Vicente Paúl Rondón (July 29, 1938 – December 28, 1992) was a Venezuelan professional boxer who competed from 1965 to 1974, holding the WBA light heavyweight title from 1971 to 1972.

Vicente Rondón
Born
Vicente Paul Rondón

(1938-07-29)July 29, 1938
DiedDecember 28, 1992(1992-12-28) (aged 54)
Caracas,
Venezuela
Other namesEl Muchachote de Barlovento
("The Windward Boy")
Statistics
Weight(s)Light heavyweight
Height6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Reach77 in (196 cm)
StanceOrthodox
Boxing record
Total fights59
Wins40
Wins by KO23
Losses16
Draws1
No contests2

Personal background

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Rondón was born into extreme poverty in San José de Río Chico, Miranda, Venezuela, and decided to escape his poor surroundings by enlisting in the Venezuelan military at an early age.

Professional career

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When Rondón turned professional, his year of birth was listed as 1944; in fact it was 1938. Rondón began fighting as a middleweight and made a name for himself with upset victories over former world welterweight champion Luis Rodríguez and middleweight contender Bennie Briscoe. However, Rondon was growing and quickly established himself as a top rated light heavyweight with impressive wins over Roger Rouse, Eddie Talhami, and Allen Thomas. World Light heavyweight Champion Bob Foster did not seem eager to fight the #2 ranked Rondón or the #1 rated Jimmy Dupree. The WBA stripped Foster of his title and matched Rondón and Dupree.

In an exciting slugfest, Rondón climbed off the canvas in the second round to stop the favored Dupree at 2:58 of the 6th round.[1] At the time of the stoppage, referee Zack Clayton had the fight scored even at 47–47. Judge Dimas Hernandez also scored the bout 47–47, and judge Gustavo Vargas favored Rondón, 48–47. Following the fight, a controversy broke out with Dupree claiming he was drugged. The United Press International published a story of the claim. In the UPI article, Charliese Smith, a registered nurse and friend of Dupree said, "I believe Jimmy was drugged. I saw Jimmy after the fight and he was very very weak. His vision was blurry and he couldn't even see the other side of the room." She went on to say, "I know of muscle relaxants that can be administered in food and I'm convinced that Jimmy was given something." Regardless of the charges, the World Boxing Association recognized Rondón as world champion, while The Ring magazine viewed Bob Foster as the legitimate Light heavyweight king.

1971 was an outstanding year for Rondón with a number of title defenses. He became the first and only fighter to stop Gomeo Brennan. Many experts felt that Rondón could and would defeat Bob Foster. Rondon flopped badly against Foster in 1972; being destroyed in two rounds.[2] A venture into the heavyweight ranks proved just as bad, as he was beaten by Earnie Shavers, Ron Lyle and José Urtain. Rondón did better in 1973 as he started to trim down in weight. He looked highly skilled and impressive by scoring a 10-round decision over undefeated prospect Oliver Wright on Miami Beach. Shortly after, he stopped heavyweight Mike "Jim" Boswell in four rounds.

Sadly, Rondón's private life was full of demons. He was developing a drinking problem and spending money like it was going out of style. An attempt to regain the light heavyweight title, saw him drop a decision to number 1 rated Len Hutchins, and then suffer a 9th-round technical knockout to John Conteh. In 1974, Rondón, weighing 188 pounds, went back to the heavyweight division, where he would be largely unsuccessful. He was unable to get off the stool for round three in his fight with Rodney Bobick at Miami Beach, Florida. In his next fight he was knocked out in two rounds by former world heavyweight title contender José Roman.

