Barry Hugman's World Championship Boxing

Although the weight division had been up and running since 1976, my first 'world' champion would come from a match made between the top-ranked Wifredo Gomez, the WBC champion, and Nicky Perez, the division’s number three man. Gomez, a gold medallist from the 1974 World Championships before turning pro at the end of that year, had put together 26 inside-the-distance wins from 27 contests after starting with a draw. Nicknamed ‘Bazooka’, the heavy-handed Gomez had defended the title he had won from Dong Kyum Yum on 21 May 1977 against Raul Tirado, Royal Kobayashi, Juan Antonio Lopez, Sakad Petchyindee, Leonardo Cruz, Carlos Zarate, Nestor Jimenez, Julio Hernandez and Carlos Mendozo. Although Perez had an excellent record of 41 (24 inside the distance) wins and one draw in 42 contests and had beaten some good men it was a tough ask.  

 

26 October 1979. Wilfredo Gomez w rsc 5 (15) Nicky Perez

Venue: Madison Square Garden, Manhattan, NYC, New York, USA. Recognition: WBC. Referee: Arthur Mercante.

Fight Summary: Despite allowing Perez (120) to dictate the opening two rounds, Gomez (122) went to work in the third and dropped the challenger with a heavy left hook in the next session. Into the fifth Perez was dropped three more times, the last time on the bell, and after the referee decided that he had seen enough he put the latter out of his misery.

 

3 February 1980. Wilfredo Gomez w rtd 6 (15) Ruben Valdez

Venue: Caesar’s Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA. Recognition: WBC. Referee: Ferd Hernandez.

Fight Summary: Breaking the record for successive inside-the-distance defences, Gomez (122) once again proved that he was in a different class to his challengers, swarming all over Valdez (121) from the opening bell. Although the crouching Valdez was not floored it was patently obvious that he was completely mastered as Gomez hit him with just about everything, straight rights, uppercuts and left hooks et al, and at one stage landed 30 punches without reply. Having been again badly staggered towards the end of the sixth round, the brave Valdez was wisely retired by his corner during the interval.

 

22 August 1980. Wilfredo Gomez w rsc 5 (15) Derrik Holmes

Venue: Caesar’s Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA. Recognition: WBC. Referee: Joey Curtis.

Fight Summary: Down five times prior to the fifth round - once in the third and four times in the fourth - and suffering a broken jaw in the second round, Holmes (120¼) gamely fought on against a champion on top of his game. Somehow making it through to the fifth Holmes was dropped twice more by Gomez (121), who used his famed uppercut and overarm rights to wreak havoc against a now defenceless foe. Proceedings were ended when Holmes' cornermen jumped into the ring, leaving the referee to call a halt on the 2.29 mark.

 

13 December 1980. Wilfredo Gomez w co 3 (15) Jose Cervantes

Venue: Jai-Alai Fronton, Miami, Florida, USA. Recognition: WBC. Referee: Ismael Quinones-Falu.

Fight Summary: Following two fairly even rounds, Gomez (122) got down to business in the third session, firing right hands in the direction of Cervantes (120½) before finally catching him with a tremendous right cross. Smashed face down on the canvas there was no way the challenger was going to make it and he was counted out with 1.30 on the clock.

 

27 March 1982. Wilfredo Gomez w rsc 6 (15) Juan Meza

Venue: Playboy Hotel, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA. Recognition: WBC. Referee: Harold Valan.

Fight Summary: Coming back from an unsuccessful crack at the WBC featherweight title and two catchweight victories, Gomez (121¼) again showed his class and power, especially to the body, when he subjected Meza (120) to a one-sided beating despite a lack of knockdowns. Unable to keep Gomez at bay due to his lack of punch-power and volume the challenger was always under pressure, and at 2.28 of the sixth he was rescued by the referee after he had been driven into a corner and was being pounded non-stop to head and body without reply.

 

11 June 1982. Wilfredo Gomez w co 10 (15) Juan Antonio Lopez

Venue: Caesar’s Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA. Recognition: WBC. Referee: Davy Pearl.

