Ben Villaflor


Benjamin Villaflor 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 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.ResultRecordOpponentTypeRound,
time		DateAgeLocationNotes
68Loss56–6–6Samuel SerranoUD15Oct 16, 1976Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, Puerto RicoLost WBA and The Ring super featherweight titles
67Win56–5–6Rogelio CastanedaUD10Aug 31, 1976Blaisdell Center Arena, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
66Draw55–5–6Samuel SerranoSD15Apr 13, 1976Blaisdell Center Arena, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.Retained WBA and The Ring super featherweight titles
65Win55–5–5Morito KashiwabaKO13, 1:29Jan 12, 1976Korakuen Hall, Tokyo, JapanRetained WBA and The Ring super featherweight titles
64Win54–5–5Hyun Chi KimSD15Mar 13, 1975Araneta Coliseum, Barangay Cubao,
Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines		Retained WBA and The Ring super featherweight titles
63Draw53–5–5Ray Lunny IIITD6 Nov 14, 1974Cow Palace, Daly City, California, U.S.
62Win53–5–4Yasutsune UeharaKO2, 1:17Aug 24, 1974Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.Retained WBA and The Ring super featherweight titles
61Win52–5–4Takao MarukiTKO7, 0:47Jul 19, 1974Araneta Coliseum, Barangay Cubao,
Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines
60Draw51–5–4Apollo YoshioSD15Mar 14, 1974City Gymnasium, Toyama, JapanRetained WBA and The Ring super featherweight titles
59Win51–5–3Kuniaki ShibataKO1, 1:56Oct 17, 1973Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.Won WBA and The Ring super featherweight titles
58Win50–5–3Akihiro KawasakiKO3, 2:20Aug 21, 1973Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
57Win49–5–3Kenji IwataKO1, 2:58Jul 18, 1973Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
56Loss48–5–3Kuniaki ShibataUD15Mar 12, 1973Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.Lost WBA and The Ring super featherweight titles
55Win48–4–3Juan ColladoUD10Jan 30, 1973Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
54Win47–4–3Jimmy RobertsonUD10Nov 14, 1972Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
53Draw46–4–3Victor Federico EchegaraySD15Sep 5, 1972Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.Retained WBA and The Ring super featherweight titles
52Win46–4–2Carlos FernandezTKO3, 1:37Jul 5, 1972Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
51Win45–4–2Alfredo MarcanoUD15Apr 25, 1972Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.Won WBA and The Ring super featherweight titles
50Win44–4–2Jose Luis LopezKO2, 2:21Mar 7, 1972Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
49Win43–4–2Frankie CrawfordTKO1, 2:52Jan 25, 1972Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
48Win42–4–2Ray VegaKO7, 1:39Dec 14, 1971Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
47Win41–4–2Raul CruzTKO8, 1:42Nov 16, 1971Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
46Win40–4–2Ricardo GarciaUD10Sep 28, 1971Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
45Win39–4–2Tadashi OkamotoKO1, 0:50Sep 14, 1971Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
44Win38–4–2Manuel MendozaUD10Aug 10, 1971Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
43Win37–4–2Memin HernandezKO1, 1:27Jul 6, 1971Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
42Win36–4–2Jesus MariscalTKO4, 1:26Jun 22, 1971Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
41Win35–4–2Delfino CamachoTKO2 Jun 8, 1971Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
40Win34–4–2Jose Luis MartinezKO5, 1:02May 18, 1971Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
39Win33–4–2Memo MoralesTKO6, 2:37Apr 26, 1971Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
38Win32–4–2Rafael LopezTKO1, 1:43Apr 13, 1971Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
37Win31–4–2Arturo "Baby" LoronaPTS10Nov 14, 1970Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines
36Win30–4–2Don JohnsonTKO7 Sep 19, 1970Araneta Coliseum, Barangay Cubao,
Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines
35Win29–4–2Tony Jumao AsPTS10Jul 25, 1970Araneta Coliseum, Barangay Cubao,
Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines
34Win28–4–2Willie AsuncionPTS10Jul 12, 1970Manila, Metro Manila, Philippines
33Win27–4–2Ernie CruzPTS10Jun 6, 1970Araneta Coliseum, Barangay Cubao,
Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines
32Draw26–4–2Tony Jumao AsTD5 Feb 28, 1970Rizal Memorial Coliseum, Manila, Metro Manila, Philippines
31Win26–4–1Arturo ErachoPTS10Dec 20, 1969Manila, Metro Manila, Philippines
30Win25–4–1Fil Del MundoPTS10Oct 4, 1969Manila, Metro Manila, Philippines
29Win24–4–1Marcial Macatangay Jr.KO7 Aug 20, 1969Manila, Metro Manila, Philippines
28Win23–4–1Billy CangasPTS10Jul 7, 1969Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines
27Win22–4–1Boy TornoPTS10May 1, 1969PhilippinesUncertain of date
26Win21–4–1Baby ParamountPTS10Mar 1, 1969PhilippinesDate unknown
25Win20–4–1Carlito KidPTS10Feb 1, 1969PhilippinesDate unknown
24Loss19–4–1Ely YaresPTS10Jul 1, 1968PhilippinesDate unknown
23Win19–3–1Flash BarbaKO8 Jun 1, 1968PhilippinesDate unknown
22Loss18–3–1Baby ParamountPTS10Apr 10, 1968PhilippinesDate unknown
21Win18–2–1Tanny AmancioKO7 Apr 1, 1968PhilippinesDate unknown
20Win17–2–1Ver QuizonPTS10Mar 1, 1968PhilippinesDate unknown
19Win16–2–1Rocky VillahermosaKO5 Feb 10, 1968PhilippinesDate unknown
18Draw15–2–1Blackie OlympiaPTS10Jan 1, 1968PhilippinesDate unknown
17Win15–2Flash BarbaPTS10Nov 1, 1967PhilippinesDate unknown
16Win14–2Boy OlayanPTS8Oct 1, 1967PhilippinesDate unknown
15Loss13–2Roger Boy PedranoPTS8Sep 1, 1967PhilippinesDate unknown
14Win13–1Ben AranasKO8 Aug 1, 1967PhilippinesDate unknown
13Loss12–1Roger Boy PedranoPTS8Jul 1, 1967PhilippinesDate unknown
12Win12–0Little PedringPTS6Jun 1, 1967PhilippinesDate unknown
11Win11–0Young FranciscoKO3 May 1, 1967PhilippinesDate unknown
10Win10–0Luis ManuelPTS6Apr 1, 1967PhilippinesDate unknown
9Win9–0Matt VillaKO3 Mar 1, 1967PhilippinesDate unknown
8Win8–0Johnny LozagaKO6 Feb 1, 1967PhilippinesDate unknown
7Win7–0Eddie ValdezPTS6Jan 1, 1967PhilippinesDate unknown
6Win6–0Joe LouisKO1 Dec 10, 1966PhilippinesDate unknown
5Win5–0Rocky RomeoKO4 Dec 1, 1966PhilippinesDate unknown
4Win4–0Pat MasongKO4 Nov 10, 1966PhilippinesDate unknown
3Win3–0Bob RulePTS4Nov 1, 1966PhilippinesDate unknown
2Win2–0Little TimoteoKO3 Oct 10, 1966PhilippinesDate unknown
1Win1–0Flash JavierPTS4Oct 1, 1966Zamboanga City, PhilippinesDate unknown