46 years ago

Date: 21st January 1978

Venue: Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada

Title: WBC & WBA World Lightweight Titles

Promoter: Don King

Tv: CBS

Roberto Duran
( 62 - 1 - 0 )
Weight: 134¼ lbs

Esteban De Jesus
( 51 - 3 - 0 )
Weight: 134 lbs

On Saturday 21st January 1978, the boxing world witnessed the third meeting between two great fighters, Roberto Duran and Esteban De Jesus, in a fight that was sure to be explosive. In their first meeting, De Jesus won by unanimous decision, while in their second meeting, Duran defended his WBA World Lightweight title and won by 11th round knockout. This time, the WBA and WBC Lightweight Titles were on the line, with Duran defending his WBA title for the 12th time and DeJesus defending his WBC title for the fourth time.

Duran, a 2-1 favorite, entered the ring with a record of 62-1-0, while De Jesus entered with a record of 51-3-0. The fight took place at the Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada, with Buddy Basilico as the referee. The fight was a bruising battle from start to finish, with neither fighter giving an inch.

Duran showed a swelling under his right eye in the fifth round, and at the end of that round, DeJesus was spitting blood. Other than that, there were no visible marks, and neither fighter went down until Duran scored with a short right hand in the 12th round. The punch put DeJesus down, and while he got up, he was met with a barrage of blows from Duran. Co-trainer Manny Siaca entered the ring and called for the referee to stop the fight, declaring Duran the winner by 12th-round TKO.

Duran earned $250,000 for his victory, while DeJesus received $150,000. All three judges had Duran ahead at the time of the knockout. Art Lurie had him ahead 107-102, Isidor Rodriques had him in front 109-104, and Richard Steele had him leading 107-104. With this victory, Duran became the Undisputed World Lightweight Champion, a title he held until he moved up in weight class.