Miguel Lora Escudero (born April 12, 1961 in Montería, Córdoba), known as Miguel Lora or "Happy" Lora is a Colombian boxer. He reigned as the WBC bantamweight champion of the world from 1985 to 1988.
Miguel Lora | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Miguel Lora Escudero April 12, 1961 Montería, Colombia |
| Nationality | Colombian |
| Other names | Happy |
| Statistics | |
| Weight(s) | |
| Height | 5 ft 6 in (168 cm) |
| Reach | 63 in (160 cm) |
| Stance | Orthodox |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 40 |
| Wins | 37 |
| Wins by KO | 17 |
| Losses | 3 |
Beginnings and world title
editLora started training in his native Montería and eventually represented his home department. In 1977 he won a gold medal in a local tournament. From 1980 to 1983 he won several national and regional titles. On August 9, 1985 he got his first chance to fight for the championship against Mexican Daniel Zaragoza. Lora defeated Zaragoza to become the fifth Colombian world champion.
Memorable bouts
editAfter the world title, Lora fought Puerto Rican Wilfredo Vázquez. He defended his belt eight times and fought boxers such as Alberto Davila,[1] Antonio Avelar, Ray Minus,[2] Lucio Omar López, until he lost against Raúl "Jíbaro" Pérez.
During the three years that Miguel "Happy" Lora kept his title, he was known for his defensive, methodical style.
Professional boxing record
edit| 40 fights | 37 wins | 3 losses |
|---|---|---|
| By knockout | 17 | 1 |
| By decision | 20 | 2 |
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 40 | Loss | 37–3 | Rafael del Valle | UD | 12 (12) | 1993-06-19 | Roberto Clemente Coliseum, San Juan, Puerto Rico | For WBO bantamweight title |
| 39 | Win | 37–2 | Cesar Polanco | UD | 10 (10) | 1993-04-23 | Coliseo El Salitre, Bogotá, Colombia | |
| 38 | Win | 36–2 | Ricky Romero | KO | 3 (10) | 1992-09-26 | Convention Center, Miami Beach, Florida, U.S. | |
| 37 | Win | 35–2 | Gabriel Bernal | PTS | 10 (10) | 1992-04-12 | Bogotá, Colombia | |
| 36 | Win | 34–2 | Rolando Bohol | PTS | 10 (10) | 1991-08-02 | Coliseo El Campin], Bogotá, Colombia | |
| 35 | Loss | 33–2 | Gaby Canizales | KO | 2 (12) | 1991-03-12 | The Palace, Auburn Hills, Michigan, U.S. | For vacant WBO bantamweight title |
| 34 | Win | 33–1 | Bernardo Mendoza | PTS | 10 (10) | 1990-12-14 | Montería, Colombia | |
| 33 | Win | 32–1 | Emilio Aponte | TKO | 3 (10) | 1990-08-18 | Montería, Colombia | |
| 32 | Loss | 31–1 | Raúl Pérez | UD | 12 (12) | 1988-10-29 | Las Vegas Hilton, Winchester, Nevada, U.S. | Lost WBC bantamweight title |
| 31 | Win | 31–0 | Alberto Dávila | UD | 12 (12) | 1988-08-01 | Great Western Forum, Inglewood, California, U.S. | Retained WBC bantamweight title |
| 30 | Win | 30–0 | Lucio Omar Lopez | UD | 12 (12) | 1988-04-30 | Plaza de Toros, Cartagena, Colombia | Retained WBC bantamweight title |
| 29 | Win | 29–0 | Ray Minus | UD | 12 (12) | 1987-11-27 | Convention Center, Miami Beach, Florida, U.S. | Retained WBC bantamweight title |
| 28 | Win | 28–0 | Antonio Avelar | KO | 4 (12) | 1987-07-25 | Marine Stadium, Key Biscayne, Florida, U.S. | Retained WBC bantamweight title |
| 27 | Win | 27–0 | Alberto Dávila | UD | 12 (12) | 1986-11-15 | Estadio Metropolitano, Barranquilla, Colombia | Retained WBC bantamweight title |
| 26 | Win | 26–0 | Enrique Sánchez | TKO | 6 (12) | 1986-08-23 | Convention Center, Miami Beach, Florida, U.S. | Retained WBC bantamweight title |