Fight Summary: Controlling every round bar the fifth, when the challenger scored well with the left hand, Gomez (121) put Lopez (121) down twice in the first but was unable to repeat the feat until the tenth. By that time Lopez was extremely tired and was ready to go, and after a sustained battering a cracking left to the ribs sent him down to be counted out on the 1.02 mark.

 

18 August 1982. Wilfredo Gomez w rtd 7 (15) Roberto Rubaldino

Venue: Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, Puerto Rico. Recognition: WBC. Referee: Isidro Rodriguez.

Fight Summary: No match for the fast moving, hard-punching champion, Rubaldino (122), cut over the left eye and nearing exhaustion, was retired on his stool at the end of the seventh round having complained of low punches. Although Gomez (122) had failed to drop the Mexican he had certainly given him a going-over, his lateral movement, fast jab and powerful body attacks ultimately proving too much for a game foe.

 

3 December 1982. Wilfredo Gomez w rsc 14 (15) Lupe Pintor

Venue: The Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. Recognition: WBC. Referee: Arthur Mercante.

Fight Summary: In his 17th defence, Gomez (121½) took on the battle-hardened Pintor (121½), and although he looked at times ready to give way he once again proved that the only thing that would defeat him would be the weight-making process. Both men gave it everything and round three was one of the greatest rounds of all time as the action went first one way and then the other. It was certainly Gomez’s toughest defence. From the tenth through to the end of the 13th it appeared that he would lose, but coming back strongly in the 14th he put Pintor down for ‘four’ and then pinned his rival on the ropes before belting him to the canvas again. This time, however, the referee rescued the tough Mexican on the 2.44 mark.

 

A few months later, on 6 May 1983, Gomez relinquished the WBC title due to continued weight-making difficulties. It was only when the top-ranked Jaime Garza defended his WBC title on 26 May 1984 against Felipe Orozco, who was rated fourth in the division, that a contest would carry my version of the 'world' title again. The heavy-handed Garza had won all 39 contests he had participated in, only two men going the distance, and had beaten Antonio De La Paz, Carmelo Negron and Bobby Berna, the last named in a bout for the vacant WBC title. Having turned pro in 1980, Orozco had scored 11 inside-the-distance wins from 18 winning contests but had been relatively untested.

 

26 May 1984. Jaime Garza w co 3 (12) Felipe Orozco

Venue: Carlisle Stadium, Miami, Florida, USA. Recognition: WBC. Referee: Tony Perez.

Fight Summary: Despite giving away a four-inch-reach advantage, Garza (121) went straight after the southpaw challenger, looking to hit the body and get off single head shots. The tactics paid off in the third round as Orozco (122), making the mistake of staying on the ropes too long, was caught by a terrific right uppercut which dropped him to be counted out by the third man after just 68 seconds of the session had elapsed.

 

Garza’s first defence would be against Juan Meza, a man who’d already had an unsuccessful crack at the title. A pro since September 1977, the hard-punching Meza had participated in 46 contests, winning 41 (33 inside the distance) and losing five, but was a big outsider.

 

3 November 1984. Juan Meza w co 1 (12) Jaime Garza

Venue: Midtown Centre, Kingston, New York, USA. Recognition: WBC. Referee: John LoBianco.

Fight Summary: Defending for the second time, Garza (121½) got off to a flier when a combination of blows put Meza (121½) down inside half a minute. Although Meza got up he was put under a lot of pressure before stunning the crowd when catching the champion with a vicious left hook of his own to force a count-out with just six seconds of the opening round remaining.

 

19 April 1985. Juan Meza w rsc 6 (12) Mike Ayala

Venue: Inglewood Forum, Los Angeles, California, USA. Recognition: WBC. Referee: John Thomas.

Fight Summary: On the attack from the start, Meza (121½) worked away with both hands to outpunch Ayala (121¾), who was never really in the fight apart from the odd burst of punches. Backed into a neutral corner in the sixth round, the challenger was unable to shake Meza off despite landing a series of left hooks. With blood pouring from his right eye he was put down on one knee before rising and being rescued by the referee at 1.31 of the session.

