Chicago boxer dies after bout in Philadelphia
Associated Press
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Published: 11/23/2009 2:01 PM

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Buzz up!

PHILADELPHIA -- A former national Golden Gloves boxing champ has died after a bout in Philadelphia.

Boxing promoter Dominic Pesoli says Francisco Rodriguez died Sunday night after losing a USBA super bantamweight bout Friday night against Teon Kennedy.

Philadelphia promoter J. Russell Peltz says Rodriguez began to lose consciousness as the Chicago boxer sat in his corner after the fight was stopped in the 10th round. Rodriguez, 25, was taken to a hospital and underwent emergency surgery.

Rodriguez was 14-2 going into the bout against Kennedy for the vacant USBA super bantamweight title. Rodriguez was a national Golden Gloves champion in 2001.

Pesoli, president of 8 Count Productions, says a fund is being set up for Rodriguez's wife and infant daughter.

Something positive to come out of this boxer's passing....


Eight, including uncle, to receive organs


The death of junior featherweight Francisco "Paco" Rodriguez on Sunday night will not have been in vain.

Two days after Rodriguez was knocked out by Teon Kennedy in the 10th round of a ferocious fight for a regional title at Philadelphia's famed Blue Horizon, Rodriguez died from a brain injury he suffered in the bout.

His death, however, will save the lives of at least eight people, including his uncle. Rodriguez's family announced that it was donating multiple organs from the fallen fighter, including a kidney to his uncle.

"We just learned that Paco and our uncle are a match," Alex Rodriguez, Francisco's brother, said in a statement. "Our uncle has been on the waiting list for a kidney transplant for a long, long time. So although we've tragically lost Paco, we're able to give this incredible gift of life to another family member.

"My family is desperately grieving the loss of Paco, but there is some comfort knowing that he will save at least eight lives and benefit so many families."

Rodriguez's organs are being donated through the "Gift of Life" donor program.

"My brother was so strong and healthy," Alex Rodriguez said. "His heart and lungs were in perfect condition. It would have been a terrible waste not to share his life with others. How could we not help another family? My daughter was born with just one kidney, and thank God she's beautiful and healthy. But, God forbid, she ever needs a transplant. ... I'm absolutely sure that Paco, in a heartbeat, would have offered her his kidney.

"My brother was and always will be 'The People's Champ.' Now he's a hero, too."

Rodriguez (14-3-1, 8 KOs), who was 25, was rushed into brain surgery at Hahnemann University Hospital in Philadelphia after the fight Friday night, but he never regained consciousness and died Sunday. He is survived by his wife, 5-month-old daughter, parents and two brothers.

Rodriguez, who was born in Mexico but grew up in Chicago, was a five-time Chicago Golden Gloves Champion, a 2000 National Golden Gloves bronze medalist and, in 2001, when he was 17, a National Golden Gloves Champion. In 2004, Rodriguez advanced to the U.S. Olympic trials by outpointing Kennedy.

The family announced that an account had been set up to help with the family's heavy medical expenses. Donations can be made to the Francisco Rodriguez Estate fund account #707331062 at any Chase Bank location.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

Sucks that he passed away so young. Boxing is a much more dangerous sport than people think. Those accumulated blows to the head add up and do massive damage

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"You can kill the revolutionary, but you can't kill the revolution."