Professional boxing record

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59 fights 40 wins 16 losses
By knockout 23 7
By decision 17 9
Draws 1
No contests 2
No. Result Record Opponent Type Round, time Date Location Notes
59 Loss 40–16–1 (2) José Roman TKO 2 (10) 1974-06-06 Curtis Hixon Hall, Tampa, Florida, U.S.
58 Loss 40–15–1 (2) Rodney Bobick RTD 2 (10) 1974-02-19 Auditorium, Miami Beach, Florida, U.S.
57 Loss 40–14–1 (2) Bobby Lloyd UD 10 (10) 1973-12-08 Birdland Arena, Nassau, Bahamas
56 Loss 40–13–1 (2) Rudiger Schmidtke PTS 10 (10) 1973-11-17 Festhalle, Frankfurt, Germany
55 Loss 40–12–1 (2) John Conteh TKO 9 (10) 1973-09-10 Empire Pool, Wembley, England, U.K.
54 Win 40–11–1 (2) Mike Boswell TKO 4 (10) 1973-08-24 Convention Exposition Center, Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.
53 Win 39–11–1 (2) Boston Blackie TKO 7 (10) 1973-07-03 A.F. Adderley Auditorium, Nassau, Bahamas
52 Loss 38–11–1 (2) Tom Bogs UD 10 (10) 1973-06-14 K.B. Hallen, Copenhagen, Denmark
51 Loss 38–10–1 (2) Len Hutchins UD 10 (10) 1973-05-19 Olympia Stadium, Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
50 Win 38–9–1 (2) Oliver Wright UD 10 (10) 1973-04-03 Auditorium, Miami Beach, Florida, U.S.
49 Win 37–9–1 (2) Larry Beilfuss PTS 10 (10) 1973-02-15 Roberto Clemente Coliseum, San Juan, Puerto Rico
48 Loss 36–9–1 (2) José Manuel Urtain PTS 10 (10) 1972-12-01 Pabellón Polideportivo, Madrid, Spain
47 Loss 36–8–1 (2) Earnie Shavers UD 10 (10) 1972-08-26 Memorial Auditorium, Canton, Ohio, U.S.
46 Loss 36–7–1 (2) Ron Lyle TKO 2 (10) 1972-07-10 Mile High Stadium, Denver, Colorado, U.S.
45 Loss 36–6–1 (2) Bob Foster TKO 2 (15) 1972-04-07 Auditorium, Miami Beach, Florida, U.S. Lost WBA light-heavyweight title;
For WBC & The Ring light-heavyweight titles
44 Win 36–5–1 (2) Doyle Baird TKO 8 (15) 1971-12-15 Arena, Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. Retained WBA light-heavyweight title
43 Win 35–5–1 (2) Gomeo Brennan TKO 13 (15) 1971-10-26 Auditorium, Miami Beach, Florida, U.S. Retained WBA light-heavyweight title
42 Win 34–5–1 (2) Conny Velensek PTS 10 (10) 1971-10-14 Germany
41 Win 33–5–1 (2) Eddie Jones UD 15 (15) 1971-08-21 Nuevo Circo, Caracas, Venezuela Retained WBA light-heavyweight title
40 Win 32–5–1 (2) Johnny Griffin PTS 10 (10) 1971-07-11 Valencia, Venezuela
39 Win 31–5–1 (2) Piero Del Papa KO 1 (15) 1971-06-05 Nuevo Circo, Caracas, Venezuela Retained WBA light-heavyweight title
38 Win 30–5–1 (2) Jimmy Dupree KO 6 (15) 1971-02-27 Nuevo Circo, Caracas, Venezuela Won vacant WBA light-heavyweight title
37 Win 29–5–1 (2) Roger Rouse UD 10 (10) 1970-11-07 Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, Puerto Rico
36 Win 28–5–1 (2) Willie Johnson TKO 4 (10) 1970-10-06 Auditorium, Miami Beach, Florida, U.S.
35 Win 27–5–1 (2) Hydra Lacy KO 2 (10) 1970-08-11 Auditorium, Miami Beach, Florida, U.S.
34 Win 26–5–1 (2) Levan Roundtree PTS 10 (10) 1970-05-20 Parque Isidoro García, Mayagüez, Puerto Rico
33 Win 25–5–1 (2) Fred Williams KO 4 (10) 1970-04-18 San Juan, Puerto Rico
32 Win 24–5–1 (2) Avenamar Peralta PTS 10 (10) 1969-12-06 Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina
31 Win 23–5–1 (2) Randy Stevens KO 5 (10) 1969-11-29 San Juan, Puerto Rico
30 Win 22–5–1 (2) Angel Oquendo TKO 6 (10) 1969-10-26 San Juan, Puerto Rico
29 NC 21–5–1 (2) Paul Johnson NC 7 (10) 1969-08-09 San Juan, Puerto Rico
28 Win 21–5–1 (1) Eddie Talhami PTS 10 (10) 1969-07-05 San Juan, Puerto Rico
27 Win 20–5–1 (1) Jose Luis Garcia PTS 12 (12) 1969-05-30 Caracas, Venezuela Won vacant Venezuelan light-heavyweight title
26 Win 19–5–1 (1) Karl Zurheide UD 10 (10) 1969-05-06 Aragon Ballroom, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
