Esteban de Jesús

Esteban de Jesús (August 2, 1950 May 11, 1989) 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.

Esteban de Jesús
Statistics
Nickname(s)Vita
Weight(s)
Height5 ft 4+12 in (164 cm)
Reach67 in (170 cm)
NationalityPuerto Rican
Born(1950-08-02)August 2, 1950
Carolina, Puerto Rico
DiedMay 11, 1989(1989-05-11) (aged 38)
San Juan, Puerto Rico
StanceOrthodox
Boxing record
Total fights62
Wins57
Wins by KO32
Losses5

Professional career

De Jesús debuted as a professional in 1969, he won his first twenty fights, thirteen by knockout. He then stepped up in class, for the first time, when he boxed future world title challenger Josue Marquez in 1971, beating him in a twelve-round decision to claim the Puerto Rican national Lightweight championship.. His next fight was a fourth-round knockout victory over Victor Ortíz. After that, there was a rematch with Marquez, who was beaten again, also over twelve rounds, to retain the Puerto Rican Lightweight title.

Next came his first international fight, in Caracas, Venezuela, against the future four-time world title challenger Leonel Hernandez. De Jesús won the ten round fight by unanimous decision in what was the start of a four fight tour of Venezuela. That Venezuelan campaign ended with a ten-round decision loss against former world champion Antonio Gomez in Caracas.

1972 was a pivotal year in de Jesús' career. He won six fights in a row, including a twelve-round knockout win in a third fight with Marquez to again retain the Puerto Rican Lightweight title, and a ten-round decision over Doug McClendon. Despite all the wins, he was virtually unknown to most boxing fans. That changed quickly in his last fight of 1972 against the undefeated new world's Lightweight champion Roberto Durán at the Madison Square Garden arena. In a televised bout that marked the beginning of the "Durán - de Jesús trilogy", de Jesús dropped Durán in round one and went on to inflict Durán's first defeat in a ten-round decision.[1][2]

In 1973, he was rewarded for his efforts, receiving a chance to challenge Ray Lampkin for the North American Boxing Federation lightweight belt. He won the vacant title by beating Lampkin in a twelve-round decision. He went on to beat Johnny Gant and Raul Montoya in ten-round decisions and beat Lampkin by decision in a rematch in New York. He finished 1973 with a first-round knockout win over fringe contender Al Foster.

He began 1974 by knocking out former world Jr. Welterweight champion Alfonso "Peppermint" Frazer in ten rounds in San Juan, Puerto Rico, after which he traveled to Panama City to receive his first world title shot and, at the same time, face Durán in the second fight of their trilogy. He once again dropped Durán in round one, but this time Durán rebounded and dominated the bout, retaining the title in an eleventh-round knockout. He recovered from that defeat with two more wins before the end of the year.

In 1975, he went up in weight briefly, and after beating Jesse Lara by a knockout in three, he returned to Panama City to challenge Colombia's Antonio Cervantes for the world's Jr. Welterweight title, losing in a fifteen-round decision. He beat Rudy Barros by knockout in round five to end that year, and started 1976 by beating Valentin Ramos by knockout in round two.

Next came his third world title try when the WBC's world Lightweight champion Ishimatsu Suzuki of Japan traveled to Puerto Rico to defend his title against de Jesús. The third time proved to be the charm for de Jesús, who won the world title by beating Suzuki in a fifteen-round decision. He retained the title against Hector Medina with a knockout in round seven.

De Jesús admitted publicly to using drugs during his boxing career.[3][4] He began using cocaine and heroin early in his boxing career with an older brother, Enrique.[3]

In 1977, he retained the title against Buzzsaw Yamabe by knockout in round six and against Vicente Mijares Saldivar by knockout in round eleven.

1978 began with the third and final chapter of his trilogy with Durán. In a title unification bout in Las Vegas, which displayed Durán at the peak of his power, Durán systematically broke down de Jesús resulting in a twelfth-round knockout.

De Jesús rebounded with three wins before the end of that year, including one over former world title challenger Edwin Viruet.

In 1979, he had two more wins, including one over Jimmy Blevins. After beating José Vallejo by a knockout in round seven in San Juan to start 1980, he traveled to Bloomington, Minnesota, to challenge Saoul Mamby for Mamby's WBC world Jr. Welterweight title, in the major supporting event of the Larry Holmes-Scott Le Doux world heavyweight championship bout's undercard. In what turned out to be his last fight, he was beaten by a knockout in thirteen rounds.

His record was 57 wins and 5 losses, with 32 wins by knockout.

