Rafael Del Valle (boxer)
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Rafael del Valle (born October 16, 1967) is a Puerto Rican former professional boxer who reigned, from May 13, 1992, to July 30, 1994, as the
WBO The World Boxing Organization (WBO) is an organization which sanctions professional boxing bouts. It is recognized by the International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF) as one of the four major world championship groups, alongside the World Boxin ...
's World Bantamweight champion. A puncher with a sturdy chin, del Valle was born and resides at Santurce,
San Juan, Puerto Rico San Juan ( , ; Spanish for "Saint John the Baptist, John") is the capital city and most populous Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality in the Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the ...
.


Amateur career

del Valle won a bronze medal in the bantamweight category at the
1987 Pan American Games The 1987 Pan American Games, officially known as the X Pan American Games, was a major international multi-sport event held in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, on August 7–23, 1987. Over 4,300 athletes from 38 countries in the Americas ...
.


Professional boxing career details

del Valle debuted on May 19, 1989, with a victory over the also debuting Hector Correa, at the El San Juan Hotel and Casino at Isla Verde, winning by knockout. del Valle had run his record to 11-0, 8 knockouts, when he fought former two-time world title challenger Juan Carazo, a fellow Puerto Rican, with a WBO number 1 ranking on the line. del Valle outpointed Carazo, 22-4 before their bout, over ten rounds on June 10, 1991, at San Juan, and then outpointed Luis Yampier on November 4, also at San Juan. The Yampier fight was a mismatch that served as a preparation bout for del Valle's upcoming world title challenge; Yampier was 3-4-1 compared to del Valle's 12-0 record at the time.


World champion

del Valle next traveled to
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, where he faced the heavy favorite
Duke McKenzie Duke McKenzie (born 5 May 1963) is a British former professional boxer who competed from 1982 to 1998.. Retrieved 13 December 2016. He is a three-weight world champion, having held the International Boxing Federation (IBF) flyweight title fro ...
, May 13, 1992. McKenzie, the defending world champion, was 31-2 coming into their encounter, but del Valle was able to win the world title with a highlight-reel first-round knockout win. del Valle defended the title two times, including wins over fellow Puerto Rican Wilfredo Vargas, stopped in five on March 24, 1993, and over former
World Boxing Council The World Boxing Council (WBC) is an international professional boxing organization. It is among the four major organizations which sanction professional boxing bouts, alongside the World Boxing Association (WBA), International Boxing Federation ...
Bantamweight world champion, Colombia's Miguel Lora, who was dropped in round ten and beaten by unanimous decision at the
Roberto Clemente Coliseum Roberto Clemente Coliseum (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Coliseo Roberto Clemente'') is a sports and concert arena located in San Juan, Puerto Rico. It was, for many years, Puerto Rico's largest indoor event facility, and remains one of the large ...
in San Juan on June 19, 1993. On July 30, 1994, del Valle once again fought in
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, this time at the
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's
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, where he lost for the first time in his professional boxing career, beaten on points by Al Kotey, 17-1, by 12 round unanimous decision to lose the world title. The loss to Kotey was followed by five wins, four by knockout over mostly overmatched competition; his five rivals' combined record over that period consisted of 34 wins, 32 losses, and four draws; one of them (Miguel Ochoa) had no wins in four previous fights, and another (Alfonso Coronado) was making his debut against the former world champion. Nevertheless, those five wins led to a title try for the WBA's Fedelatin regional title, which del Valle won by knocking out Ramon Guzman, 22-4, on March 9, 1996, in
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. del Valle's last fight was against Mexican Enrique Sanchez, for the WBA's vacant world Super Bantamweight title. del Valle lasted the twelve round distance but lost by unanimous decision on February 8, 1998, at the
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Casino in
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, retiring soon after. del Valle had a record of 26 professional boxing bouts, winning 23 (17 by knockout), losing 2, both on points, and drawing (tying) once.


See also

*
List of bantamweight boxing champions This is a list of world bantamweight boxing champions, as recognized by the four major sanctioning organizations in boxing: * The World Boxing Association (WBA), established in 1921 as the National Boxing Association (NBA). The WBA often recognize ...
*
List of Puerto Rican boxing world champions In Puerto Rico, boxing is considered a major sport, having produced more amateur and professional world champions than any other sport in its history. Puerto Rico ranks 5th worldwide between countries with most boxing world champions in history ...
*
List of Puerto Ricans This is a list of notable people from Puerto Rico which includes people who were born in Puerto Rico (Borinquen) and people who are of full or partial Puerto Rican people, Puerto Rican descent. Puerto Rican citizens are included, as the governm ...


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:del Valle, Rafael (boxer) 1967 births Living people Puerto Rican male boxers Bantamweight boxers Super-bantamweight boxers World bantamweight boxing champions World Boxing Organization champions Boxers from San Juan, Puerto Rico Boxers at the 1987 Pan American Games Pan American Games bronze medalists for Puerto Rico Pan American Games bronze medalists in boxing Medalists at the 1987 Pan American Games 20th-century American sportsmen