Ben Villaflor

Benjamin Villaflor (born November 10, 1952) is a Filipino former professional boxer who competed from 1966 to 1976. He was a two-time WBA and The Ring super-featherweight champion between 1972 and 1976.

Professional boxing career

According to records, Villaflor began his career as a professional boxer when he was only thirteen years old, on October 1, 1966, beating Flash Javier by decision in four rounds. Most of Villaflor's early bouts' records were not well kept, therefore, although October 1, 1966 appears to have been the date of Villaflor's professional debut, this is not known with certainty, and neither is the location where the fight took place. Villaflor ran a record of twelve wins without a loss, with eight knockouts before he suffered his first loss, against Roger Boy Pedrano, by an eight-round decision in a fight apparently held on July 1, 1967, at the Philippines.

After winning his next fight, he faced Pedrano and again lost by decision, in another fight without much documented data.

Villaflor had his first documented fight on February 1, 1968, at Manila. Villaflor and Rod Sario had a technical draw (tie) after four rounds. Villaflor would have a total of seven draws in his professional boxing career, a relatively large number in that category.

Although Villaflor won nine, lost two and drew two of his next thirteen bouts, his fighting in the Philippines exclusively represented a problem for him to become known overseas. He began the 1970s by losing two ten-round decisions in a row, to Pedro Martinez on March 7, 1970, and to Alfredo Avila, six weeks later.

Villaflor won his next seventeen bouts, however, eleven of them by knockout. He moved to Honolulu, Hawaii, so he could get more exposure in the United States and the rest of the world. Villaflor liked Honolulu so much that he still lives in the Hawaiian city. He beat Rafael López by a first-round knockout, on April 13, 1971, in what represented both his first fight in Honolulu and also his first fight abroad. He also beat former world champion Raul Cruz, beaten by knockout in ten rounds, November 11, 1971.

On April 25, 1972, Villaflor was given his first opportunity at a world title, when faced with WBA and Lineal Jr. Lightweight champion Alfredo Marcano of Venezuela. Villaflor became world champion by defeating Marcano by a fifteen-round unanimous decision at Honolulu.

Villaflor then engaged in a series of non-title bouts, including one against Roberto Durán world title challenger Jimmy Robertson, beaten by Villaflor by a ten-round decision on November 15 of that year. Prior to that, he had retained the title with a fifteen-round draw against Victor Echegaray, on September 25.

On March 12, 1973, Villaflor lost his title for the first time, being beaten on points by Japan's Kuniaki Shibata over fifteen rounds in Honolulu. But, after two knockout wins, Villaflor had a rematch with Shibata, also in Honolulu, and he recovered the WBA world Jr. Lightweight championship with a first-round knockout, on October 17, also at Honolulu.

Next for Villaflor was a widely expected fight across Asia, as he met Japan's top rated challenger, Apollo Yoshio, on March 14, 1974, at Toyama. The two boxers fought to a fifteen-round draw. After another non-title win, Villaflor met future world champion Yasutsune Uehara, on August 24 in Honolulu, knocking out Uehara in the second round. After that, Villaflor made his mainland United States debut, when he and perennial challenger Ray Lunny III fought to a six-round technical draw on November 14, a cut on Villaflor's head which had been caused by a headbutt being the determining factor for the fight to end with such result.

Villaflor retained the title twice more, then met Samuel Serrano for the first time, on April 13, 1976, in Honolulu, and the two combatants fought to a fifteen-round draw. The draw was so controversial that the WBA ordered an immediate rematch. After winning a non-title bout by knockout, Villaflor traveled to Puerto Rico for the rematch, held on November 16, at Hiram Bithorn stadium, in San Juan. Serrano outpointed Villaflor over fifteen rounds in what turned out to be Villaflor's last professional bout.

He is currently involved in managing other boxers' careers. Villaflor is the Sergeant At Arms for the Hawaii State Senate, a position to which he is appointed by a vote of the Senate each year.

