When news broke yesterday that former champion Edwin Valero had killed himself, I wish I could say that I was completely surprised. Truth of the matter is that if you had asked me which prominent fighter in the game today would end in such a tragic manner, Valero would have been my number one guess. Not that Valero was some melancholy soul, or walking “emo” song, no, Valero was the opposite: a man possessed with an unwavering intensity. Valero was a man, and a fighter, built upon extremes. There was no grey area when it came to the Venezuelan pug; in fact, it was almost like Valero lived his life at 100 MPH, with no brakes.
I still remember the night I met Valero. I was leaving the bowels of the Frank Erwin Center in Austin last year, and I literally ran into Valero and his entourage. Valero was in exceptionally high spirits given that a few hours earlier he had decimated Antonio Pitalua to capture the WBC lightweight title. Valero was the reason I had traveled the three hours south on I-35, as his medical suspension by the New York Athletic Commission had forced him to fight in Japan, and abroad. His fight in Austin was his first in America since 2003. I congratulated Valero on his performance that night, and the intensity in which he thanked me, and shook my hand was lasting. Some people just have an air about them that illustrates their character. With Valero it was an air of intensity that blazed hotter than 1,000 suns.
I also observed that night in Austin, Valero’s interaction with his family, most notably his wife Jennifer Carolina Viera. To me, it seemed like Valero had a deep affection for his wife. While speaking with fans and media types that night he held her close, with an arm around her waist. At the time, this did not strike me as the antics of a domineering spouse, but rather as a man who was experiencing a career highlight with a loved one. But looks can often be deceiving, and recent reports painted Valero in the grotesque light of an abusive spouse. These reports can now be perceived as fact given the news that Valero reportedly stabbed his wife to death late Sunday night. After turning himself in, Valero hung himself with his sweatpants in police custody.
My sympathy is not with Valero. No, my sympathy is with Jennifer Viera, who was taken before her time and to the Valero’s young children who now are forced to grow up sans mother, or father. When horrific events of this magnitude, questions are often posed on what could have been done to prevent this. Truthfully, Valero’s handlers should have done more. Valero’s wild antics and problems with alcohol are nothing new, and in fact, are well documented. Valero took things to a dangerous edge; he was a wild man, unchecked in his homeland due to his status as a folk hero. Though, to be honest, I’m not sure any type of intervention would have helped. Valero did what he wanted, when he wanted, and it was that defiant attitude that made him a popular fighter, but in the end, cost him dearly.
RIP to Jennifer Carolina Viera, and may God have mercy on the soul of Edwin Valero.
(Photo © Edward Garza/NorthTexasFisticuffs)
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