In November 1972, top contender Esteban de Jesús defeated reigning WBA lightweight champion Roberto Durán, becoming the first fighter to both defeat and earn a knockdown against Durán.[2] 15 months later, the two men would have a rematch in Durán's native Panama, this time with Durán's titles on the line. Though de Jesús again scored an opening round knockdown, Durán rebounded to knockout de Jesús in the 11th round.[3]
Durán would go on to successfully defend his titles seven times, while in 1976, de Jesús would claim the WBC version of the lightweight title after outpointing champion Guts Ishimatsu in his native Puerto Rico and then successfully defending his title three times. This would finally lead to a third fight between the fighters with the winner to be recognized as the undisputed lightweight champion. The fight, which was announced in December 1977 to take place on January 14, was moved back a week by promoter Don King so Durán would have more time to get in better condition.[4]
At the pre-fight weigh-in a melee broke out after de Jesús struck Durán with a right hand, though the two men were separated before anyone could be seriously hurt. Durán expressed his dislike of de Jesús in large part due to his victory over him stating "I don't like him for a lot of reasons, mostly because he is the only man ever to beat me. And he is the only man to ever knock me down. I don't like him for those reasons, but I have to respect him for them." de Jesús responded "If he don't like me because I knock him down, let him wait until after this fight, this time I'm going to destroy him. When I knock him down this time, if he gets up, I will kill him. I tell him that I will fight him in the street anytime for nothing. He ignored me. For this I am glad, because I need the money."[5] Duran was a 2-1 favorite.
The fight
Durán finally avoided being knocked down in the first round and used his jab and constant pressure to build up a lead on the judge's scorecards though de Jesús did manage to keep the fight fairly close. With de Jesús tiring, Durán countered a left hook with a short right hand that dropped de Jesús to the canvas. Though de Jesús struggled he was able to beat the referee's 10-count but was met with a barrage from Durán, before the referee could signal another knockdown, de Jesús co-trainer Manny Siaca entered the ring to prevent any more punishment, causing the referee to stop the fight and award Durán the victory by technical knockout.[6]
Aftermath
This was Duran's last fight as a lightweight, he would vacate the championship in February to pursue a title at welterweight.
