Antonio Esparragoza Betancourt (born September 2, 1959 in Cumaná

Cumaná

Cumaná is the capital of Venezuela's Sucre State. It is located 402 km east of Caracas. It was the first settlement founded by Europeans in the mainland America, in 1501 by Franciscan friars, but due to successful attacks by the indigenous people, it had to be refounded several times...

) was a boxer

Boxing

Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...

 in the featherweight

Featherweight

Featherweight is a weight class division in the sport of boxing. There are similarly named divisions under several Mixed Martial Arts organizations and in Greco-Roman wrestling.-Professional boxing:...

 division from Venezuela

Venezuela

Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...

.

Amateur career

Esparragoza represented Venezuela as a Featherweight at the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games.

• 1st round bye
• Lost to Peter Hanlon (Great Britain) 1-4

Professional career

Esparragoza turned pro in 1981 and after largely fighting unproven fighters in his native Venezuela was granted a shot at Lineal & WBA Featherweight Titles holder Steve Cruz in 1987. Esparragoza pulled off an upset with a TKO in the 12th round. Esparragoza defended the titles seven times before losing the belts to Yong-Kyun Park

Yong-Kyun Park

Yong-Kyun Park is a former Korean boxer. He was the Lineal & WBA Featherweight Champion from 1991-1993.-References:...

 in 1991 via unanimous decision. He retired after the loss.

Due to his incredible knockout power, Esparragoza is ranked at 75 in Ring Magazine's list of 100 Greatest Punchers.