Eleoncio Mercedes


Eleoncio Mercedes was a Dominican boxer, who was world champion in the Flyweight division.

Amateur career

As an amateur he competed for his native country at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He was stopped in the first round of his opening round bout to Aleksandr Tkachenko of the Soviet Union. Mercedes was the List of flag bearers for the [Dominican Republic at the Olympics|flag bearer for the Dominican Republic] in the 1976 [Summer Olympics Parade of Nations|1976 opening ceremony].

Pro career

Born in La Romana, Mercedes campaigned most of his career in the western United States and in Mexico. He debuted as a professional boxer on July 2 of 1978 with a win over Darryl Jones in Stockton. He suffered his first defeat when he lost by a decision in Las Vegas to future world champion Joey Olivo, in Mercedes' third bout as a paid fighter.
Mercedes' first of 11 fights in a row in Mexico came in 1979, when he lost by a knockout in seven rounds to Juan Díaz. During that span of 11 fights in Mexico, he went 6-3-2, fighting in such places as Mexico City, Monterrey and Reynosa. He lost to Candido Tellez but also beat former world champion Guty Espadas, by a knockout in nine during that span.
His first fight in the Dominican Republic was a 1982 rematch with Diaz, held in Santo Domingo. He won the fight by a decision in twelve rounds, to avenge his defeat at the hands of Diaz. Up until that moment, Mercedes' record was of 10 wins, 6 losses and 2 draws, reason why it was a little surprising to his fans when the WBC announced it would give Mercedes a chance at becoming a world champion, against two time world champion Freddie Castillo, who was in his second reign. The two boxers met on November 6 of 1982, at Los Angeles. Mercedes caused another surprise among many boxing fans by defeating Castillo by a decision in 15 rounds and becoming WBC and Lineal Flyweight champion.
In his first defense, Mercedes put the titles on the line against the British boxer Charlie Magri. In round seven, the fight had to be stopped because of a cut suffered by Mercedes, which had been determined to be from a punch by Magri. Mercedes then lost his world Flyweight championships by a technical knockout in that round.
After that, Mercedes kept on boxing, but had mixed fortunes. He managed to beat future world title challenger Alonzo Gonzalez by a decision, but lost to future world champion, Mexican German Torres by a knockout in the ninth round. Mercedes also lost a twelve-round decision to future world champion Raul Jibaro Perez, as well as being knocked out in the sixth round by former world Bantamweight champion Alberto Davila.

Death

A few days before Christmas in 1985, Mercedes was shot and killed by a policeman in his native La Romana, aged 28, after allegedly pulling a gun on the policeman. Mercedes had been drinking in a bar when he was shot to death. Confusion exists as to how this incident took place as some sources state the altercation happened after a car accident.

Professional boxing record

No.ResultRecordOpponentTypeRound, timeDateLocationNotes
28Loss14–12–2Alberto DávilaRTD6 Nov 7, 1985Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, U.S.
27Loss14–11–2Raúl PérezUD10Sep 23, 1985Plaza de Toros El Toreo, Tijuana, Mexico
26Loss14–10–2Joel MezaPTS10Oct 26, 1984Mazatlan, Mexico
25Loss14–9–2Jong Kwan ChungKO5, 2:24Jul 22, 1984Changchung Gymnasium, Seoul, South Korea
24Loss14–8–2Germán TorresTKO9, 2:24Mar 15, 1984Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, U.S.
23Win14–7–2Alonzo GonzalezPTS10Dec 8, 1983Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, U.S.
22Win13–7–2Javier BrownDQ4 Jul 2, 1983La Romana, Dominican Republic
21Loss12–7–2Charlie MagriTKO7, 1:14Mar 15, 1983Wembley Arena, Wembley, England, U.K.Lost WBC and The Ring flyweight titles
20Win12–6–2Freddy CastilloSD15Nov 6, 1982Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, U.S.Won WBC and List of The [Ring world champions#Flyweight|The Ring flyweight titles]
19Win11–6–2Juan DiazUD12Jul 17, 1982La Romana, Dominican Republic
18Win10–6–2Antonio EscobarTKO10 Feb 13, 1982Mexico City, Mexico
17Win9–6–2Juan GuzmanTKO1 Sep 8, 1981La Romana, Dominican Republic
16Loss8–6–2Candido TellezDQ2 Jun 20, 1981Mexico City, Mexico
15Win8–5–2Jorge HerreraPTS10May 9, 1981Mexico City, Mexico
14Win7–5–2Jose HerreraPTS10Apr 3, 1981Mexico City, Mexico
13Win6–5–2Guty EspadasTKO9 Feb 21, 1981Merida, Mexico
12Draw5–5–2Jorge de JesusPTS10Jan 3, 1981Mexico City, Mexico
11Draw5–5–1Jose Luis CruzPTS10Nov 1, 1980Mexico City, Mexico
10Win5–5Rafael MoralesPTS10Sep 6, 1980Mexico City, Mexico
9Win4–5Baldomero SantosPTS10Jan 25, 1980Monterrey, Mexico
8Loss3–5Jose GallegosPTS10Dec 21, 1979Reynosa, Mexico
7Loss3–4Juan DiazTKO7 Sep 29, 1979Mexico City, Mexico
6Loss3–3Adelaido GalindoUD10Mar 10, 1979Forum, Inglewood, California, U.S.
5Win3–2Chocolate ReyesSD10Nov 29, 1978Silver Slipper, Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.
4Loss2–2Aaron MoruaSD10Aug 30, 1978Silver Slipper, Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.
3Loss2–1Joey OlivoUD10Aug 10, 1978Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, U.S.
2Win2–0Juan GarciaPTS5Jul 13, 1978Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, U.S.
1Win1–0Darryl JonesPTS6Jul 2, 1978Memorial Civic Auditorium, Stockton, California, U.S.

Honors

The Polideportivo Eleoncio Mercedes Coliseum in La Romana, which opened in 1983, is named after him.