25 Win 18–5–1 (1) Allen Thomas UD 10 (10) 1969-04-01 Aragon Ballroom, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
24 Loss 17–5–1 (1) Bennie Briscoe TKO 8 (10) 1969-01-25 San Juan, Puerto Rico
23 Win 17–4–1 (1) Charlie Jordan UD 10 (10) 1968-11-26 Auditorium, Miami Beach, Florida, U.S.
22 Win 16–4–1 (1) Charlie Jordan UD 10 (10) 1968-11-12 Auditorium, Miami Beach, Florida, U.S.
21 Loss 15–4–1 (1) Juarez de Lima PTS 10 (10) 1968-11-03 San Juan, Puerto Rico
20 Win 15–3–1 (1) Bennie Briscoe UD 10 (10) 1968-09-23 Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, Puerto Rico
19 Win 14–3–1 (1) Charley Austin PTS 10 (10) 1968-09-09 San Juan, Puerto Rico
18 Loss 13–3–1 (1) Luis Manuel Rodríguez UD 10 (10) 1968-07-18 Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, Puerto Rico
17 Win 13–2–1 (1) Luis Manuel Rodríguez UD 10 (10) 1968-06-03 Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, Puerto Rico
16 Loss 12–2–1 (1) Jose Gonzalez TKO 8 (10) 1968-04-19 National Maritime Union Hall, New York City, New York, U.S.
15 Loss 12–1–1 (1) Bobby Warthen SD 10 (10) 1968-01-12 National Maritime Union Hall, New York City, New York, U.S.
14 Win 12–0–1 (1) Phil Robinson KO 5 (10) 1967-12-14 Caracas, Venezuela
13 Draw 11–0–1 (1) Harold Richardson PTS 10 (10) 1967-11-10 San Juan, Puerto Rico
12 Win 11–0 (1) Pedro Miranda TKO 10 (10) 1967-10-14 San Juan, Puerto Rico
11 Win 10–0 (1) Tony Smith KO 3 (10) 1967-09-08 Estadio Manuel Carrasquillo Herpen, Río Piedras, Puerto Rico
10 Win 9–0 (1) Marco Tulio Polanco KO 3 (10) 1967-06-12 Nuevo Circo, Caracas, Venezuela
9 Win 8–0 (1) Danny Machado TKO 4 (10) 1967-03-20 Palacio de Deportes, Caracas, Venezuela
8 NC 7–0 (1) Marco Tulio Polanco NC 2 (10) 1966-12-04 Nuevo Circo, Caracas, Venezuela Suspended on account of rain
7 Win 7–0 Marcos Pirella KO 2 (10) 1966-11-14 Caracas, Venezuela
6 Win 6–0 Melville Bennett KO 2 (10) 1966-09-16 Caracas, Venezuela
5 Win 5–0 Marco Tulio Polanco KO 3 (10) 1966-06-24 Nuevo Circo, Caracas, Venezuela
4 Win 4–0 Pedro Vanegas KO 7 (10) 1965-12-05 Estadio Once de Noviembre, Cartagena, Colombia
3 Win 3–0 Pedro Vanegas TKO 4 (10) 1965-10-29 Coliseo Humberto Perea, Barranquilla, Colombia
2 Win 2–0 Joe Louis Troconis KO 1 (?) 1965-07-26 Palacio de Deportes, Caracas, Venezuela
1 Win 1–0 Jose Caraballo KO 3 (?) 1965-06-28 Palacio de Deportes, Caracas, Venezuela

Life after boxing

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Shortly thereafter Rondón's career hit the skids and so did he. He was confined to a mental hospital, and later arrested on charges of robbing a store for $150. Rondon served a prison sentence, and there are unconfirmed reports that he boxed some exhibitions or possibly a professional match while incarcerated[citation needed]. Rondón was released from prison a physical wreck. Vicente Paul Rondón, the boxing idol of his country, died forgotten, broke and in poverty in Santa Ana de Carapita, a slum of Caracas. Rondón had been living with his elderly mother at the time. He was 54 when he died.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "DUPREE IS HALTED BY RONDON IN 6TH". The New York Times. Retrieved 2024-06-24.
  2. ^ "A HEAVY LOSS TO A LIGHT HEAVY". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 2024-06-24.
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Sporting positions
Regional boxing titles
New title Venezuelan light-heavyweight champion
May 30, 1969 – February 27, 1971
Won world title
Vacant
Title next held by
Dervin Colina
World boxing titles
Vacant
Title last held by
Bob Foster
WBA light-heavyweight champion
February 27, 1971 – April 7, 1972
Succeeded by
Bob Foster