Alfredo Escalera retired with a professional record of 53-14-3, as ‘El Salsero’ made 10 defenses of his WBC World Featherweight title.
Starting his career in 1970, Escalera was 18 when he started his boxing journey with a round-four knockout. Five years later, the Puerto Rican could call himself a world champion.
With a professional record of 29-7-1, a 23-year-old Escalera knocked out Kuniaki Shibata to win the WBC World Featherweight title.
Escalera’s title win would put him in the same category as Amanda Serrano and Hector Camacho, who retired Roberto Duran and Sugar Ray Leonard, as champions from Puerto Rico.
Aiming to make a fourth defense of his world title, Escalera traveled to enemy territory.
Alfredo Escalera knocked out Buzzsaw Yamabe in Japan to defend world title
With a record of 33-7-2, Escalera traveled to Kashihara, Japan to take on Buzzsaw Yamabe in his native country on April 1st, 1976.
Yamabe had a 24-4-2 record going into the title bout, and was getting his first opportunity at a championship belt. The Japanese fighter was also riding a seven-fight win streak going into the title bout.
The pair had a closely contested battle as Yamabe was applying pressure to the champion while Escalera was the more technical of the two.
After five completed rounds, the referee and one judge had the bout scored as a draw. The third judging official had the champion ahead with a scorecard of 49-47.
In round six, Escalera would end the battle of the 24-year-olds. As the Puerto Rican was landing punishing blows on Yamabe against the ropes, the referee called off the fight.
The Japanese Boxing Commission was not content with the stoppage, resulting in the pair rematching three months later.
Alfredo Escalera would earn a brace of victories over Buzzsaw Yamabe in 1976
Due to the somewhat controversial ending of their first meeting, Escalera and Yamabe met for an immediate rematch on July 1st, 1976.
Fighting once again in Kashihara, Japan, the fight would have a more conclusive ending. This time, the pair went all 15 rounds of the title bout, but it was Escalera who once again prevailed.
The judges scored the bout in favor of the Puerto Rican, with scorecards of 146-140, 146-141, and 147-140.
Yamabe would not pick up a world title in the remainder of his career. As for Escalera, he would hold his WBC World Super Featherweight Championship until 1978.