Professional boxing record

No.	Result	Record	Opponent	Type	Round(s), time	Date	Age	Location	Notes
68	Loss	56–6–6	Samuel Serrano	UD	15	Oct 16, 1976	Template:Age in years and days	Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, Puerto Rico	Lost WBA and The Ring super featherweight titles
67	Win	56–5–6	Rogelio Castaneda	UD	10	Aug 31, 1976	Template:Age in years and days	Blaisdell Center Arena, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
66	Template:DrawDraw	55–5–6	Samuel Serrano	SD	15	Apr 13, 1976	Template:Age in years and days	Blaisdell Center Arena, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.	Retained WBA and The Ring super featherweight titles
65	Win	55–5–5	Morito Kashiwaba	KO	13 (15), 1:29	Jan 12, 1976	Template:Age in years and days	Korakuen Hall, Tokyo, Japan	Retained WBA and The Ring super featherweight titles
64	Win	54–5–5	Hyun Chi Kim	SD	15	Mar 13, 1975	Template:Age in years and days	Araneta Coliseum, Barangay Cubao, Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines	Retained WBA and The Ring super featherweight titles
63	Template:DrawDraw	53–5–5	Ray Lunny III	TD	6 (10)	Nov 14, 1974	Template:Age in years and days	Cow Palace, Daly City, California, U.S.
62	Win	53–5–4	Yasutsune Uehara	KO	2 (15), 1:17	Aug 24, 1974	Template:Age in years and days	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.	Retained WBA and The Ring super featherweight titles
61	Win	52–5–4	Takao Maruki	TKO	7 (10), 0:47	Jul 19, 1974	Template:Age in years and days	Araneta Coliseum, Barangay Cubao, Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines
60	Template:DrawDraw	51–5–4	Apollo Yoshio	SD	15	Mar 14, 1974	Template:Age in years and days	City Gymnasium, Toyama, Japan	Retained WBA and The Ring super featherweight titles
59	Win	51–5–3	Kuniaki Shibata	KO	1 (15), 1:56	Oct 17, 1973	Template:Age in years and days	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.	Won WBA and The Ring super featherweight titles
58	Win	50–5–3	Akihiro Kawasaki	KO	3 (10), 2:20	Aug 21, 1973	Template:Age in years and days	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
57	Win	49–5–3	Kenji Iwata	KO	1 (10), 2:58	Jul 18, 1973	Template:Age in years and days	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
56	Loss	48–5–3	Kuniaki Shibata	UD	15	Mar 12, 1973	Template:Age in years and days	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.	Lost WBA and The Ring super featherweight titles
55	Win	48–4–3	Juan Collado	UD	10	Jan 30, 1973	Template:Age in years and days	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
54	Win	47–4–3	Jimmy Robertson	UD	10	Nov 14, 1972	Template:Age in years and days	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
53	Template:DrawDraw	46–4–3	Victor Federico Echegaray	SD	15	Sep 5, 1972	Template:Age in years and days	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.	Retained WBA and The Ring super featherweight titles
52	Win	46–4–2	Carlos Fernandez	TKO	3 (10), 1:37	Jul 5, 1972	Template:Age in years and days	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
51	Win	45–4–2	Alfredo Marcano	UD	15	Apr 25, 1972	Template:Age in years and days	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.	Won WBA and The Ring super featherweight titles
50	Win	44–4–2	Jose Luis Lopez	KO	2 (10), 2:21	Mar 7, 1972	Template:Age in years and days	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
49	Win	43–4–2	Frankie Crawford	TKO	1 (10), 2:52	Jan 25, 1972	Template:Age in years and days	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
48	Win	42–4–2	Ray Vega	KO	7 (10), 1:39	Dec 14, 1971	Template:Age in years and days	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
47	Win	41–4–2	Raul Cruz	TKO	8 (10), 1:42	Nov 16, 1971	Template:Age in years and days	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
46	Win	40–4–2	Ricardo Garcia	UD	10	Sep 28, 1971	Template:Age in years and days	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
45	Win	39–4–2	Tadashi Okamoto	KO	1 (10), 0:50	Sep 14, 1971	Template:Age in years and days	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
44	Win	38–4–2	Manuel Mendoza	UD	10	Aug 10, 1971	Template:Age in years and days	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
43	Win	37–4–2	Memin Hernandez	KO	1 (10), 1:27	Jul 6, 1971	Template:Age in years and days	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
42	Win	36–4–2	Jesus Mariscal	TKO	4 (10), 1:26	Jun 22, 1971	Template:Age in years and days	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
41	Win	35–4–2	Delfino Camacho	TKO	2 (10)	Jun 8, 1971	Template:Age in years and days	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
