Roberto Duran believes there is one victory that stands out even higher than his triumph over Sugar Ray Leonard.
The Panamanian had a career to be proud of, earning world honours in four divisions, whilst also being the second ever boxer to compete across five separate decades.
During the 1980s, Duran was part of an iconic group along with Leonard, Thomas Hearns and Marvin Hagler, who were collectively known as ‘The Four Kings’, with the legendary quartet all competing in epic battles against one another.
Leonard had the best success against the others, having been the only man to defeat the three remaining members, but Duran was the only one of that group that was able to defeat Leonard, claiming a unanimous decision win in June 1980.
Despite that success, Duran has revealed to One On One Boxing that he views his win over Ken Buchanan as an even better accomplishment.
“The greatest achievement is my first world title, against the best and quickest boxer in the world because Ken Buchanan was much faster than Leonard and he threw lots more shots than him. That first title was the greatest for me.”
Duran met Buchanan for the WBA lightweight title back in June 1972, securing a 13th round TKO victory to capture world honours for the first time at the age of just 21, although Buchanan’s team felt that it was a low blow that ended the fight.
Buchanan held undisputed status at one stage and finished his career with 61 wins from 69 fights, with his skills and quality showing exactly why Duran holds that win in such high regard.
