Who is Roberto Duran? The man nicknamed “Hands of Stone” for his TERRIFYING punches
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Roberto Duran, aka, Hands Of Stone (Image Courtesy - Boxing News)
The world of combat sports has seen a lot of athletes who shook the world with the power they carried in their fists. However, none were as terrifying or had as much longevity as Roberto Duran, the Panamanian boxer aptly named, Hands of Stone.
Roberto Duran Samaniego is a former boxing world champion who held titles in four weight classes. Duran’s style made opponents break out in cold sweats at the prospect of facing him. Extremely quick, versatile, powerful, and very intimidating, he was a stylistic nightmare for most who faced him.
He never let up on his opponents in the ring, bombarding them with powerful punches till they dropped. He used these skills to reach the pinnacle of boxing, at one point holding a record of 80-1.
However, life was not always this way for Duran. He grew up in the mean slums of El Chorrillo, in the district of La Casa de Piedra. This literally translates to “The House of Stone.” He and his family ventured into the streets of El Chorrillo, doing odd jobs to make ends meet. Roberto, however, began his boxing training very early on, taking on experienced boxers at only eight years old at the Neco de La Guardia gym.
Duran’s amateur career, however, did not begin the way he would have wanted. He lost his first 3 fights. However, “Mano de Piedra” would turn this around completely, going 29-0 in his next fights. He would then compete professionally with a 29-3 amateur record at only 16 years of age.
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Roberto Duran’s professional career wins, and losses, highs, and lows
Mano Le Piedra’s professional career start completely contrasted with his amateur career. He won his first 31 professional fights, one after the other, racking up an impressive record. He would score victories over future world champions and contenders. Duran would also beat former Super Featherweight champion, Hiroshi Kobayashi. This unstoppable run culminated in Duran’s first title shot against WBA lightweight champion, Ken Buchanan in 1972. He went into the fight as the 2-1 underdog, a shocking fact in hindsight.
He battered Buchanan, leaving his opponent in the dust on all 3 judges’ scorecards. However, late in the 13th round, Duran would be faced with the first bit of controversy in his career. Duran, who had apparently not noticed the bell, continued to smash Buchanan with punches after the round’s end.
As the referee pulled Duran off, one of his punches’ trajectory was altered, resulting in an accidental low blow. Buchanan would end up crumbling to a heap on the floor, in pain. Despite this, Duran was awarded the 13th-round TKO victory, earning him his first-world title.
Duran then competed in several non-title fights after this, improving his professional record. However, he would end up losing one of these non-title bouts when he squared up against Esteban De Jesus by decision. However, Duran quickly bounced back, defending his title against Jimmy Robertson, and future champion, Guts Ishimatsu.
He would also end up avenging his loss to De Jesus when he defeated the Puerto Rican in a title unification bout in 1978, knocking out his opponent to win the WBC lightweight championship. He would later give up the undisputed lightweight championship in February 1979.
He did this in preparation for his move up to welterweight as he looked to capture the welterweight title. Duran racked up wins against former champions Carlos Palomino and Zeferino Gonzales, among others to set up his challenge for the title. The stage was then set for the fight against undefeated WBC welterweight champ and former Olympic gold medalist, Sugar Ray Leonard.
The fight happened at the Olympic Stadium in Montreal where Leonard had captured Olympic gold. Leonard did not look like himself, flat-footed, and slow, being completely outclassed by his opponent. Roberto would end up beating Sugar Ray Leonard in a decision victory, with their fight immortalized after being given the moniker “The Brawl in Montreal.”
The ‘No Mas’ incident and Roberto Duran’s later career and retirement
Leonard immediately initiated the rematch clause. And this fight would end up being the most controversial one in Duran’s career. Duran, who had been partying a lot since his win over Leonard would feel the effects in the ring. Sugar Ray had made the necessary adjustments from the first and he outboxed Duran, taunting him by the end of the 7th round.
Duran who had enough, stopped boxing by the 8th round, and according to legendary commentator Howard Cosell, he shouted ‘No Mas’, meaning ‘No More’ in Spanish and the rematch would end in unceremonious fashion. However, Duran would adamantly maintain that he never said it, and retired from the sport.
Duran however returned but would go 2-2 in his next four fights, losing twice to Wilfred Benitez. But Mano Le Piedra would bounce back with 3 consecutive wins, and beat Davey Moore in an upset victory to win the WBA junior middleweight title. During this run, Duran would also give Marvin Hagler a run for his money, albeit, in a losing effort in a challenge for his WBA, WBC, IBF, and the Ring and lineal belts.
However, Duran would end up vacating his WBA title to go after the WBC junior middleweight championship. He challenged Thomas Hearns for the title who ended up handing the Panamanian his first-ever knockout defeat.
After retiring and returning to boxing for the 2nd time, aged 37, Duran would beat Iran Barkley to capture the WBC middleweight in a split decision victory in 1989. This fight would receive the accolade of The Fight of the Year by Ring magazine and set the stage for a grudge match against Sugar Ray Leonard. This match would be dubbed “Uno Mas.” However, Leonard would put this rivalry to bed as he beat Duran decisively, despite suffering a few bad cuts that led to him needing over 60 stitches.
Over the next few years, Duran would end up losing a fight to Pat Lawlor by TKO and then bouncing back with 7 successive wins earning him a fight against Vinny Pazienza for the IBF super middleweight championship. Their first fight was controversial with many believing Duran should have won. However, the second fight would end all debates as Pazienza scored a dominant decision victory.
In 1998, Duran would challenge William Joppy for the WBA middleweight championship at the age of 47. However, this would act as a sharp contrast to his fight against Barkley, a decade prior. Roberto Duran would receive the worst beating of his career, getting mauled by Joppy and losing within 3 rounds.
Duran then avenged his loss to Pat Lawlor on the day of his 49th birthday in 2000. He would also extend his record of being undefeated in his native land of Panama. And in 2001, Duran would fight in the final bout of his career in a unanimous decision defeat to Hector Camacho. These 2 fights would make him one of the only two boxers to have competed professionally in five decades. The only other is the legendary Jack Johnson.
In October 2001, Roberto Duran would be involved in a car crash that would require him to receive life-saving surgery. This event would draw the curtain on one of the most legendary careers in boxing. However, all the things he accomplished in boxing and his unyielding spirit which inspired many, will continue to live on forever.
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Neeraj Bharadwaj
(58 Articles Published)