “The Bulldog” Olson, who was a level or two below the others, but could punch and was fun to watch.
Scotty Bulldog Olson! He was awesome, so much fun to watch. They have his fight with Carbajal on YT. Pretty good quality for a 25 year old fight and a great liver shot by Carbajal to end that one.
Wasn’t Yuri Arbachakov in the mix there for a while too?
That guy had a hook to the body from hell.
Yep. Arbachakov was quite good as well. Olympian Eric Griffin didn’t quite pan out, but he got some attention in that weight class also…
Thanks for taking me back to the Tuesday and Thursday Night Fight days! That was one of the best eras in boxing where stars were made and fighters got the right exposure. Got to watch a lot of good fighters back then.
Yep, I remember Yuri, he was up at flyweight though. Always wanted him to come over and fight Too Sharp. I remember Eric Griffin and a Korean fighter, Myung Woo Yuh, had some crazy record, made the hall of fame too. And I do remember Griffin too USF!
Myung Woo-Yuh. Dude had something like 15 title defenses. I followed the sport a lot more closely back then, and used to read about him, but to this day haven’t seen him fight. He was never on American TV that I know of, and there was no YouTube at the time. Myung Woo-Yuh somehow brought Khaosai Galaxy to mind. Galaxy was another dominant champion who I never got to see back then.
Maungchai Kittikasem….the guy Carbajal won his first belt from, was fun to watch too. His fight with Carbajal was exciting, and he was also competitive with Arbachakov before getting KO’d. He ended up beating Sot Chitalada I believe to win a title at Flyweight
Muangchai Kittikasem! I used to love his name. “Kitty Case Em”. You can find a lot of him and MWY on youtube now. You can go on yt now and just spend a few days watching old fights!
I remember the Galaxy brothers, I don’t know if I ever even saw a photo of one of them until after they were done fighting. Just names with great records in a Ring Magazine.
I used to like watching Michael Carbajal (MC) fight.
Even with family differences and family squabbles, I am very blessed to come from a large family; and my folks eventually work it out because “blood is blood.” We only have so many years to enjoy hanging with family.
It appears MC comes from a large family, and I hope they can eventually work out matters because you only have your relatives ONCE in life’s journeys. I hope the Carbajal family members get together, smile, take out the BBQ grills/smokers and shout, “SANGRE!!” or “BLOOD!!”.
You don’t air dirty laundry in public. Especially dirty family laundry. I don’t know the backstory to this, but it sounds like all the Carbajal bunch won’t make it to the family reunion. I hate to hear about families that are splintered like that.
Read the story and you will understand! Danny stole his money and his property. Danny even killed his own wife so she wouldn’t testify.
My only concern is the nieces and nephews. They shouldn’t have to suffer for the sins of the father. I’m pretty sure they were children when it happened. I would have liked to hear something like I love and support my nephew despite my relationship with his father. To each his own and I can only pray for healing in that family. Won’t judge MC for how he chooses to deal with family.
I remember the first one million dollars fight in the straw-fly weight division was Michael Carbajal vs Humberto “la chiquita” González
Was not a strawweight fight. Was a light flyweight fight which is one division above
I got three time the thumbs down as up…the REAL best fighter at 105-107 was Ricardo Lopez. Carbajal would have lasted a round with that all time great. carbajal was a somewhat of a puncher if you stood there…Chiquita 1 and even Arce. Chaquita 2 was the way to fight Carbajal. He is a c fighter who blew it. He could be announcing fights with Andre Ward now if he had not been a cholo and been in a serious career effort.
I didn’t know he was a ccolo. He always interviewed well. Seemed like a dedicated fighter. Obviously his family is pretty ruthless and so perhaps he had a bit of the life in him too. I must say I did wonder why he never transitioned into broadcasting. He had a polished look to him
raised gangster. brother thief. michael was a follower. his story is shitty. shit ending to what could have been. people thumbs down truth. sawee. this generation shoots the news bringer. c career which could have been much much better managed and thought out with a long term plan, not a gangster quick as you can plan to fuck everyone over and finish as a bum essentially.
Apparently Danny Carbajal is a scumbag and did time for it.
and Michael , instead of supporting blood, just as Danny, did the wrong thing. He betrayed his own. SMH
Danny betrayed Michael, and Michael betrayed his nephew…the circle of shame. Blood is thicker unless thinned by the alcohol of greed and character lacking.
Sad to see the family in Turmoil. Michael and Danny always had a good relationship. I am hoping one swallows a little pride and reaches out to the other.
Micheal Carbojal was as Tough as they come…that being said Drugs and Alcohol have turned him into a Conplete Jerk.
I watched Carbojal his whole carreer and his brother Danny tried to keep Carbajol from the Streets to no avail.
Good Luck Keenen!
Something your estranged and Angry uncle should be saying to you right now!