One of the greatest professional boxers of all time died on Saturday July 6, 2008. Born in Long Beach, California on November 15, 1948, Armando "Playboy" Ramos was one of the top boxers on the West Coast.
Using a forged birth certificate he established himself as the youngest Lightweight Champion in history and dominated his division up until about 1970. He was a staple on the main event card at the historic Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles for many years, often destroying his opponents and earning as much as $100,000 a night for many of his fights.
As a young fighter in his teens, his fight purses were almost as large as Cassius Clay (later changed his name to Muhammad Ali). During his hey day he was earning more money than Mickey Mantle, Sandy Koufax, Wilt The Stilt and Broadway Joseph Willie Namath.
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