 

Lupe Pintor, the former undefeated WBC bantamweight champion, would be Meza’s next challenger having beaten Jorge Lujan, Cleo Garcia and Javier Marquez at the weight. With 53 (41 inside the distance) wins, two draws and seven defeats on his record, although he had been beaten in an earlier crack at the title by Wilfredo Gomez and then by Adriano Arreola he still fancied his chances.

 

18 August 1985. Lupe Pintor w pts 12 Juan Meza

Venue: Sports Palace, Mexico City, Mexico. Recognition: WBC. Referee: Octavio Meyran.

Scorecards: 115-111, 116-110, 117-110.

Fight Summary: Turning the clock back at the age of 30, Pintor (122) shrugged off two bad cuts to floor Meza (122) three times on his way to landing the win. Twice in the fifth Meza was dropped from long rights, and after doing well to come back he was again dumped by a vicious left hook in the tenth. However, Pintor was so tired at this stage that Meza somehow struggled through to the final bell. On winning, Pintor became a two-weight world champion.

 

Pintor’s first defence would be against Samart Payakaroon, who had won all of his 11 pro contests and had outpointed Netrnoi Sor Vorasingh over ten rounds in his initial outing in August 1982.

 

18 January 1986. Samart Payakaroon w co 5 Lupe Pintor

Venue: Hua Mark Indoor Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand. Recognition: WBC. Referee: Arthur Mercante.

Fight Summary: Pintor (125) forfeited the WBC version of the title when he came in over the weight for a defence against Payakaroon (122), the fight going ahead for the vacant title with only Payakaroon able to win it. Never threatening at any stage of the fight, Pintor was cut over the left eye in the fourth before being set up in the fifth by a southpaw right and sent crashing by a big left hook to be counted out on the 1.31 mark.

 

10 December 1986. Samart Payakaroon w rsc 12 (12) Juan Meza

Venue: Hua Mark Indoor Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand. Recognition: WBC. Referee: Roland Dakin.

Fight Summary: Making his first defence after beating over-the-weight Lupe Pintor, the upright Payakaroon (122) won virtually every round against the reckless Meza (122), who was knocked down in the sixth from a southpaw right and basically given a boxing lesson. Despite Meza being almost stopped on a couple of occasions he kept going until being caught by another right in the 11th, which dropped him. Somehow getting through the session and making it into the final round Meza was then floored by a straight left, and although beating the count he was on unsteady legs when the referee wisely brought matters to a close with just five seconds remaining.

 

Payakaroon’s next defence would be against Jeff Fenech, the former undefeated IBF bantamweight champion who had moved up a division. An all-out pressure fighter who was relentless in his pursuit of victory, Fenech was undefeated after 15 fights since turning pro in October 1984. With a style well suited to the professional side of the sport, he had beaten Wayne Mulholland, Satoshi Shingaki (2), Jerome Coffee, Daniel Zaragoza and Steve McCrory.

 

8 May 1987. Jeff Fenech w rsc 4 (12) Samart Payakaroon

Venue: Entertainment Centre, Sydney, Australia. Recognition: WBC. Referee: Arthur Mercante.

Fight Summary: Having moved up from bantam, Fenech (122) produced a terrific display of box-fighting to unhinge Payakaroon (121¾) from his title, despite being handed a count in the first round when off balance. There was no doubting that the Thai was the faster, but Fenech would not leave him alone, chasing his man relentlessly. With the pressure mounting in the fourth the champion was unable to fight back as the punches from head to body took everything out of him, and he was rescued at 2.42 just after hitting the floor, out to the world. On winning, Fenech became a two-weight world champion.

 

10 July 1987. Jeff Fenech w rsc 5 (12) Greg Richardson

Venue: Entertainment Centre, Sydney, Australia. Recognition: WBC. Referee: Larry Nadayag.

