ROUGH TIMES WERE AHEAD FOR “SCHOOL BOY” BOBBY CHACON
San Francisco, CA– When Bobby Chacon met Bazooka Limon in December 1982, it was their fourth encounter. Their first go (December 1975) resulted in a Limon UD 10 win. The second tango (April 1979) ended a Technical Draw. “School Boy” Chacon was pitching a near shutout over six fistic frames. A cut, the result of an accidental butt from Chacon left Bazooka, Rafael on his birth certificate, cut and unable to continue.
BAZOOKA LIMON TOUGH BEYOND BELIEF
Their third match ended in a 10 round split decision for Chacon (March 1980). It was the fourth meeting between the two on December 11, 1982 that was truly an epic battle of grit and determination, one that was the Ring Magazine “Fight of The Year.”
WON’T RETIRE, WIFE EATS GUN, BOBBY FIGHTS NEXT DAY
But this wasn’t a year of total celebration for Chacon as his wife Valerie Chacon had committed suicide in March 1982. She did herself in the night before Chacon met and beat Salvador Ugalde (TKO 3) March 16, 1982 in Sacramento for promoter Don & Lorraine Chargin with partner Sid Tenner.
“SCHOOL BOY” TANGLED WITH ARGUELLO & OLIVARES
Chacon had been throttled by iconic Mexican warrior Ruben Olivares (TKO 6), losing his WBC 126 lb. belt in late 1975 after a nine-month run. This was before being halted by Alexis Arguello in 1979 (TKO 7) in a WBC 130 lb. scrap. 
DECEASED WIFE SAW BOXING DESTROYING CHACON
Valerie, seeing the residual effects of Bobby getting the snot kicked out of him and wanted him to quit. And even in winning fights, Chacon ate of lot leather in the decade he’d been fighting for pay. With Bobby winning another “work” fight before tangling with Limon, the media kept Chacon and the suicide of Valerie alive and in print.
WENT TO THE DRESSING ROOMS
Seeing Chacon before the fight, I saw the scar tissue around both eyes, which to me was akin to many, many boxing miles on the Chacon odometer. Having boxed with Bazooka prior, he was the slowest fighter you could imagine. Looking at both of these guys, it was like gazing at two old cars with 250,000 miles on each. Neither man worked themselves into a real sweat beforehand. That’s because they both probably knew that like their first two fights went the 10 & 12 rounds, this one was destined to last the scheduled 15.
“WIDE WORLD OF SPORTS” SPECIAL
Keith Jackson did the fight alone for ABC, and probably to his chagrin I was kneeling on the floor right behind him. With Chacon going down in rounds 4 and 10, Bazooka in the 15th, the fight was pretty close from where I sat. Judge Angel L. Guzman’s card read 142-141. Filipino icon, actor, referee and judge Carlos Padilla had it 143-141, while the third jurist Tamotsu Tomiharas’ card read 141-140 Chacon.
ODDSMAKERS HAD CHACON-LIMON 4 WAY WRONG
Here was Chacon, a 3-1 underdog winning a fight nobody thought he could. Thus when I asked him post fight, Bobby, do you think you shocked the world? I mean considering what has happened to you this year. Chacon’s reply, “I guess I did. But I did it for Valerie and my kids.”
GOT WIN OVER UNDERRATED BOZA!
After besting Cornelius Boza Edwards on points in a real close fight on my card, but decisive in the minds of judges Duane Ford’s 115-112, Lou Tabat 115-112, while Dave Moretti’s fistic ballot read 117-111. With Chacon dropping the WBC 130 lb. trinket, a vacant title that the aforementioned Bazooka Limon would get blitzed for by Hector Camacho in 1983, Bobby would step up five lbs. to meet WBA lightweight (135) champ Ray “Boom-Boom” Mancini.
FIGHT WAS PHYSICAL MISMATCH IN SIZE
To call this fight a mismatch would be an understatement. A seemingly insurmountable size disadvantage was the case when Chacon met Mancini who was much bigger than he. The thrashing Chacon took over three rounds wasn’t worth the reported $1,000,000 purse.
BOBBY NEVER LOST ANOTHER FIGHT
Chacon would fight seven more times, winning all of them including names like Davey Montana, ex-WBA lightweight king Arturo Frias and Rafael Solis. And while Bobby took a ton of punishment in the 436 rounds he fought in from 1972 to 1988, I’m not of the opinion that his fights are totally to blame for him being punchy.
CHACON NOT A GREAT MIC GUY, BUT GOOD
It was after he quit (59-7-1, 47 KOs) that Chacon, a decent interview upon retirement, took the punishment that turned him into a cartoon character. He ran a boxing gym in Montana or Wyoming where he took hundreds of punches a day from his students. Daily and round after round, Bobby would let 10-15 people use him as a human punching bag. After better than a year of this, Chacon’s brain was cerebral Cream of Wheat.
BOBBY LAUGHED AT SELF DECADE AGO
Having introduced him several times, the last a boxing luncheon some 10 years ago, I was deathly afraid that Bobby would embarrass himself when I called him up for an award. Although some of his spiel was off track, for the most part Chacon was like a stand up comic, and the crowd (myself included) were thoroughly entertained.
NAKED MALE MASSEUR TRIED SEX WITH CHACON
One of the funniest stories I’ve ever been told was when Don & Lorraine Chargin’s “house” manager Sid Tenner was asked by Bobby to get him a massage. About a half hour into it, Chacon is nude and laying on his stomach when the massage guy, naked now too, tried to penetrate Bobby with his apendage. Chacon went nuts, something Sid and I used to laugh about often.
WHAT IF BOBBY HAD LISTENED TO VALERIE?
Now 63 years of age, Chacon is coping with the reality of his being brain damaged. Which makes me wonder, what kind of condition would Bobby be in today had he retired AND Valerie NOT shot herself in the head?
Pedro Fernandez
Note: Mr. Fernandez is an award-winning writer, TV commentator, radio talk show host, former San Francisco Policeman and four-time Golden Gloves champion. Comments regarding this submission can be left below under the advertising.
BOXING GAVE AND TOOK FROM BOBBY CHACON