HOF boxer, three-division champion Wilfredo Gomez dies at 69
Brett OkamotoOct 11, 2026, 10:50 AM ET
- Brett Okamoto has reported on mixed martial arts and boxing at ESPN since 2010. He has covered all of the biggest events in combat sports during that time, including in-depth interviews and features with names such as Dana White, Khabib Nurmagomedov, Conor McGregor, Nate Diaz, Floyd Mayweather, Manny Pacquiao and Georges St-Pierre. He was also a producer on the 30 for 30 film: "Chuck and Tito," which looked back at the careers and rivalry of Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz. He lives in Las Vegas, and is an avid, below-average golfer in his spare time.
Puerto Rican boxing legend Wilfredo "Bazooka" Gomez died Saturday night. He was 69.
The former three-division world champion had been hospitalized with respiratory complications, his son told Puerto Rican news outlets. Former WBO president and fellow Puerto Rican Paco Valcarcel also confirmed Gomez's death on social media.
"He passed away a few hours ago, the one to whom I owe having entered the great family of International Boxing," Valcarcel wrote. "Rest in peace, my eternal champion Wilfredo 'Bazuka' Gomez."
Known for his knockout power, Gomez won the WBC junior featherweight world title at age 20 in October 1977, when he overcame a first-round knockdown in a finish of South Korea's Dong Kyun Yum. He went on to establish himself as one of the greatest junior featherweights of all time, including title defenses over Carlos Zarate and Lupe Pintor.
Gomez later captured world championships at featherweight and junior lightweight. He retired from professional boxing in 1989 and was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1995.
His legacy represents a major chapter in Puerto Rican boxing. He was born near San Juan in 1956 and represented Puerto Rico at the 1972 Olympics.
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