Fight Summary: Winning every round, Fenech (122) proved far superior to the outweighed Richardson (115¾), whose only course of action seemed to be to hold the champion’s left arm every time he was run to ground. All one-way traffic, it was no surprise when Fenech finally caught up with Richardson in the fifth. After being knocked down by a series of head punches, Richardson, cut on the left eye, was rescued by the referee at 1.29 of the session.

 

16 October 1987. Jeff Fenech w tdec 4 (12) Carlos Zarate

Venue: Hordern Pavilion, Sydney, Australia. Recognition: WBC. Referee: Henry Elesperu.

Scorecards: 40-34, 40-34, 40-34.

Fight Summary: Although winning the first three rounds Fenech (122) did not have it all his own way, the hard-hitting challenger often matching him as both scored with heavy body shots. At this stage one sensed that the fight would not last too long. In the fourth, after the pair went toe-to-toe, a right to the jaw decked Zarate (122) for the mandatory ‘eight’. On the resumption the referee warned Zarate for ‘use of the head’, and immediately prior to the bell a deep gash appeared on Fenech’s cheekbone. It looked to be extremely nasty, and during the interval, with the latter deemed unable to continue, the referee went to the scorecards.

 

Fenech relinquished the WBC title on 15 December 1987 to challenge for the WBC featherweight crown. It was only when the top-rated Welcome Ncita defended his IBF title against Kennedy McKinney, ranked at number five, that my version of the 'world' title would be on the line once more. Ncita, who had turned pro in 1984 and run up 32 straight wins, was a fast, smart boxer with a good jab-and-move routine, who had won the title from Fabrice Benichou and gone on to make successful defences against Ramon Cruz, Gerardo Lopez, Bebis Rojas (2), Hurley Snead and Jesus Salud. His opponent, McKinney, had turned pro in 1989 after winning a gold medal at the 1988 Olympic Games before going on to beat men such as Jerome Coffee, Bebis Rojas and Paul Banke, while winning the USBA title. With 21 wins and one technical draw on his record, and 13 opponents beaten inside the distance, he had good mobility and an excellent left jab to go with a solid punch.

 

2 December 1992. Kennedy McKinney w co 11 Welcome Ncita

Venue: Tenda Theatre, Tortoli, Italy. Recognition: IBF. Referee: Steve Smoger.

Fight Summary: From the moment the gong rang it was a spirited battle, with the challenger boxing on the outside using jabs and crosses while Ncita (121¾) concentrated with hooks and body shots. Forcing the pace from the eighth, Ncita unleashed his punches, stunning McKinney (121¼) on a number of occasions, and in the 11th he dropped him on one knee with a right-left. Immediately getting back into the action, McKinney, now carrying a cut on the right eye, went toe-to-toe with Ncita. Despite appearing to come off worse, McKinney suddenly fired off a straight right that caught the South African flush on the jaw and put him down to be counted out at 2.30 of the session.

 

17 April 1993. Kennedy McKinney w pts 12 Richard Duran

Venue: ARCO Arena, Sacramento, California, USA. Recognition: IBF. Referee: Pat Russell.

Scorecards: 117-111, 116-112, 116-112.

Fight Summary: The hard-hitting challenger gave McKinney (122) all the trouble he could handle in this one, but due to the latter’s adroitness and better boxing he was unable to land a finishing blow. Making a good start, Duran (122) won the first two rounds before being cut over the left eye, an injury McKinney then used to target as he moved ahead with accurate left jabs. Later in the fight the game Duran got to McKinney with several heavy rights to the head, the champion taking them well, and after an even tenth when both tired he got back to his boxing to win handily.

 

17 July 1993. Kennedy McKinney w rsc 3 Rudy Zavala

Venue: The Pyramid, Memphis, Tennessee, USA. Recognition: IBF. Referee: Chris Wollesen.

Fight Summary: Defending against a dangerous opponent McKinney (121) had to be careful, but he took the first round with jabs and uppercuts and stayed at close quarters in the second, regardless of having a massive reach advantage. The third saw McKinney crack in right after right to drop Zavala (122) three times before the referee called it off on the 2.08 mark. With Zavala only knowing one way to fight when he began to get outpunched his options became limited.

