Patricio Manuel spent years knocking on doors that no one wanted to open for him. 🥊
Before his transition, when his name was Patricia Manuel, he was a five-time amateur national champion, until a shoulder injury sidelined him. In 2013 he began hormone treatment, and a year later underwent gender reassignment surgery. What came next was even more difficult: boxer after boxer refused to step into the ring with him as soon as they learned he was trans.
On December 8, 2018, Manuel finally got his fight and defeated Mexican Hugo Aguilar by unanimous decision, becoming the first transgender man to win a professional bout in the United States.
But in April 2024, after ten months without fighting, Joshua Reyes defeated him by knockout at 21 seconds of the first round. His undefeated record was broken in the time it takes to draw a breath 🇺🇸
🗣️ “I’ve never been one to hide, despite the result. I lost last night, trained as hard as I could, had wonderful sparring partners, but sometimes things don’t go the way you want. The most important thing is that I’m okay, but I feel deeply disappointed and my ego is hurt”, he said after the tough defeat.