Roberto Durán

Roberto Durán
Durán in 1994, before his fight with Vinny Paz
Statistics
Real name	Roberto Durán Samaniego
Nickname(s)	Manos de Piedra ("Hands of Stone") El Cholo Rocky
Rated at	Lightweight Light welterweight Welterweight Light middleweight Middleweight Super middleweight
Height	5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)
Reach	66 in (168 cm)
Nationality	Panamanian
Born	June 16, 1951 El Chorrillo, Panama
Stance	Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights	119
Wins	103
Wins by KO	70
Losses	16

Roberto Durán Samaniego (born June 16, 1951) is a Panamanian former professional boxer, widely regarded as one of the greatest boxers of all time. A versatile brawler in the ring, he was nicknamed "Manos de Piedra" ("Hands of Stone") during his career.^[1]

In 2002, Durán was voted by The Ring magazine as the fifth greatest fighter of the last 80 years,^[2] while boxing historian Bert Sugar rated him as the eighth greatest fighter of all time. The Associated Press voted him as the #1 lightweight of the 20th century,^[3] with many considering him the greatest lightweight of all time. Durán held world titles in four different weight classes: lightweight (1972–79), welterweight (1980), light middleweight (1983–84) and middleweight (1989). He was the second boxer to have fought a span of five decades, the first being Jack Johnson. However, Durán is most infamous for abruptly forfeiting his welterweight title in the middle of his 1980 rematch with challenger Sugar Ray Leonard.

He finally retired in January 2002 at age 50 (having previously retired in 1998) following a bad car crash in October 2001, with a professional record of 120 fights, 104 wins with 69 knockouts. Up until his fight with Wilfred Benítez in a light middleweight title clash in 1982, he was trained by legendary boxing trainer Ray Arcel.

Early life

Roberto Durán was born on June 16, 1951 in Guarare, Panama. His mother, Clara Samaniego, was a native of Guararé, Panama, and his father, Margarito Durán Sánchez, was from Arizona, United States of Mexican descent.^[4] He was raised in the slums of El Chorrillo in the district "La Casa de Piedra" (The House of Stone) Panama. He began sparring with experienced boxers at the Neco de La Guardia gymnasium when he was only eight years old.^[5] He made his professional debut in 1968 at the age of 16.^[6]

Professional career

Lightweight

After an initial adjustment he won thirty in a row, and scored knockout victories over future Featherweight Champion Ernesto Marcel and former Super Featherweight Champion Hiroshi Kobayashi, culminating in his first title bout in June 1972, where he controversially defeated Ken Buchanan in Madison Square Garden, New York for the WBA Lightweight Championship. Durán, as a 2-to-1 underdog, scored a knock down against the defending champion just fifteen seconds into the opening round and battered him throughout the bout.^[7] He was well ahead on all three cards as the bell rang to end the 13th round, at which time Durán (apparently not hearing the bell due to crowd noise and the heat of the moment) continued to throw a couple of extra punches as Buchanan lay on the ropes. Upon closer inspection of the famed low blow, referee Johnny LoBianco can be seen standing behind Durán as the bell rang and immediately grabbed Durán in a bear hug-like style to pull Durán away from Buchanan. LoBianco can clearly be seen in the video altering the direction of Duran's right arm, pulling it downward as Durán attempted to throw a clean body punch at Buchanan; thus the infamous ridicule of Durán intentionally throwing a low blow was born. Buchanan immediately dropped to the canvas writhing in pain from a groin punch, that Buchanan's trainer, Gil Clancy, said was caused by a knee to the groin (which it wasn't). Referee Johnny LoBianco awarded the fight to Durán, insisting that the blow that took down Buchanan was "in the abdomen, not any lower" (the punch did land below belt line, LoBianco was out of position to see it) and that he felt that Buchanan would be unable to continue fighting.^[8] Columnist Red Smith of The New York Times wrote that LoBianco had to award the victory to Durán, even if the punch was a low blow, as "anything short of pulling a knife is regarded indulgently" in American boxing.^[9] Buchanan said he left the fight, "with sore balls".^[10]

Durán followed up on his title winning performance with several non-title matches. Later that year, in another non-title bout, he lost a ten round decision to Esteban De Jesús. Durán got back on track with successful title defenses against Jimmy Robertson, Hector Thompson and future Lightweight Champion Guts Ishimatsu. In 1974, Durán avenged his loss to De Jesus with a brutal eleventh round knock out. In 1976, he defeated future Light Welterweight Champion Saoul Mamby. Overall, Durán made twelve successful defenses of his title (eleven coming by knock out) and amassed a record of 62-1, his last defense coming in 1978 where Durán fought a third bout with De Jesus, a unification match where Durán once again knocked out De Jesus and captured his WBC Lightweight Championship. Durán gave up the Undisputed Lightweight Championship in February 1979.