40	Win	34–4–2	Jose Luis Martinez	KO	5 (10), 1:02	May 18, 1971	Template:Age in years and days	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
39	Win	33–4–2	Memo Morales	TKO	6 (10), 2:37	Apr 26, 1971	Template:Age in years and days	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
38	Win	32–4–2	Rafael Lopez	TKO	1 (10), 1:43	Apr 13, 1971	Template:Age in years and days	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
37	Win	31–4–2	Arturo "Baby" Lorona	PTS	10	Nov 14, 1970	Template:Age in years and days	Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines
36	Win	30–4–2	Don Johnson	TKO	7 (10)	Sep 19, 1970	Template:Age in years and days	Araneta Coliseum, Barangay Cubao, Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines
35	Win	29–4–2	Tony Jumao As	PTS	10	Jul 25, 1970	Template:Age in years and days	Araneta Coliseum, Barangay Cubao, Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines
34	Win	28–4–2	Willie Asuncion	PTS	10	Jul 12, 1970	Template:Age in years and days	Manila, Metro Manila, Philippines
33	Win	27–4–2	Ernie Cruz	PTS	10	Jun 6, 1970	Template:Age in years and days	Araneta Coliseum, Barangay Cubao, Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines
32	Template:DrawDraw	26–4–2	Tony Jumao As	TD	5 (10)	Feb 28, 1970	Template:Age in years and days	Rizal Memorial Coliseum, Manila, Metro Manila, Philippines
31	Win	26–4–1	Arturo Eracho	PTS	10	Dec 20, 1969	Template:Age in years and days	Manila, Metro Manila, Philippines
30	Win	25–4–1	Fil Del Mundo	PTS	10	Oct 4, 1969	Template:Age in years and days	Manila, Metro Manila, Philippines
29	Win	24–4–1	Marcial Macatangay Jr.	KO	7 (10)	Aug 20, 1969	Template:Age in years and days	Manila, Metro Manila, Philippines
28	Win	23–4–1	Billy Cangas	PTS	10	Jul 7, 1969	Template:Age in years and days	Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines
27	Win	22–4–1	Boy Torno	PTS	10	May 1, 1969	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Uncertain of date
26	Win	21–4–1	Baby Paramount	PTS	10	Mar 1, 1969	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
25	Win	20–4–1	Carlito Kid	PTS	10	Feb 1, 1969	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
24	Loss	19–4–1	Ely Yares	PTS	10	Jul 1, 1968	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
23	Win	19–3–1	Flash Barba	KO	8 (?)	Jun 1, 1968	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
22	Loss	18–3–1	Baby Paramount	PTS	10	Apr 10, 1968	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
21	Win	18–2–1	Tanny Amancio	KO	7 (10)	Apr 1, 1968	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
20	Win	17–2–1	Ver Quizon	PTS	10	Mar 1, 1968	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
19	Win	16–2–1	Rocky Villahermosa	KO	5 (?)	Feb 10, 1968	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
18	Template:DrawDraw	15–2–1	Blackie Olympia	PTS	10	Jan 1, 1968	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
17	Win	15–2	Flash Barba	PTS	10	Nov 1, 1967	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
16	Win	14–2	Boy Olayan	PTS	8	Oct 1, 1967	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
15	Loss	13–2	Roger Boy Pedrano	PTS	8	Sep 1, 1967	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
14	Win	13–1	Ben Aranas	KO	8 (?)	Aug 1, 1967	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
13	Loss	12–1	Roger Boy Pedrano	PTS	8	Jul 1, 1967	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
12	Win	12–0	Little Pedring	PTS	6	Jun 1, 1967	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
11	Win	11–0	Young Francisco	KO	3 (?)	May 1, 1967	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
10	Win	10–0	Luis Manuel	PTS	6	Apr 1, 1967	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
9	Win	9–0	Matt Villa	KO	3 (?)	Mar 1, 1967	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
8	Win	8–0	Johnny Lozaga	KO	6 (?)	Feb 1, 1967	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
7	Win	7–0	Eddie Valdez	PTS	6	Jan 1, 1967	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
6	Win	6–0	Joe Louis	KO	1 (?)	Dec 10, 1966	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
5	Win	5–0	Rocky Romeo	KO	4 (?)	Dec 1, 1966	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
4	Win	4–0	Pat Masong	KO	4 (?)	Nov 10, 1966	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
3	Win	3–0	Bob Rule	PTS	4	Nov 1, 1966	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
2	Win	2–0	Little Timoteo	KO	3 (?)	Oct 10, 1966	Template:Age in years	Philippines	Date unknown
1	Win	1–0	Flash Javier	PTS	4	Oct 1, 1966	Template:Age in years	Zamboanga City, Philippines	Date unknown

See also

• List of super featherweight boxing champions
• List of WBA world champions

External links

• Template:Boxrec
• Villaflor Bio at Ringside Report
• Ben Villaflor - CBZ Profile