Professional boxing record

62 fights 57 wins 5 losses
By knockout 32 3
By decision 25 2
No. Result Record Opponent Type Round, time Date Location Notes
62 Loss 57–5 Saoul Mamby TKO 13 (15) 1980-07-07 Metropolitan Sports Center, Bloomington, Minnesota, U.S. For WBC super lightweight title
61 Win 57–4 José Vallejo KO 7 (10) 1980-05-10 San Juan, Puerto Rico
60 Win 56–4 Ruby Ortiz UD 10 (10) 1979-11-09 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S.
59 Win 55–4 Jimmy Blevins UD 10 (10) 1979-10-04 Felt Forum, New York City, New York, U.S.
58 Win 54–4 Edwin Viruet SD 10 (10) 1978-10-27 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S.
57 Win 53–4 Chuchu Hernandez TKO 2 (?) 1978-07-08 San Juan, Puerto Rico
56 Win 52–4 Pablo Baez TKO 3 (10) 1978-06-03 Roberto Clemente Coliseum, San Juan, Puerto Rico
55 Loss 51–4 Roberto Durán TKO 12 (15) 1978-01-21 Caesars Palace, Paradise, Nevada, U.S. Lost WBC/WBA/The Ring lightweight unification match
54 Win 51–3 James Brackett PTS 10 (10) 1977-09-10 Roberto Clemente Coliseum, San Juan, Puerto Rico
53 Win 50–3 Vicente Mijares KO 11 (15) 1977-06-25 Juan Ramón Loubriel Stadium, Bayamon, Puerto Rico Retained WBC lightweight title
52 Win 49–3 Buzzsaw Yamabe TKO 6 (15) 1977-02-12 Juan Ramón Loubriel Stadium, Bayamon, Puerto Rico Retained WBC lightweight title
51 Win 48–3 Hector Julio Medina KO 7 (15) 1976-09-10 Juan Ramón Loubriel Stadium, Bayamon, Puerto Rico Retained WBC lightweight title
50 Win 47–3 Guts Ishimatsu UD 15 (15) 1976-05-08 Juan Ramón Loubriel Stadium, Bayamon, Puerto Rico Won WBC lightweight title
49 Win 46–3 Valente Ramos TKO 2 (?) 1976-03-06 Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, Puerto Rico
48 Win 45–3 Rudy Barro TKO 5 (?) 1975-10-11 Roberto Clemente Coliseum, San Juan, Puerto Rico
47 Loss 44–3 Antonio Cervantes UD 15 (15) 1975-05-17 Gimnasio Nuevo Panama, Panama City, Panama For WBA super lightweight title
46 Win 44–2 Jesse Lara KO 3 (?) 1975-03-15 El Poliedro, Caracas, Venezuela
45 Win 43–2 Javier Ayala PTS 10 (10) 1974-09-02 Roberto Clemente Coliseum, San Juan, Puerto Rico
44 Win 42–2 Gerardo Ferrat TKO 5 (?) 1974-06-10 San Juan, Puerto Rico
43 Loss 41–2 Roberto Durán KO 11 (15) 1974-03-16 Gimnasio Nuevo Panama, Panama City, Panama For WBA lightweight title
42 Win 41–1 Alfonso Frazer KO 10 (10) 1974-01-07 Roberto Clemente Coliseum, San Juan, Puerto Rico
41 Win 40–1 Al Foster KO 1 (10) 1973-11-22 San Juan, Puerto Rico
40 Win 39–1 Miguel Mayan PTS 10 (10) 1973-10-29 San Juan, Puerto Rico
39 Win 38–1 Radames Checo KO 1 (12) 1973-09-08 Gimnasio Nuevo Panama, Panama City, Panama
38 Win 37–1 Ray Lampkin UD 12 (12) 1973-07-14 Felt Forum, New York City, New York, U.S. Retained NABF lightweight title
37 Win 36–1 Raul Montoya PTS 10 (10) 1973-05-21 Roberto Clemente Coliseum, San Juan, Puerto Rico
36 Win 35–1 Johnny Gant UD 10 (10) 1973-04-16 San Juan, Puerto Rico
35 Win 34–1 Ray Lampkin UD 12 (12) 1973-02-16 Roberto Clemente Coliseum, San Juan, Puerto Rico Won vacant NABF lightweight title
34 Win 33–1 Roberto Durán UD 10 (10) 1972-11-17 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S.
33 Win 32–1 Doc McClendon PTS 10 (10) 1972-10-30 San Juan, Puerto Rico
32 Win 31–1 Raimundo Dias PTS 10 (10) 1972-09-18 San Juan, Puerto Rico
31 Win 30–1 Chuck Wilburn UD 10 (10) 1972-07-28 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S.
30 Win 29–1 Angel Robinson Garcia PTS 10 (10) 1972-07-08 San Juan, Puerto Rico
29 Win 28–1 Josue Marquez TKO 12 (12) 1972-05-01 Felt Forum, New York City, New York, U.S. Retained Puerto Rican lightweight title
28 Win 27–1 George Foster TKO 8 (10) 1972-04-10 Felt Forum, New York City, New York, U.S.
27 Win 26–1 Percy Hayles UD 10 (10) 1972-02-18 Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, Puerto Rico
26 Win 25–1 Milton Mendez KO 5 (?) 1971-11-30 Caracas, Venezuela
25 Win 24–1 Johnny Harp UD 10 (10) 1971-11-19 Parque Isidoro García, Mayaguez, Puerto Rico
24 Win 23–1 Frank Leroy KO 5 (10) 1971-10-30 La Cancha Country Club, San Juan, Puerto Rico
23 Win 22–1 Josue Marquez UD 12 (12) 1971-09-04 Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, Puerto Rico Retained Puerto Rican lightweight title
22 Win 21–1 Victor Ortiz TKO 5 (10) 1971-08-07 Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, Puerto Rico
21 Win 20–1 Josue Marquez PTS 12 (12) 1971-07-24 San Juan, Puerto Rico Won Puerto Rican lightweight title
20 Win 19–1 Armando Mendoza TKO 6 (10) 1971-06-05 Nuevo Circo, Caracas, Venezuela
19 Win 18–1 Leonel Hernandez UD 10 (10) 1971-05-03 Palacio de Deportes, Caracas, Venezuela
18 Win 17–1 Gustavo Briceno UD 10 (10) 1971-04-24 La Cancha Country Club, San Juan, Puerto Rico
17 Loss 16–1 Antonio Gómez UD 10 (10) 1971-02-27 Nuevo Circo, Caracas, Venezuela
16 Win 16–0 Jose Llanos KO 7 (10) 1970-10-24 Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, Puerto Rico
15 Win 15–0 Johnny Sandoval UD 10 (10) 1970-08-22 La Cancha Country Club, San Juan, Puerto Rico
14 Win 14–0 Jose Jimenez TKO 5 (10) 1970-07-30 Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, Puerto Rico
13 Win 13–0 Coverly Kid Daniels KO 2 (?) 1970-05-20 Parque Isidoro García, Mayaguez, Puerto Rico
12 Win 12–0 Ike Estrada KO 2 (?) 1970-05-02 La Cancha Country Club, San Juan, Puerto Rico
11 Win 11–0 Jose Jimenez PTS 10 (10) 1970-04-30 Ponce, Puerto Rico
10 Win 10–0 Bobby Parnell TKO 1 (10) 1970-03-28 La Cancha Country Club, San Juan, Puerto Rico
9 Win 9–0 Braulio Rodriguez TKO 8 (10) 1970-02-28 La Cancha Country Club, San Juan, Puerto Rico
8 Win 8–0 Chino Guerrero TKO 3 (10) 1970-02-14 La Cancha Country Club, San Juan, Puerto Rico
7 Win 7–0 Ramon Dominguez TKO 2 (10) 1970-01-24 La Cancha Country Club, San Juan, Puerto Rico
6 Win 6–0 Ivelaw Eastman KO 5 (6) 1969-11-22 Country Club Stadium, Carolina, Puerto Rico
5 Win 5–0 Tommy Sheffield TKO 2 (6) 1969-10-18 San Juan, Puerto Rico
4 Win 4–0 Ramon Montes TKO 1 (6) 1969-09-27 La Cancha Country Club, San Juan, Puerto Rico
3 Win 3–0 Johnny Sandoval UD 6 (6) 1969-08-23 La Cancha Country Club, San Juan, Puerto Rico
2 Win 2–0 Francisco Maldonado KO 3 (6) 1969-08-02 La Cancha Country Club, San Juan, Puerto Rico
1 Win 1–0 Braulio Rodriguez TKO 4 (4) 1969-07-19 Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, Puerto Rico