 

16 October 1993. Kennedy McKinney w pts 12 Jesus Salud

Venue: Caesar’s Palace, Lake Tahoe, Nevada, USA. Recognition: IBF. Referee: Vic Drakulich.

Scorecards: 119-109, 119-109, 118-110.

Fight Summary: Sporting a good reach advantage, McKinney (122) never allowed his challenger to get into the fight, keeping him off balance, cutting him over the right eye in the third, and generally working him over whenever he got close enough. It was not that Salud (122) was poor it being more to do with McKinney having his number, but to his credit the challenger was never completely subdued. As McKinney ducked, weaved and slipped punches before firing off returns, most of which found the target, Salud was as game as they come despite defeat being inevitable.

 

19 February 1994. Kennedy McKinney w co 5 Jose Rincones

Venue: Carousel Casino Resort, Temba, South Africa. Recognition: IBF. Referee: Stan Christodoulou.

Fight Summary: Boxing lackadaisically for the opening four rounds, the champion merely followed Rincones (121) around, and apart from the latter occasionally jumping in with wild punches that were easily avoided there was barely any action. However, midway during the fifth, after Rincones decided to trade with McKinney (121¾) he paid the price when he was belted by solid rights to the head before being knocked flat on his back to be counted out on the 2.40 mark.

 

16 April 1994. Kennedy McKinney w pts 12 Welcome Ncita

Venue: Convention Centre, South Padre Island, Texas, USA. Recognition: IBF. Referee: Rafael Ramos.

Scorecards: 117-110, 117-111, 114-114.

Fight Summary: McKinney (122) came through well against the tough Ncita (122), despite being put down by a looping right to the jaw in the fifth after both men had started slowly. It did not take long for McKinney to push on, and having imparted damage to Ncita’s left eye in the sixth, when the eye was closed a round later the champion took over, raking his rival’s head and body with hard and accurate blows. Ncita was still dangerous, occasionally troubling McKinney with heavy blows, but he was unable to alter the course of the fight.

 

McKinney’s next defence would be against the unranked Vuyani Bungu, who had 23 wins and two defeats, to Fransie Badenhorst and Freddie Norwood, on his record. A strong, hard-working fighter who targeted the body, Bungu came to the ring as the South African champion, having avenged his loss to Badenhorst in a defence.

 

20 August 1994. Vuyani Bungu w pts 12 Kennedy McKinney

Venue: Carousel Casino Resort, Temba, South Africa. Recognition: IBF. Referee: Stan Christodoulou.

Scorecards: 116-112, 116-112, 117-111.

Fight Summary: Fighting out of a crouch that confused McKinney (122), the superbly conditioned challenger was soon at work on the inside, having negated McKinney’s best weapon - the jab. Although McKinney, his right eye badly swollen, desperately tried to pick it up, by the sixth Bungu (122) was in charge, scoring well with hooks and overarm rights. Despite McKinney rallying in the 11th it was not enough.

 

19 November 1994. Vuyani Bungu w pts 12 Felix Camacho

Venue: Carousel Casino, Hammanskraal, South Africa: Recognition: IBF. Referee: Clement Martin.

Scorecards: 118-111, 119-110, 117-111.

Fight Summary: With the slick southpaw challenger on the move, in the first two rounds there was very little incident until the third when Bungu (121¾) began to attack the body. That set the pattern of the fight as Camacho (122) boxed on the retreat, while Bungu banged in blows to the body when he could in an attempt to slow his rival down. It was not much of a spectacle, with Camacho running and Bungu often hitting thin air, but it was a successful first defence for the champion.

 

4 March 1995. Vuyani Bungu w pts 12 Mohammad Nurhuda

Venue: Carousel Casino, Hammanskraal, South Africa. Recognition: IBF. Referee: Clement Martin.

Scorecards: 119-109, 119-109, 118-110.

