Benny Paret


Bernardo "Benny the Kid" Paret was a Cuban welterweight boxer who won the World Welterweight Championship twice in the early 1960s. He also vied for the world middleweight championship. He was born in Santa Clara, Cuba.
Paret's death occurred 10 days after injuries sustained in a March 24, 1962, title defense against Emile Griffith, televised live and seen by millions on ABC's Fight of the Week. Paret had a lifetime record of 35 wins, 12 losses and 3 draws.

Boxing career

Paret won the welterweight title for the first time on May 27, 1960, by defeating Don Jordan. In his first defense of the title, Emile Griffith knocked him out in the thirteenth round on April 1, 1961. Paret recaptured the crown on September 30, 1961, in a split-decision over Griffith. Barely two months later, Paret took on middleweight champion Gene Fullmer and was knocked out in the tenth round being behind on all three judges' scorecards.

Last fight and death

Although Paret had been battered in the two fights with Griffith and the fight with Fullmer, he decided that he would defend his title against Griffith three months after the Fullmer fight. Paret-Griffith III was booked for Madison Square Garden on Saturday, March 24, 1962, and was televised live by ABC. In round six Paret nearly knocked out Griffith with a multi punch combination but Griffith was saved by the bell.
In the twelfth round of the fight Don Dunphy, who was calling the bout for ABC, remarked, "This is probably the tamest round of the entire fight." Seconds later, Griffith backed Paret into the corner before he unleashed a massive flurry of punches to the champion's head.
It quickly became apparent that Paret was dazed by the initial shots and could not defend himself, but referee Ruby Goldstein allowed Griffith to continue his assault. Finally, after twenty-nine consecutive punches which knocked Paret through the ropes at one point, Goldstein stepped in and called a halt to the bout.
Paret collapsed in the corner from the barrage of punches, fell into a coma, and died ten days later at Roosevelt Hospital in Manhattan from massive brain hemorrhaging. Paret was buried at Saint Raymond's Cemetery in the borough of the Bronx in New York City.
The last fight between Paret and Griffith was the subject of many controversies. It is theorized that one of the reasons Paret died was that he was vulnerable due to the beatings he took in his previous three fights, all of which happened within twelve months of each other. New York State boxing authorities were criticized for giving Paret clearance to fight just several months after the Fullmer fight. The actions of Paret at the weigh in before his final fight have come under scrutiny. It is alleged that Paret taunted Griffith by calling him maricón.
Griffith wanted to fight Paret on the spot but was restrained. Griffith would come out as bisexual in his later years, but in 1962 allegations of homosexuality were considered fatal to an athlete's career and a particularly grievous insult in the culture both fighters came from. The referee Ruby Goldstein, a respected veteran, came under criticism for not stopping the fight sooner. It has been argued that Goldstein hesitated because of Paret's reputation of feigning injury and Griffith's reputation as a poor finisher.
Another theory is that Goldstein was afraid that Paret's supporters would riot. The incident, combined with the death of Davey Moore a year later for a different injury in the ring, would cause debate as to whether boxing should be considered a sport. Boxing would not be televised on a regular basis again until the 1970s.
The fight also marked the end of Goldstein's long and respected career as a referee, as he was unable to find work after that. The fight was the centerpiece of a 2005 documentary entitled Ring of Fire: The Emile Griffith Story. At the end of the documentary, Griffith, who has harbored guilt over the incident over the years, is introduced to Paret's son. The son embraced Griffith, and told him he was forgiven.

In popular culture

Paret's death was chronicled in a 1962 protest song by folksinger Gil Turner. The song, "Benny 'Kid' Paret", was published in Broadside magazine that same month and was recorded later in the year by Turner's group, The New World Singers, for the 1963 Folkways album Broadside Ballads, Vol. 1.
The emotive poem "Muerte en el Ring" by Afro-Peruvian poet Nicomedes Santa Cruz recounts Paret's life, to the moment of his last breath.
A semi-fictionalized story of the fight was told live by radio dramatist Joe Frank in the 1978 program "80 Yard Run" on WBAI in New York, and replayed several times subsequently on NPR. In it, Frank cast Griffith rather than Paret as the defending champion and makes no mention of Paret's recent fights or his prior history with Griffith. In the dramatized version, Griffith dominates the fight from the beginning, with the fight ending in the middle rounds and Paret dying later that night.
Paret is also one of many boxers named in the lyrics of Sun Kil Moon's album Ghosts Of The Great Highway. The album builds several songs around the stories of boxers who died early deaths.
The story of Emile Griffith and Paret's death has been turned into an Opera in Jazz, Champion. It premiered on the campus of Webster University in Webster Groves, Missouri on June 15, 2013. The opera was written by composer Terence Blanchard, with a libretto by playwright Michael Cristofer, who went on to develop the stage play "Man in the Ring" on the same subject. The play premiered at the Court Theatre in Chicago in 2016.