Crime, commuted sentence and death

On November 27, 1980, in what became a famous case in Puerto Rico, after having injected himself with cocaine, de Jesús was involved in a traffic dispute with 17-year-old Roberto Cintron Gonzalez, which ended in de Jesús fatally shooting Gonzalez in the head.[3] De Jesús was sentenced to life in prison. There, he excelled in another sport, baseball, making the Puerto Rico penal system all star team three times. In 1984, he became a born-again Christian and started to turn his life around, becoming a preacher.

In 1985, he learned that his brother Enrique, with whom he had shared needles, had died of AIDS. De Jesús tested positive for the virus, and symptoms began to appear.[3] After it became public knowledge that de Jesús had acquired HIV and had become a sufferer of AIDS, governor Rafael Hernández Colón commuted his sentence.

After returning to spend his last days with his family, de Jesús was visited by many celebrities, including hall of fame baseball player Orlando Cepeda, Salsa music superstar Cheo Feliciano and his old nemesis Roberto Durán. Durán hugged and kissed de Jesús and told his daughter to do the same. This event was witnessed by José Torres who said he was amazed to see Durán's compassionate gesture as he lifted de Jesús out of his bed and hugged him at a time when so little was known and so much feared about AIDS.

Esteban de Jesús died one month after being released, at the age of 38.

See also

References

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