The Boxing History Blog

In January 1977, aged twenty-one, Luigi Minchillo made his professional debut, stopping fellow Italian Silvano Bischeri in the fifth round. Minchillo went 17-0 before suffering his first defeat, a fourth-round stoppage due to cuts against Alvaro Scarpelli. In April 1979, only five months after his first setback, he challenged Clemente Gessi for the vacant Italian light-middleweight title, winning it in the maiden round. He defended his national championship four times and in July 1981 he challenged the French-Algerian Louis Acaries for the European light-middleweight title. Minchillo became champion by unanimous decision and the following month had a second-round TKO victory over America's Danny Myers, before his big date with Roberto Duran in September 1981.  Duran returned to Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, in his second bout since losing his world welterweight crown against Leonard. In the opposite corner was 'Il Guerriero Del Ring' or 'The Ring Warrior' Luigi Min...

16th September 1981, Caesars Palace, Outdoor Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada, WBC & WBA Welterweight Unification Bout (Undisputed Title) Ray Leonard (WBC Champion) Vs Thomas Hearns (WBA Champion) Thomas Hearns, the freakishly tall welterweight, who wasn't much of a puncher in the amateur ranks, blasted out seventeen opponents on the bounce in a two year period. The first man to take him the distance was the former USA Pennsylvania State welterweight champion Alfonso Hayman. Hearns won every single round in the ten rounder, but failed to knock the tough Philadelphia fighter off his feet. Seven fights later Hearns was matched with middleweight Mike Colbert, where he had to negate the full ten rounds for only the second time in his career as he went 24-0. Two fights later he stopped Angel Espada in four rounds for the vacant USBA welterweight championship. The 'Hit Man' continued to knockout his opponents and was pitted against WBA welterweight champion Pipino Cuev...

25th November 1980, Superdrome, New Orleans, Louisiana WBC Welterweight Title Roberto Duran Vs Ray Leonard The new champion partied hard after his victory over Ray Leonard. Duran ate, drank and partied some more. In late September the new king of boxing received a call from his manager Carlos Eleta, telling him that the rematch would be in November. "Are you fucking crazy?" Duran shouted. "I weigh nearly two-hundred-pounds (90.72 KG). I can't drop all that weight in a month." The reason for a quick rematch was duly down to the amount of money Don King, who promoted the fight and Carlos Eleta would make. Duran however, knew he would lose as he was so drained making the 147 pounds (66.68 KG) limit that he was suffering from stomach cramps. Three days before the contest Eleta claimed that his fighter had used diuretic medication to get his weight off, but this was refuted by Duran and his personal physician Dr. Orlando Nunez. This ti...

20th June 1980, Olympic Stadium, Motreal, Quebec, Canada WBC Welterweight Title Ray Leonard Vs Roberto Duran The massive contrast in both men were evident; Leonard was the boxer who possessed lightning speed of hand and foot and in boxing circles was born with a silver spoon in his mouth, thanks to the big paydays he commanded from his pro debut until now. Duran, who came from great poverty, learning to fight on the streets of Panama was the raw slugger, who brawled his way to the WBA lightweight crown, fighting for peanuts compared to his opponent's considerable purses. Roberto Duran raced through his opponents and finally after making his debut in 1968 as a bantamweight moved up to the lightweight division in 1971, knocking out Jose Acosta in round one. In February 1972 he took Ken Buchanan's WBA lightweight crown after thirteen rounds of ferocious fighting. He lost his first bout to Esteban DeJesus nine months later. Unfortunately for DeJesus the WBA cro...