Professional boxing record

No.ResultRecordOpponentTypeRound, timeDateLocationNotes
50Loss35–12–3 Emile GriffithTKO12 Mar 24, 1962 Madison Square Garden, New YorkLost The Ring and lineal welterweight titles
49Loss35–11–3 Gene FullmerKO10 Dec 09, 1961 Convention Center, Las VegasFor NBA middleweight title
48Win35–10–3 Emile GriffithSD15Sep 30, 1961 Madison Square Garden, New YorkWon The Ring and lineal welterweight titles
47Loss34–10–3 Emile GriffithKO13 Apr 01, 1961 Convention Center, Miami BeachLost The Ring and lineal welterweight titles
46Loss34–9–3 Gaspar OrtegaUD10Feb 25, 1961 Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles
45Win34–8–3 Luis Federico ThompsonUD15Dec 10, 1960 Madison Square Garden, New YorkRetained The Ring and lineal welterweight titles
44Loss33–8–3 Denny MoyerSD10Aug 16, 1960 Madison Square Garden, New York
43Win33–7–3 Garnet HartKO6 Jul 12, 1960 Madison Square Garden, New York
42Win32–7–3 Don JordanUD15May 27, 1960 Convention Center, Las VegasWon The Ring and lineal welterweight titles
41Draw31–7–3 Luis Federico ThompsonPTS12Mar 25, 1960 Madison Square Garden, New York
40Win31–7–2 Charley ScottSD10Jan 29, 1960 Madison Square Garden, New York
39Win30–7–2 Charley ScottUD10Dec 18, 1959 Madison Square Garden, New York
38Win29–7–2 Bob ProvizziUD10Nov 16, 1959 Academy of Music, New York
37Draw28–7–2 José TorresPTS10Sep 26, 1959 Sixto Escobar Stadium, San Juan
36Loss28–7–1 Gaspar OrtegaSD10Aug 07, 1959 Madison Square Garden, New York
35Win28–6–1 Rudy SawyerUD10Jun 01, 1959 St. Nicholas Arena, New York
34Loss27–6–1 Eddie ThompsonSD10Apr 20, 1959 St. Nicholas Arena, New York
33Loss27–5–1 Cecil ShortsMD10Mar 02, 1959 St. Nicholas Arena, New York
32Win27–4–1 Victor ZalazarUD10Jan 19, 1959 St. Nicholas Arena, New York
31Win26–4–1 Victor ZalazarSD10Dec 15, 1958 St. Nicholas Arena, New York
30Win25–4–1 Barry AllisonUD10Nov 24, 1958 St. Nicholas Arena, New York
29Win24–4–1 Andy FigaroKO1 Nov 10, 1958 St. Nicholas Arena, New York
28Loss23–4–1 Luis Manuel RodriguezSD10Aug 09, 1958 Coliseo de la Ciudad, Havana
27Win23–3–1 Augustin RosalesTKO8 Jun 21, 1958 Coliseo de la Ciudad, Havana
26Win22–3–1 Eddie ArmstrongUD10Jun 09, 1958 St. Nicholas Arena, New York
25Draw21–3–1 Bobby ShellPTS6May 19, 1958 St. Nicholas Arena, New York
24Win21–3 Tony ArmenterosPTS10Mar 08, 1958 Palacio de Deportes, Havana
23Loss20–3 Luis Manuel RodriguezUD10Feb 08, 1958 Palacio de Deportes, Havana
22Win20–2 Rolando RodriguezPTS8Jan 25, 1958 Palacio de Deportes, Havana
21Win19–2 Regino BravoKO3 Jan 04, 1958 Arena Trejo, Havana
20Win18–2 Rolando RodriguezKO5 May 25, 1957 Palacio de Deportes, Havana
19Win17–2 Carlos ChibasPTS8May 04, 1957 Palacio de Deportes, Havana
18Loss16–2 Guillermo DiazPTS8Apr 06, 1957 Palacio de Deportes, Havana
17Win16–1 Rolando RodriguezPTS8Mar 23, 1957Palacio de Deportes, Havana
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