| 25 | Win | 25–0 | Wilfredo Vázquez | UD | 12 (12) | 1986-02-08 | Convention Center, Miami Beach, Florida, U.S. | Retained WBC bantamweight title |
| 24 | Win | 24–0 | Daniel Zaragoza | UD | 12 (12) | 1985-08-09 | Tamiami Fairgrounds Auditorium, Miami, Florida, U.S. | Won WBC bantamweight title |
| 23 | Win | 23–0 | Diego Avila | TKO | 8 (10) | 1985-06-07 | Tamiami Fairgrounds Auditorium, Miami, Florida, U.S. | |
| 22 | Win | 22–0 | Ramon Antonio Nery | TKO | 2 (10) | 1985-05-10 | Tamiami Fairgrounds Auditorium, Miami, Florida, U.S. | |
| 21 | Win | 21–0 | Jose Chacon | PTS | 10 (10) | 1984-11-24 | Estadio 18 de Junio, Montería, Colombia | |
| 20 | Win | 20–0 | Juan Torres | PTS | 10 (10) | 1984-07-03 | Jai Alai Fronton, Miami, Florida, U.S. | |
| 19 | Win | 19–0 | Edwin Rangel | PTS | 10 (10) | 1984-02-18 | Plaza de Toros, Cartagena, Colombia | |
| 18 | Win | 18–0 | Juan Díaz | TKO | 5 (10) | 1983-12-16 | Montería, Colombia | |
| 17 | Win | 17–0 | Pedro Romero | PTS | 12 (12) | 1983-09-18 | Cereté, Colombia | Retained WBC Continental Americas bantamweight title |
| 16 | Win | 16–0 | Jose Salazar | KO | 3 (?) | 1983-07-30 | Sincelejo, Colombia | |
| 15 | Win | 15–0 | Rubén Darío Palacio | PTS | 12 (12) | 1983-05-12 | Montería, Colombia | Won vacant WBC Continental Americas bantamweight title |
| 14 | Win | 14–0 | Miguel Perez | PTS | 12 (12) | 1982-09-17 | Montería, Colombia | Won Colombian super-flyweight title |
| 13 | Win | 13–0 | Charles Maussa | KO | 7 (?) | 1982-07-30 | Montería, Colombia | |
| 12 | Win | 12–0 | Edelmiro Cassiani | KO | 7 (?) | 1982-02-27 | Montería, Colombia | |
| 11 | Win | 11–0 | Luis Tapias | TKO | 3 (?) | 1981-12-18 | Montería, Colombia | |
| 10 | Win | 10–0 | Carlos Osorio | PTS | 10 (10) | 1981-05-28 | Montería, Colombia | |
| 9 | Win | 9–0 | Arnold Sarmiento | TKO | 3 (?) | 1980-12-03 | Montería, Colombia | |
| 8 | Win | 8–0 | Juan Alvarez | PTS | 10 (10) | 1980-10-31 | Montería, Colombia | |
| 7 | Win | 7–0 | Orlando Tejedor | KO | 1 (10) | 1980-08-14 | Coliseo El Campin, Bogotá, Colombia | |
| 6 | Win | 6–0 | Julio Soto Solano | PTS | 12 (12) | 1980-06-12 | Montería, Colombia | Won WBC FECARBOX super-flyweight title |
| 5 | Win | 5–0 | Justo Jorge | TKO | 3 (?) | 1980-03-28 | Montería, Colombia | |
| 4 | Win | 4–0 | Arnold Sarmiento | KO | 3 (?) | 1979-12-22 | Montería, Colombia | |
| 3 | Win | 3–0 | Tomas Maza | KO | 1 (?) | 1979-11-23 | Coliseo de la Circunvalacion, Montería, Colombia | |
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | Alfredo Gomez | KO | 1 (?) | 1979-10-26 | Coliseo de la Circunvalacion, Montería, Colombia | |
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Wilfredo Ruiz | PTS | 6 (6) | 1979-07-27 | Montería, Colombia |
Retirement
editAfter his loss to Raúl "Jíbaro" Pérez, he fought for a world title against Gaby Canizales, who won by knockout and eventually dislodged Lora's fifth cervical vertebrae. Miguel "Happy" Lora decided to retire form boxing in 1993 and since then he has been living in his native Montería, dedicated to personal business, TV shows and soap operas.
See also
edit
References
edit- ^ "SPORTS PEOPLE; Contradictory Tests". The New York Times. 16 August 1988. Retrieved 2024-03-26.
- ^ "Miguel 'Happy' Lora retained his World Boxing Council bantamweight..." United Press International. Retrieved 2024-03-26.
External links
edit- Boxing record for Miguel Lora from BoxRec (registration required)