Fight Summary: Regardless that he started slowly, the champion eventually picked up the pace to score heavily with combination punches as both men came together. By the sixth round, as Bungu (121½) varied his attacks from head to body and mixed up his jabs from the outside, it was obvious that the brave Nurhuda (122) would be lucky to last the distance. That he did with his left eye almost closed was testament to his vast reservoirs of courage.

 

29 April 1995. Vuyani Bungu w pts 12 Victor Llerena

Venue: FNB Stadium, Johannesburg, South Africa. Recognition: IBF. Referee: Clement Martin.

Scorecards: 118-108, 120-105, 117-111.

Fight Summary: In what turned out to be yet another one-sided contest for Bungu (122), the champion, bobbing and weaving, stayed close to Llerena (121½) who came into the fight with a reputation of being a dangerous puncher. The tactic was to limit the amount of space Llerena had with which to get his heavy shots off. With Bungu picking his punches throughout, Llerena, who had three points deducted for low blows, often threw wild overarm punches that were either blocked or hit thin air, and as the fight neared its conclusion his aggression began to peter out in resignation of defeat.

 

26 September 1995. Vuyani Bungu w pts 12 Laureano Ramirez

Venue: Carousel Casino, Hammanskraal, South Africa. Recognition: IBF. Referee: Clement Martin.

Scorecards: 117-111, 117-111, 118-111.

Fight Summary: Again, it was not a totally impressive performance from the champion who only fought in flurries and appeared out of sorts at times. After replacing Rafael Del Valle, who had to withdraw, the southpaw Ramirez (122) gave Bungu (121½) plenty of trouble when forcing him to fight on the outside, but lacked the power to do too much damage. Although the stronger Bungu appeared to be going through the motions at times, relying on looping lefts to the body and jabs to get him through, he never looked like losing.

 

23 January 1996. Vuyani Bungu w pts 12 Johnny Lewus

Venue: Grand Casino, Biloxi, Mississippi, USA. Recognition: IBF. Referee: Fred Steinweinder.

Scorecards: 118-111, 118-112, 120-108.

Fight Summary: Starting aggressively but having little power, the smaller Lewus (122) was soon slowed down by the champion’s jab before being belted by lefts and rights to head and body. He proved to be a tough customer though. Put down in the fourth round from a palpably low blow, after being given time out he tore back into the fray, and it was not until the latter rounds when he tired that Bungu (122) really began to set about him. The final session saw Bungu hit Lewus with every punch in the book before the game American made it to the final bell to loud applause.

 

15 April 1996. Vuyani Bungu w rsc 2 Pablo Osuna

Venue: Carousel Casino Carpark, Hammanskraal, South Africa. Recognition: IBF. Referee: Stan Christodoulou.

Fight Summary: Starting confidently the southpaw challenger looked to jab, but once Bungu (121½) found his range, countering with lefts and rights to the head, his rival was in trouble before being put down heavily towards the end of the first round. Somehow Osuna (121¼) made it to the bell, but coming out for the second session he was dropped by a right to the jaw almost immediately. Again Osuna got up, but after Bungu put him down for the third time, a left hook doing the damage, the referee called it off on the 39 second mark so that he could receive help.

 

20 August 1996. Vuyani Bungu w pts 12 Jesus Salud

Venue: Carousel Hotel and Casino, Hammanskraal, South Africa. Recognition: IBF. Referee: Stan Christodoulou.

Scorecards: 117-111, 118-109, 118-110.

Fight Summary: Although the scorecards showed a clear win for the champion, Salud (121), setting a terrific pace, certainly gave him a run for his money while much of the time matching his rival punch for punch. It began with Salud making the fight, and Bungu (121½), who was cut over the left eye in the second round, showing off his counter-punching abilities. With Salud in front at the halfway stage it had been unrelenting, but after Bungu had a big round in the ninth he began to score more freely with solid combination punches to gain the upper hand.

 

5 April 1997. Vuyani Bungu w pts 12 Kennedy McKinney

Venue: Carousel Casino, Hammanskraal, South Africa. Recognition: IBF. Referee: Stan Christodoulou.

Scorecards: 117-113, 115-113, 113-115.

