Jose Napoles vs Emile Griffith

In a masterful display at Inglewood's Forum on October 17, 1969, Welterweight Champion Jose 'Mantequilla' Napoles convincingly outclassed five-time world champion Emile Griffith over 15 rounds. The champion's speed and precision earned him a clear unanimous decision before 15,461 spectators, generating a gate of $194,315.

Napoles established dominance early, earning $80,000 to Griffith's $40,000. His technical superiority culminated in a third-round knockdown when he caught the advancing Griffith with a bolo-style right hand, sending him down for a five-count. While Griffith acknowledged the legitimacy of the knockdown, he maintained it hadn't hurt him.

The scorecards reflected Napoles' control: Young (11-4), Thomas (11-3), and Jordan (9-4), with press agencies scoring even wider margins - AP (10-5) and UPI (11-2). Despite suffering a badly swollen right cheekbone from the sixth round onward, Griffith, who hadn't fought at welterweight since winning the middleweight crown in 1966, mounted a late rally but couldn't overcome Napoles' superior hand speed and punching power.

Post-fight, Napoles acknowledged Griffith as his strongest opponent to date while emphasizing his game plan was focused on technical superiority rather than seeking a knockout. Despite claiming peak conditioning, Griffith admitted difficulty finding his rhythm but graciously praised Napoles' championship calibre.

The victory was significant as Napoles, a Cuban exile based in Mexico, succeeded where his predecessors Benny Paret and Luis Rodriguez had failed against Griffith. Griffith, pursuing a record-tying sixth world title to match Sugar Ray Robinson's achievement, experienced a defeat that marked a crucial setback in his career trajectory.