He was trained by Boxing Hall of Famer Ignacio Beristáin. WBC Bantamweight Championship
His first shot at a WBC Bantamweight Championship was against Greg Richardson, but he lost a disputed decision. He would lose his title to Jung-Il Byun in another very disputed decision in South of Korea.
He also had close decision losses to an undefeated Wayne McCullough and Sirimongkol Singwancha.
He is a former WBC FECARBOX and the WBC Bantamweight Champion. In August 1983, Rabanales won his pro debut by knocking out veteran Mario Asteaga in Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico. In Inglewood, California he upset Yong-Hoon Lee to win the Interim WBC Bantamweight Championship. On September 17, 1992 he won the WBC Bantamweight Championship by beating an undefeated Joichiro Tatsuyoshi in Japan.