Welterweight

Vacating the Lightweight title was a buildup for an attempt at the Welterweight title. Durán earned a pair of wins against former WBC Welterweight Champion Carlos Palomino and Zeferino Gonzales, setting the stage for a title bout against then undefeated WBC Welterweight Champion Sugar Ray Leonard. The venue chosen was the Olympic Stadium in Montreal, the same location where Leonard won an Olympic gold medal during the 1976 Summer Olympics. Durán resented the fact that he was getting only one-fifth the money Leonard would make despite the fact that he was entering the bout with an incredible 71-1 record. On June 20, 1980, Durán captured the WBC Welterweight title by defeating Leonard via a 15-round unanimous- decision. The fight became known as "The Brawl in Montreal."

"No Más"

After defeating Leonard in Montreal, Duran gained iconic status in his homeland and went on a continuous wild binge and gorged himself on food and partying which caused him to quickly gain weight. Leonard on the other hand vacationed in Hawaii, and after his return initiated the rematch clause and asked for the fight to be the following November. Duran was never good at keeping his weight down, and Leonard knew this. The circumstances of this fight are often contested. Some say that when Duran was forced into the November fight he weighed as much as 180 pounds, and that he should have received more time for his preparation for the rematch. Others state that Duran knew there would be a rematch, and that he thought five months would be enough time to get in great shape. What transpired at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans on November 25 would forever be considered as one of the most controversial events to happen inside a boxing ring. Leonard in the second round decided to change tactics and began using his natural advantages of footwork, movement, and speed. This presented a much more elusive target for Duran. In the 7th round, after Leonard had gained a slight lead on the scorecards, Leonard began showboating while taunting and mocking Duran. The proud Panamanian champion was visibly frustrated and was unable to get Leonard against the ropes, a tactic he used to much success in the first fight. Half way into the 8th round Duran suddenly stopped fighting. There are a few theories on why Duran gave up. Some say he had stomach cramps, others believe he was frustrated and quit out of humiliation, and some think he simply knew he was going to lose and decided to take the easy way out.

Middleweight

He took some time to recover from that fight and gained even more weight to contend for the WBC Light Middleweight title, but losing in his first attempt at a championship in that division on January 30, 1982, against Wilfred Benítez by a 15 round unanimous decision. Durán was also to lose his comeback fight in September 1982 in Detroit. Kirkland Laing, from London, shocked the boxing world, producing the type of display his talents promised yet he so rarely produced, taking the split decision. After being relegated to a 10 round walk out win over Englishman Jimmy Batten at The Battle of The Champions in Miami, Durán signed with promoter Bob Arum. This marked the beginning of a comeback in which he beat former world champion and now hall of famer Pipino Cuevas via a fourth round knock-out, which earned him a second crack at the light middleweight title, this time against WBA Champion Davey Moore.

The WBA title bout took place at Madison Square Garden on June 16, 1983, which also happened to be Durán's 32nd birthday. The still inexperienced Moore (12-0) was game through the first three rounds, but by the 4th, Durán said he knew Moore couldn't hurt him, and an onslaught began.^[11] The pro-Durán crowd at ringside cheered as Durán relentlessly punished Moore. By the end of the sixth round, Moore's eye had swollen shut and he was floored near the end of the seventh. Finally the fight was stopped in the eighth round as Moore was taking such a horrific beating and Durán won his third world title. After the victory, Durán was hoisted up in the air as the crowd sang "Happy Birthday" to a sobbing Durán.^[12]

Durán later fought for the World Middleweight Championship, meeting Marvelous Marvin Hagler in Las Vegas in November 1983, but lost in a very competitive fight that went the full fifteen rounds, although after 12 rounds two of the judges had Durán ahead on points. Hagler fought tenaciously over the final three rounds to earn a unanimous decision. Despite the loss, Durán became the second man to take Hagler to a fifteen round decision (Vito Antuofermo was the other) and the only one to do so while Hagler was the world champion.

In June 1984, Durán was stripped of his Light Middleweight title when the WBA did not approve of his fight with WBC Champion Thomas "Hitman" Hearns and took away recognition of Durán as world champion the moment Durán stepped into the ring to box Hearns. Durán again made history in the fight, but this time it was the wrong kind. Hearns dropped Durán twice in the first round and as he rose to his feet after the second knockdown, which ended the round, the former champion did not know where his corner was. Hearns went on to knock Duran down a third time in the second round and the fight was stopped, marking the first time in his career that Durán had been knocked out in a fight (the "No Más" fight was officially recorded as a technical knockout, because Duran quit).

