What is Roberto Duran's net worth?
Roberto Duran is a retired Panamanian boxer who has a net worth of $3 million. His net worth should be much higher but Duran reportedly blew through more than $20 million during the peak of his career on a lavish lifestyle.
Roberto Durán competed from 1968 to 2001. During his career, the second-longest of any boxer in history, he held world championship titles in the lightweight, welterweight, light middleweight, and middleweight classes. After a number of premature retirements in the 1980s and 90s, Durán retired for good in early 2002 following a car crash in Argentina.
Career Earnings
Throughout his career, Duran earned millions of dollars in prize money and purses. Some of his biggest paydays came in his fights against Sugar Ray Leonard, with their second fight in 1980 being one of the most lucrative fights in boxing history at the time. Duran earned a reported $7 million for the rematch, which he famously quit in the eighth round, uttering the now-infamous words, "no mas."
Duran also earned large sums of money for his fights against other high-profile opponents, such as Marvin Hagler and Thomas Hearns. Overall, it is estimated that Duran earned upwards of $20 million throughout his boxing career, making him one of the highest-earning boxers of his era.
Early Life
Roberto Durán was born on June 16, 1951 in Guararé, Panama to Panamanian mother Clara and American father Margarito, who was from Arizona and of Mexican descent. He was raised in the corregimiento of El Chorrillo in Panama City, where he began sparring with boxers when he was only eight years of age. Durán went on to compete as an amateur boxer until he was 16.
Lightweight
In February of 1968, Durán made his professional boxing debut in the lightweight class. He won his first 31 fights, leading to his first title bout in June of 1972. In that fight, Durán defeated Ken Buchanan to claim the WBA lightweight championship. He successfully defended the title a total of 12 times, beating such challengers as Jimmy Robertson, Hector Thompson, and Guts Ishimatsu. Durán made his last defense in 1978 when he knocked out Esteban De Jesús; he ultimately gave up the title in early 1979.
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Welterweight
After entering the welterweight class, Durán racked up wins against such fighters as Carlos Palomino and Zeferino Gonzales, paving the way for a title bout against the then-undefeated WBC welterweight champion Sugar Ray Leonard. In the heavily publicized bout, which took place at the Olympic Stadium in Montreal and became known as the "Brawl in Montreal," Durán defeated Leonard by unanimous decision to claim the WBC welterweight title. However, in a rematch in New Orleans later in the year, Leonard beat Durán when the latter suddenly stopped fighting at the end of the eighth round, allegedly saying "no más" several times. After that fight, Durán retired from boxing for the first time.
Light Middleweight and Middleweight
Durán eventually came out of retirement to compete in the light middleweight class. In early 1982, he made his unsuccessful first attempt at the WBC light middleweight title. Not long after that, Durán signed with promoter Bob Arum and began preparing for his big comeback. He went on to beat former world champion José Cuevas, earning him another shot at the light middleweight title. Durán finally won the title in 1983, on his 32nd birthday, by defeating Davey Moore. A year later, however, he was stripped of the title when the WBA disapproved of his fight with WBC champion Thomas Hearns. The fight was infamous, as it was the first one in Durán's career in which he had been knocked out. He subsequently retired for a second time, but eventually changed his mind and returned to the ring in early 1986. Durán didn't contend for another title until 1989, when he went up against Iran Barkley for the WBC middleweight title. Ultimately, Durán emerged victorious in the memorable bout via a split decision, winning his fourth career title.
Super Middleweight
In late 1989, Durán moved up to the super middleweight class for his third career fight with Sugar Ray Leonard. He ultimately lost, and didn't fight again until 1991. Durán's next title bout was against Vinny Pazienza in 1994, for the IBC super middleweight title. Pazienza won by unanimous decision, and won again in a rematch in early 1995. A few years later, Durán faced WBA middleweight champion William Joppy, who beat him in just three rounds. Following that decisive loss, Durán retired for the third time in his career. He soon changed his mind again and returned to the ring in 1999. Durán went on to win the NBA super middleweight title against Pat Lawlor in 2000. The following year, in what would be the final fight of his career, he lost the title to Héctor Camacho.
Official Retirement
While promoting his salsa music album in Argentina in October of 2001, Durán was in a major car crash that required life-saving surgery. After the incident, he officially retired from boxing. He was inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame in 2006 and the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2007.
Other Appearances
Beyond his boxing career, Durán has made some appearances in film and on television shows. In 1979, he played a sparring partner for Sylvester Stallone's titular character in the film sequel "Rocky II." Later, in the mid-80s, Durán played a drug lord in an episode of "Miami Vice." Elsewhere, his life and career were the subjects of the documentary "The Fists of a Nation" and the biopic "Hands of Stone." In the latter film, Durán is portrayed by Édgar Ramírez.
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