Rigoberto Riasco


Rigoberto Riasco also known as "Little Poison", was a Panamanian professional boxer who competed from 1968 to 1982. He was the Lineal and WBC Super bantamweight champion in 1976. Riasco defeated such men as Dong Kyun Yum, Leonel Hernández, Rafael Ortega, Waruinge Nakayama, Luis Ávila, Santos Luis Rivera, Seiji "Flipper" Uehara, and Sanjo Takemori.

Professional boxing career

Riasco made his professional debut on 25 August 1968 with a four-round draw with Carlos Mendoza and after winning the featherweight national championship, he fought Alexis Argüello, who defeated him with a second round technical knockout.
After his defeat, he defeated previously unbeaten Luis Ávila and Puerto Rican Santos Luis Rivera, who had knocked him out in the first round in Puerto Rico. Those victories earned him the chance to fight for the newly created WBC championship belt.
On 3 April 1976, Riasco defeated Kenyan Waruinge Nakayama for the WBC and Lineal Super bantamweight titles. He made two successful defenses against Livio Nolasco and Dong Kyun Yum before losing his belt in his third defense against Japanese Royal Kobayashi in Tokyo on October 9, 1976.
He announced his retirement in 1981, but returned later. After three consecutive defeats, Riasco officially announced his retirement in 1982. He left with a record of 29 wins with 13 KOs, 9 losses, and 4 draws.

Professional boxing record

No.ResultRecordOpponentTypeRound, timeDateLocationNotes
40Loss26–9–4 Mário MirandaKO4 Mar 19, 1982Plaza de Toros de Cartagena de Indias, Cartagena, ColombiaFor WBC Continental Americas featherweight title
39Loss26–8–4 Carlos NúñezDQ9 Jan 16, 1982Gimnasio Nuevo Panama, Panama City, Panama
38Loss26–7–4 Il YangPTS10Dec 19, 1981Seoul, South Korea
37Win26–6–4 Jose SantanaPTS10Aug 15, 1981Gimnasio Nuevo Panama, Panama City, Panama
36Win25–6–4 Pascual PattersonMD10Jul 25, 1981Gimnasio Neco de la Guardia, Panama City, Panama
35Loss24–6–4 Kazuo KobayashiKO8 Oct 9, 1976Kuramae Kokugikan, Tokyo, JapanLost WBC super-bantamweight title
34Win24–5–4 Yum Dong-kyunSD15Aug 1, 1976Busan Stadium, Busan, South KoreaRetained WBC super-bantamweight title
Referee Rosadilla was reportedly assaulted after the bout,
and forced to reverse his decision to favor Yum
33Win23–5–4 Livio NolascoTKO10 Jun 12, 1976Gimnasio Nuevo Panama, Panama City, PanamaRetained WBC super-bantamweight title
32Win22–5–4 Waruinge NakayamaRTD8 Apr 3, 1976Gimnasio Nuevo Panama, Panama City, PanamaWon inaugural WBC super-bantamweight title
31Win21–5–4 Santos Luis RiveraTKO7 Nov 15, 1975Gimnasio Nuevo Panama, Panama City, Panama
30Win20–5–4 Luis ÁvilaUD12Aug 23, 1975Gimnasio Nuevo Panama, Panama City, PanamaRetained Panamanian featherweight title
29Loss19–5–4 Alexis ArgüelloTKO2 May 31, 1975Estadio Flor de Cana, Granada, NicaraguaFor WBA & vacant The Ring featherweight titles
28Win19–4–4 Raul SilvaTKO10 Mar 9, 1975Gimnasio Orlando Winter, Panama City, Panama
27Win18–4–4 Nestor HerreraTKO1 Feb 19, 1975Caracas, Venezuela
26Win17–4–4 Renan MarotaUD10Jan 25, 1975Gimnasio Nuevo Panama, Panama City, Panama
25Win16–4–4 Flipper UeharaPTS10Oct 21, 1974Korakuen Hall, Tokyo, Japan
24Draw15–4–4 Sanjo TakemoriPTS10Jun 24, 1974Japan
23Win15–4–3 Jesus EstradaTKO4 May 11, 1974Monterrey, Mexico
22Win14–4–3 Kid ClayPTS10Mar 2, 1974Gimnasio Nuevo Panama, Panama City, Panama
21Win13–4–3 Rafael OrtegaUD12Dec 15, 1973Gimnasio Nuevo Panama, Panama City, PanamaRetained Panamanian featherweight title
20Win12–4–3 Vicente BlancoTKO6 Sep 14, 1973Gimnasio Neco de la Guardia, Panama City, Panama
19Loss11–4–3 Santos Luis RiveraKO1 Aug 4, 1973Roberto Clemente Coliseum, San Juan, Puerto Rico
18Win11–3–3 Leonel HernandezUD10Jun 2, 1973Gimnasio Nuevo Panama, Panama City, Panama
17Win10–3–3 Jose Angel HerreraSD10May 3, 1973Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, U.S.
16Win9–3–3 Miguel EspinosaPTS10Nov 18, 1972Gimnasio Nuevo Panama, Panama City, Panama
15Win8–3–3 Enrique AlonsoKO4 Oct 28, 1972Gimnasio Nuevo Panama, Panama City, PanamaWon vacant Panamanian featherweight title
14Win7–3–3 Alberto HerreraTKO5 Aug 18, 1972Guayaquil, Ecuador
13Loss6–3–3 Enrique AlonsoUD10Apr 29, 1972Arena de Colon, Colón, Panama
12Loss6–2–3 Jose Luis MezaUD10Jan 30, 1971Arena México, Mexico City, Mexico
11Win6–1–3 Francisco AmaroTKO6 Nov 24, 1970Jai Alai Frontón Palacio, Tijuana, Mexico
10Loss5–1–3 Jorge ReyesPTS10Oct 10, 1970Mexico City, Mexico
9Win5–0–3 Humberto ArboledaTKO3 May 24, 1970Gimnasio Nuevo Panama, Panama City, Panama
8Win4–0–3 Carlos MendozaKO6 Dec 13, 1969Arena de Colon, Colón, Panama
7Draw3–0–3 Enrique WarrenPTS6Oct 5, 1969Gimnasio Neco de la Guardia, Panama City, Panama
6NC3–0–2 Catalino AlvaradoNC4 Aug 10, 1969Gimnasio Neco de la Guardia, Panama City, Panama
5Win3–0–2Manuel JimenezUD4Mar 2, 1969Estadio Juan Demóstenes Arosemena, Panama City, Panama
4Draw2–0–2Manuel JimenezPTS4Feb 9, 1969Gimnasio Neco de la Guardia, Panama City, Panama
3Win2–0–1Manuel JimenezKO1 Dec 15, 1968Gimnasio Neco de la Guardia, Panama City, Panama
2Win1–0–1Santos PenaUD4Nov 30, 1968Gimnasio Neco de la Guardia, Panama City, Panama
1Draw0–0–1Carlos MendozaPTS4Aug 25, 1968Gimnasio Neco de la Guardia, Panama City, Panama

Death

Riasco died on August 22, 2022, at the age of 69.