Julio Cesar Chavez vs Juan LaPorte

Friday, December 12, 1986, saw Madison Square Garden host the Don King Productions featured match between Julio Cesar Chavez, the defending champion, and Juan La Porte, the challenger, for the WBC World Super-featherweight Title. Referee Richard Steele was on duty for this high-stakes bout broadcasted on NBC Sports. Chavez, hailing from Culiacan, Sinaloa, Mexico, entered the ring with an impressive 53-0-0 record, while Brooklyn-based La Porte, originally from Guayama, Puerto Rico, held a 27-6-0 scorecard. Chavez weighed in at 129¾ lbs, and La Porte at 129¼ lbs.

La Porte had lost to Salvador Sanchez in 1980 for the WBC featherweight title. The following year, LaPorte won the USBA featherweight title with a second-round knockout of Rocky Lockridge but lost a close unanimous decision to Eusebio Pedroza in 1982 for the WBA featherweight title. In September 1982 he faced Mario Miranda for the vacant WBC 126lb belt, winning by 11th round corner retirement.

Chavez vs La Porte kicked off with both fighters demonstrating their determination. Round three was particularly noteworthy, marked by intense close-range exchanges. La Porte managed to momentarily stun Chavez towards the end of the eighth round, a surprising twist in a round otherwise dominated by Chavez. The final round saw Chavez reassert his control, pushing the visibly tiring La Porte back while landing numerous hard punches.

While Chavez's victory was indisputable, La Porte, despite losing, was the first to prove that Chavez was not invincible. The judges' scores reflected this close competition, with Bob Logist scoring 114-113, Sid Nathan 117-112, and Larry O'Connell 115-114, all in favor of Chavez.