Roberto Durán Samaniego is a Panamanian former professional boxer who competed from 1968 to 2001. He held world championships in four weight classes: Lightweight, welterweight, light middleweight and middleweight. Duran also reigned as the undisputed and lineal lightweight champion and the lineal welterweight champion. He is also the second boxer to have competed over a span of five decades, the first being Jack Johnson. Durán was known as a versatile, technical brawler and pressure fighter, which earned him the nickname "Manos de Piedra" for his formidable punching power and excellent defense.
Wilfred "Wilfredo" Benítez is an American-born Puerto Rican former professional boxer and the youngest world champion in the sport's history. Earning his first of three career world titles in separate weight divisions at the age of seventeen, he is best remembered as a skilled and aggressive fighter with exceptional defensive abilities, along with his fights with Roberto Durán, Thomas Hearns, and Sugar Ray Leonard.
Edwin "Chapo" Rosario Rivera was a Puerto Rican professional boxer who competed from 1979 to 1997. He is a world champion in two weight classes, having held the WBC lightweight title from 1983 to 1984, the WBA lightweight title twice between 1986 and 1990, and the WBA super lightweight title from 1991 to 1992. Known for his exceptional boxing skills, dynamite right hand and rock solid chin Rosario's final record stands at 47-6
Michael Carbajal is an American five-time world boxing champion of Mexican descent. His nickname was "Little Hands of Stone" after his favorite boxer, "Hands of Stone" Roberto Durán.
Carlos De León, also known as "Sugar" De Leon, was a Puerto Rican boxer who made history by becoming the first cruiserweight to win the world title twice. Subsequently, he kept breaking his own record for the most times as cruiserweight champion by regaining the title on two further occasions.
Esteban de Jesús was a Puerto Rican world lightweight champion boxer. De Jesús, a native of the town of Carolina, Puerto Rico, was a gymmate of Wilfred Benítez and was trained by Benitez's father, Gregorio Benitez. He was the first boxer to defeat Roberto Durán as a pro, and the only fighter to defeat Duran during his lightweight reign. His career was mired in controversy, problems, and scandals.
Jorge Fernando "Locomotora" Castro is an Argentine boxer and former middleweight champion of the world, who is best known for his second defense of the title against John David Jackson in 1994.
Ken Buchanan was a Scottish professional boxer who competed between 1965 and 1982. He held multiple championships at lightweight; the World Boxing Association (WBA) and Ring magazine titles from 1970 to 1972; and the World Boxing Council (WBC) title in 1971, briefly reigning as undisputed champion until being stripped of the WBC title four months later. At regional level he held the British title twice in 1968 and 1973, and the European title from 1974 to 1975.
Alfredo "El Salsero" Escalera is a Puerto Rican former professional boxer and is the former World Boxing Council Super Featherweight world champion. A native of Carolina, his nickname was "Salsero" because he was a fan of Salsa music. Escalera is also a 2023 Florida Boxing Hall of Fame Inductee.
José Luis Ramírez is a Mexican former professional boxer who was a two-time World Lightweight Champion.
Pipino Isidro Cuevas González is a Mexican former professional boxer who competed from 1971 to 1989. He held the WBA welterweight title from 1976 to 1980.
Boxing in the 1980s was filled with important fights, events and personalities that shaped the sport. Boxing in the 1980s was shaped by many different situations, such as the continuous corporate battles between the different world sanctioning organizations, the void left by Muhammad Ali as the sport's ambassador and consequent search for a new boxing hero, the continuous presence of Don King as the sport's most famous promoter, the surge of rival promoters as Bob Arum, Butch Lewis and Murad Muhammad, and major rule changes. In 1986, Mike Tyson emerged as a fresh new face in the heavyweight division, which had seen a decline in champion quality level after Ali's retirement and, later on, after longtime WBC ruler Larry Holmes' prime. In addition, the IBF and WBO began operating.
During the 1970s, boxing was characterized by dominating champions and history-making rivalries. The decade had many superstars, who also had fierce rivals. Alexis Argüello, for example, who won the world Featherweight and Jr. Lightweight titles in the '70s, had to overcome Alfredo Escalera twice before the decade was over.
Eder Jofre was a Brazilian professional boxer and architect who was both bantamweight and featherweight world champion. He is considered by many to be the greatest bantamweight boxer of all time.
Adolfo Viruet is a retired Puerto Rican and NABF junior welterweight champion boxer. His brother, Edwin Viruet, was also a professional boxer.
Andres "Puppy" Hernandez is a Puerto Rican former professional boxer who once fought Carlos Zarate for the World Boxing Council's world bantamweight title. Earlier in his career, he was known for being able to take many punches. His boxing nickname is "Puppy".
Angel Robinson Garcia was a Cuban professional boxer, who was the Latin American Super-Featherweight champion. He also fought for the Cuban national Lightweight title, but lost.
Josue Marquez Acevedo was a Puerto Rican who was once a world title challenging boxer. Not known for his punching power,, Marquez nevertheless gave many of the top boxers of his era trouble and managed to defeat a number of them.
Joey Olivo is an American former professional boxer of Mexican descent who competed from 1976 to 1989. He held the WBA world light flyweight title in 1985 and challenged for the WBC world light flyweight title in 1981. At regional level he held the WBC-NABF light flyweight title in 1983; the IBF-USBA flyweight title in 1984; and the WBC-NABF flyweight title in 1988.
Vilomar Fernandez is a Dominican Republic former professional boxer who twice challenged for the world Lightweight championship. Known as a very capable, defensive-minded fighter, Fernandez is mostly known for his victory over International Boxing Hall of Fame member Alexis Arguello, in a contest that took place on July 26, 1978, and which was scored as a ten-rounds decision win for Fernandez.