Durán did not contend another title fight until 1989, but made the shot count when he won the WBC Middleweight title from Iran Barkley in February. The fight is considered one of Durán's greatest achievements, as the 37-year-old former lightweight champion took the middleweight crown, his fourth title. In a tough, back and forth fight, Durán knocked Barkley down in the eleventh round and won a close decision. The bout was named the 1989 "Fight of the Year" by The Ring.

Super Middleweight

His reign was short lived once again as Duran moved up to super middleweight (although both fighters weighed in at the middleweight limit) for a third clash with Sugar Ray Leonard in December 1990 (a fight dubbed Uno Más—One More—by promoters), which Leonard won by wide unanimous decision. Durán seemed to be in decline after the fight, he attempted to win further middleweight titles in 1994, 1995 and 1996 (fighting for the minor International Boxing Council (IBC) belt).

Durán fought Vinny Pazienza in 1994 and 1995 for the IBC Super Middleweight Championship and was defeated both times by unanimous decision, but many people felt Duran clearly won the first bout and he was robbed of the victory.

In 1996, he was challenged by Héctor Camacho for the vacant IBC Middleweight Championship but lost by a very controversial unanimous decision. In 1997, Durán was defeated by former champion Jorge Castro. Durán fought Castro in a rematch bout and won via unanimous decision.

In 1998, at the age of 47, he challenged 28-year-old WBA Middleweight Champion William Joppy. Joppy, a trim, quick-fisted fighter, battered Durán to defeat in just 3 rounds. It was Duran's most emphatic loss since the Hearns fight, over a decade earlier. Durán then announced his retirement in August 1998, but was back fighting in 1999.

In June 2000, Durán avenged a previous loss to Pat Lawlor and won the NBA Super Middleweight Championship on his 49th birthday. He lost the title a year later to Héctor Camacho in a rematch bout and in what would be Durán's final fight.

Retirement

Duran signs autographs at a Houston sports collectors show in January 2014.

In 2001, Durán traveled to Argentina to promote a salsa music CD that he had just released. While there, he was involved in a car crash and required life-saving surgery. After that incident, he announced his retirement from boxing at the age of 50.^[13]

Announcing his retirement, Durán cited the weight issues of his friend, Argentinian football legend Diego Maradona, as motivation for getting back in shape, stating: "As of now, I am exercising so that when the [retirement] honors arrive the people will see me in shape. I don't want to [look] like Maradona did, all fat."^[13]

Durán's five world title belts, which he won in four different divisions, were stolen from his house in Panama in 1993 during a robbery allegedly staged by his brother-in-law, who gave them to memorabilia seller Luis González Báez, who will stand trial for trying to sell stolen goods. González Báez allegedly sold the belts to undercover FBI agents. He alleges that Durán authorized the sale of the five belts to him during a time that Durán was facing financial trouble. On September 23, 2003, a federal judge in Florida ordered the five belts returned to Durán.

His 70 wins by knockout place him in an exclusive group of boxers who have won 50 or more fights by knockout. He is ranked number 28 on The Ring's list of 100 greatest punchers of all time.

On October 14, 2006, Durán was inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame in Riverside, California,^[14] and on June 10, 2007, into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota, New York.

Today he is the brand ambassador of Panama Blue, Panamas premium bottled water.^[15]

Duran is a licensed ultralight aircraft pilot in Panama. He flew a Quick Silver MX model.^[16]

Appearances in film/music

Film

Durán (right) appeared in a book by Prvoslav Vujčić (left)

Durán's first appearance in a movie was in the 1979 film Rocky II as a lightning-fast sparring partner for Rocky Balboa. Outside of this, Durán had minor roles in Harlem Nights.

Durán's life and boxing career are told in the documentary Los puños de una nación ("The Fists of a Nation") by Panamanian filmmaker Pituka Ortega-Heilbron. Durán also appears very briefly during an interview for the documentary The Panama Deception (1992), in which he recounts his experience during the United States invasion of Panama.

The biopic Hands of Stone will star Édgar Ramírez as Duran, Robert De Niro as Ray Arcel and Usher as Sugar Ray Leonard, and is due for release in mid 2016.^[17][18]

Television

Durán played the drug lord Jesus Maroto in Miami Vice season two, episode 19.

