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After being declared clinically dead 5 times before in his life, this time Johnny Tapia is gone forever. Considered “one of the greatest fighters ever”, by Mike Tyson, Johnny Tapia died in his home in Albuquerque, NM. Although there has been no official cause of death he has experienced many overdoses in his life prior to his death. Johnny Tapia was a prized boxing champion, winning 3 world championships. Although he won many fights and was respected as a skilled professional boxer, Johnny Tapia battled with drugs, alcohol, mental illness and numerous suicide attempts.
His whole life he suffered trauma, from living through his mothers murder in 1975, her murders’ gruesome death in 1983 (that re-opened the wound), numerous drug overdoses, and problems in his marriage. In 1995, he was court ordered to drug rehab after a domestic despute with his wife and found himself back in rehab in 2003. He also lost his brother in law and nephew in a car crash on their way to see him in a hospital after he overdosed. It seems like Johnny used drugs and alcohol to kill the pain he was suffering from years of trauma. “Larry Merchant, the boxing analyst, told Playboy in 2004 that Tapia was “a five-to-one underdog to survive his own childhood”.
Johnny Tapia is survived by his wife Teresa Tapia and their three children.
You don’t have to lose your life to drugs and alcohol, there is help. If you need to talk to someone is regards to your drug abuse or if you’d like to get a loved one help please call our 24/7 crisis hotline at 877-711-4673.
SOURCES
UPI: http://www.upi.com/Sports_News/2012/05/28/Johnny-Tapia-boxing-champ-dead-at-45/UPI-10841338228456/
NY TIMES: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/29/sports/johnny-tapia-champion-boxer-amid-chaos-dies-at-45.html