A look back at the career of Mexican super bantamweight Nicky Bentz

Courtesy of the WBF

14/08/2019

A look back at the career of Mexican super bantamweight Nicky Bentz

Nicky Bentz, a super bantamweight from Mexico turned professional in 1990, somewhere in his home country. It was so low key, that the exact date and location are no longer remembered. It is however known that Bentz, born on November 11, 1971 in Reynosa, Tamaulipas in north east Mexico as Nicasio Benta Rodriguez. At the time of his debut, Bentz was eighteen years old and he stopped a fellow Mexican named Jose Lopez in the first round. The details of many of his early bouts are sketchy, to say the least, but in the first fourteen months or so of his paid career, he reportedly build a record of 13-0, and developed into a solid prospect on the Mexican circuit.
 
During that period he most notably defeated Tamaulipas-rival Manuel Hernandez tree times (Hernandez was 4-1-2, 6-2-2 and 6-4-2 when they fought), and knocked out undefeated Salvador Acosta (2-0) in two rounds at the Arena Coliseo in Mexico City. Fighting on small shows with small budgets, Bentz had to take what he could get, but he did his job well and kept winning. 
 
By the end of 1992 he was 19-0 and the following year he finally got a chance to impress on a bigger stage. In July of 1993 he was assigned a slot on the undercard of Richardo Lopez´ WBC strawweight title-defense against Thailand's Saman Sorjaturong, and pitted against former Mexican Flyweight Champion Javier “Suzuki” Diaz (44-29-2) over ten rounds. Squaring off at featherweight, four weight classes above Diaz prime fighting-weight, Bentz was a healthy favorite. But the vastly more experienced veteran, still levels above anyone the twenty-two year old up-and-comer had faced before, gave Bentz plenty of problems in a fight that ended in a draw.
 
While he didn't fail his first big test, he didn't exactly pass it with flying colors either, and Bentz soon returned to fighting on smaller cards in Reynosa, knocking out nondescript opponents such as Alejandro Garcia (1-1), Alfonso Garcia (0-2), Armando Arriaga (6-2) and Hugo Torres (8-11). But in September of 1995 he was awarded another huge opportunity, as the biggest promoter in the world, Don King, put him on the undercard of a star-studded bill headlined by Julio Cesar Chavez vs. David Kamau at the Mirage Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. And this time Bentz passed the test, as he won a ten-round unanimous decision over another battle-tested, tricky costumer in Benito Rodriguez (23-19-1), improving his record to 24-0-1 (21) and showing signs that a further step up
was not far off.
 
Six months after the Las Vegas-outing, Bentz beat Raul Cortez (6-5) on points back in Reynosa, but he would soon return to the USA as he dismantled and stopped Adrian Torres (13-4) in two rounds in the main event of a show in Pharr, Texas on July 23, 1996.
 
Less than two months on he stopped Thomas Reyes (6-5) in the sixth in the same city, and in April of 1997 he was back in Mexico, getting rid of out-classed Jesus Jose Mendoza (4-7-1) in three. It was clearly time for Bentz to be tested at championship level.
 
On May 29, 1997, back in Pharr, which is connected to his hometown Reynosa by a bridge crossing the Rio Grande, Bentz got a super bantamweightcontest against former foe Arturo Estrada (21-21-1). Bentz had stopped Estrada in five rounds in 1992, but the man from Tampico had since seen it all in fights against the likes of John Michael Johnson, Paulie Ayala, Johnny Tapia, and Tim Austin.  Despite the convincing result in their first encounter, the rematch was not considered an easy task for Bentz. But, nevertheless, he appeared to make it easy, as he put his foot down from the first round and eventually knocked out Estrada in round three.
 
Another rematch was soon in the pipe-line. Javier Diaz, the only man Bentz had faced in the pro ranks whom he had failed to defeat, would be next.  Four years had passed since they drew in Mexico, and Bentz showed his progress by winning a clear unanimous decision in Pharr. All the tricks and moves that Diaz had used to frustrate him with in the first fight had no effect in the second go-around. 
 
Soon after it was revealed that Bentz, now 30-0-1, would have a quick turn-around on November 9, 1997 at the Country Club in Reseda, California. Bentz was matched with late substitute Juan Manuel Chavez (21-20) from Mexico City, an opponent much better than his mediocre statistics suggests. Bentz, eight days away from his twenty-sixth birthday, was naturally a huge favorite to win, and perhaps he underestimated Chavez, knowing he had lost almost as much as he had won. Whatever the case was, it became a much tougher fight than casual fans at ringside probably expected, and in the end Chavez was awarded a massive upset victory, and the WBF title, by majority decision.
 
Losing for the first time can do something to a fighter. Some will prosper from the defeat, while others will never be the same, their confidence perhaps broken, and their dedication not what it once was. Nicky Bentz never reached the same heights again. In February of 1998 he fought Carlos Navarro (13-0) for the WBU World title, and was knocked down five times before losing clearly on all three judges cards. He did floor Navarro too, but was never really close to winning.
 
Bentz rebounded with five victories, but when he drew with journeyman Geronimo Hernandez (7-11) in an eight rounder in November of 2001, it looked like the end of the road. But three years later he decided to make a comeback. Between November of 2004 and October of 2006, he lost five straight bouts in the USA, getting stopped four times by Idelfonso Martinez (11-4), future champion Jorge Solis (29-0-2), Jason Litzau (18-0) and Tomas Villa (15-5-4).
 
In the middle of that horrid run he almost pulled off a shocker, losing only by split decision to legendary multidivision world champion Johnny Tapia (53-4-2) in January of 2005, but that was the closest he got to success. Pulling out after two rounds against Villa was his last dance in the ring. Going 6-7-1 in his last fourteen bouts, Nicky Bentz retired at 34 years of age, with a professional record of 36-7-2, at least according to BoxRec. He may have had more fights in Mexico that went unrecorded.
 
Married to wife Ericka since 2011, he still lives in Reynosa.