In the fourth episode of the second season of the hit American crime drama CSI: NY, Durán is mentioned by the medical examiner while discussing a dead man found to have metal screws put in his hands to boost his punching power.

Music

The song "The Eyes of Roberto Durán" by Tom Russell is featured on the album The Long Way Around, and contains the lyric, "Panama City it's three in the morning, they're talking 'bout the Hands of Stone."

Durán is mentioned in the third verse of Nas' original demo for It Ain't Hard to Tell in the line: "Metaphors of murder man, hittin' like Roberto Durán, hold the mic in my hand, my lifespan."^[19]

The musician Jackie Leven recorded a song ("Museum of Childhood") that explores the events of the second world title fight between Durán and Sugar Ray Leonard.

Jazz musician Miles Davis, an avid boxing fan, recorded a tribute to Roberto Duran titled, "Duran".

Durán is also mentioned in the third verse of Paul Thorn's "Hammer and Nail," based on Thorn's nationally televised fight with Durán:

“

I climbed in the ring with Roberto Durán and the punches began to rain down He hit me with a dozen hard uppercuts and my corner threw in the towel I asked him why he had to knock me out and he summed it up real well He said, 'I'd rather be a hammer than a nail'

”

Texas rockabilly band Reverend Horton Heat mentions Durán in their song "Eat Steak," off of their album Smoke 'Em If You Got 'Em.

Professional boxing record

Titles in boxing

Major World Titles:

• WBA Lightweight Champion (135 lbs)
• WBC Lightweight Champion (135 lbs)
• WBC Welterweight Champion (147 lbs)
• WBA Light Middleweight Champion (154 lbs)
• WBC Middleweight Champion (160 lbs)

Minor World Titles:

• NBA Super Middleweight Champion (168 lbs)

The Ring/Lineal Championship Titles:

• The Ring Lightweight Champion (135 lbs)
• The Ring Welterweight Champion (147 lbs)

See also

• List of lightweight boxing champions
• List of WBC world champions
• List of undisputed boxing champions
• Notable boxing families
• List of boxing triple champions
• List of boxing quadruple champions
• List of boxing quintuple champions

References

1. Giudice, Christian (2006). Hands of Stone: The Life and Legend of Roberto Durán. Milo Books. ISBN 1-903854-55-5.
2. Andrew Eisele. "Ring Magazine's 80 Best Fighters of the Last 80 Years". About.com Sports.
3. "ESPN.com: BOXING - AP Fighters of the Century list". go.com.
4. Giudice, Christian. (2009) "Hands of Stone: The Life and Legend of Roberto Duran", pp. 14-15. Milo Books Ltd, Lancashire, United Kingdom. ISBN 978-1-903854-75-4
5. Giudice, Christian. (2009) "Hands of Stone: The Life and Legend of Roberto Duran", p. 27. Milo Books Ltd, Lancashire, United Kingdom. ISBN 978-1-903854-75-4
6. "Boxing News". The Sweet Science. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
7. "The Windsor Star - Google News Archive Search". Google.com. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
8. Goldstein, Richard. "Johnny LoBianco, 85, Referee In Controversial Duran Bout", The New York Times, July 21, 2001. Accessed October 1, 2009.
9. Smith, Red. "And New Champion", The New York Times, June 28, 1972. Accessed October 1, 2009.
10. "Ken Buchanan loss relived in De Niro film". scotsman.com.
11. He That Was Lost Has Been Found, Sports Illustrated, June 27, 1983
12. Archived April 14, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.
13. "Roberto Duran quits boxing at 50 after car crash". usatoday.com. Retrieved January 26, 2002.
14. "Duran inducted into World Boxing Hall of Fame". espn.com. Retrieved October 15, 2006.
15. "Reseña Empresarial - La Prensa". La Prensa. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
16. Archived December 28, 2012, at the Wayback Machine.
17. "Hands of Stone (2016)". IMDb. November 22, 2015.
18. Brian Gallagher (November 23, 2010). "Gael Garcia Bernal Has ‘Hands of Stone’". MovieWeb. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
19. "The Original Hip-Hop (Rap) Lyrics Archive". Ohhla.com. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
20. "BoxRec - Roberto Duran". Boxrec.com. Retrieved November 22, 2015.

External links

• Professional boxing record for Roberto Durán from BoxRec
• The Official Web Site of Roberto Durán, hosted by CMG Worldwide as Durán's representative
• Roberto Durán - IBHOF Biography
• Remembering Roberto Duran - Fightfanatics.com
• Ken Buchanan - Lightweight Champion of the World - Ken Buchanan site with detailed bio, statistics, full fight with Roberto Duran and more