Fight Summary: Following a quiet opening round Bungu (122) opened up, only for McKinney (121¾) to match him. And while the former was able to use his hand-speed and counters to keep his rival off balance throughout it was never easy. With the champion generally moving too fast for McKinney the latter’s right hand was mainly negated, and although recognising that he had to up the pace over the last two rounds he had left it too late.

 

Bungu forfeited my version of the 'world' title on 18 April, having failed to meet a top-five rated opponent for over two years. Further to that, a return match between the top-ranked Junior Jones, the WBO champion, and Marco Antonio Barrera, the fourth-rated man in the division, should be seen as carrying the 'world' title. A former WBA bantamweight champion, Jones had taken the WBO junior feather title from Barrera on 22 November 1996 and this would be a return. An elegant, talented boxer with a big right hand, Jones had recorded 43 (26 inside the distance) wins while suffering two losses, whereas Barrera had a similar record of 43 wins and one defeat. Prior to losing to Jones, Barrera had successfully defended the WBO belt, that he had won when beating Daniel Jimenez, against Frankie Toledo, Maui Diaz, Agapito Sanchez, Eddie Croft, Kennedy McKinney, Jesse Benavides, Orlando Fernandez and Jesse Magana.     

 

18 April 1997. Junior Jones w pts 12 Marco Antonio Barrera

Venue: Hilton Hotel, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA. Recognition: WBO. Referee: Mills Lane.

Scorecards: 116-111, 114-113, 114-112.

Fight Summary: As in their first fight Jones (121) made an excellent start when shooting out jabs, but Barrera (122), this time around in the role of challenger, soon came into it with steady body attacks, the fight being even by the seventh. There was never much in it, both having their successes. The last three rounds were intense as the two men each looked for a driving finish, and although many were divided on who had won it was Jones’ extra aggression that was thought to have been the deciding factor.

 

Rated at number seven, the former IBF champion, Kennedy McKinney, would be Jones’ first challenger. Since losing his old title to Vuyani Bungu back in August 1994, McKinney had first taken a year out before returning in a losing WBO challenge against Barrera and a return with Bungu. In between, McKinney added Johnny Lewus and Nestor Lopez to his list of victims before beating Hector Acero Sanchez for the USBA title and stopping Luigi Camputaro. Coming into the Jones’ fight, his record stood at 32 wins, one technical draw and three defeats.

 

19 December 1997. Kennedy McKinney w rsc 4 Junior Jones

Venue: Madison Square Garden, Manhattan, NYC, New York, USA. Recognition: WBO. Referee: Wayne Kelly.

Fight Summary: Despite Jones (122), who was cut on the right cheek in the first minute, dominating the first three rounds and having his challenger down for ‘nine’ from a terrific right to the chin in the third, he expended so much energy trying to finish his rival off that he virtually exhausted himself, being in trouble before the bell went. Coming out for the fourth, McKinney (122), firing off a couple of rights quickly put Jones down, and although the referee did not give it as a knockdown it was clear that the latter was done for as he stumbled around the ring. McKinney did not need to be told what he had to do next. Tearing in, a cracking right hand dropped Jones, who somehow got up before tumbling to the floor and being rescued by the referee with 21 seconds of the round remaining.

 

It was reported on 11 May 1998 that McKinney had been stripped of the title by the WBO after pulling out of a prospective 6 June defence against Richie Wenton, while looking for a featherweight title challenge instead. The next time that my version of the 'world' title was up for grabs came when the top-ranked Erik Morales defended his WBC crown against Wayne McCullough, rated at number five, on 22 October 1999. Having won the WBC title when beating Daniel Zaragoza on 6 September 1997, Morales had successfully defended it against John Lowey, Remigio Molina, Jose Luis Bueno, Junior Jones, Angel Chacon, Juan Carlos Ramirez and Reynante Jamili. With 34 (28 inside the distance) straight wins, Morales was a heavy puncher both up and down. A durable fighter and a former undefeated WBC bantamweight champion, McCullough’s record showed 23 wins and two defeats.