Hands of Stone: The Life and Legend of Roberto Duran

by Christian Giudice

Roberto Duran is a sporting legend. Often called the greatest boxer of all time, he held world titles at four different weights, is the only boxer in history to have fought in five different decades, and his bouts with fellow greats like Sugar Ray Leonard, Thomas Hearns, and Marvin Hagler have gone down in fistic folklore. He finally retired in January of 2002, at age fifty-two, with a professional record of 104 wins (69 by KO) in 120 fights. They called him Manos de Piedra : “Hands of Stone.”
 
Now journalist Christian Giudice has written the first—and definitive—story of Duran’s incredible life both in and out of the ring. He has interviewed the fighter, his family, closest friends, and scores of his opponents to separate truth from myth.
 
Duran was born in utter poverty in Panama and grew up in the streets, fighting to survive. His talent with his fists soon emerged, and he had his first professional fight in 1967. Duran grew into a fighter’s fighter. His hunger to destroy opponents and his willingness to take on anyone, anywhere, made him a huge favorite while his flamboyant lifestyle outside the ring made headline news.
 
Duran was one of the first Latino fighters to become a mainstream sports star in the United States, and his natural talent, unprecedented achievements, and longevity made an indelible mark on the world of sport.

Genres: Sports, Biography, Nonfiction

320 pages, Hardcover

First published January 3, 2006

Reviews

[Arminius · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Hands of Stone” is a nickname for one of the best boxers who ever lived. His name is Roberto Duran. Duran thrilled audiences with an aggressive, furious attack and a powerful punch that hurt opponents and gave him victories. He was born in the tough streets of El Chorrillo, Panama. As a five year old he hung out with 5 other children with the town’s gypsy. The gypsy took the kids to distribute newspapers and dance in front of people to illicit small donations. Whatever money they collected they would buy food to eat with. The gypsy was a bum but he told young Roberto that he could do better with his life. Roberto, like many boxers, was forced to fight in the streets of Panama for money that was thrown at the children as they fought.

When a fellow Panamanian, Ismail Laguna, won the world lightweight championship Panama erupted in boxing euphoria. Boxing clubs formed up and Roberto soon joined them. After a few amateur bouts, the wealthy Panamanian Carlos Eleta took notice. Eleta took over Duran’s management and started scheduling professional fights for him. He hooked him up with the great trainer Ray Arcel. Duran with his powerful punches won his first 28 bouts, 25 by knockout. With that outstanding record he was matched with the world lightweight champion Ken Buchanan. Buchanan had recently dethroned former Panamanian lightweight champion Ismail Laguna to win the championship. Duran was ready to win it back for Panama.

The Buchanan/Duran fight took place in Madison Square Garden in 1972. Duran came in as underdog to the champion. However, he left as the new champion thoroughly defeating him. However, the fight was stopped in the 13th round when Buchanan could not continue because of a low blow. Ordinarily, a referee will give the boxers a break to recover when this occurs. The referee did not see the low blow, so he stopped the fight. Duran was declared the winner and new world lightweight champion.
The book details all of Duran’s major fights. In his first big fight he stops future featherweight champion Ernesto Marcel. The only time Marcel was stopped in his career. He follows that knockout with 11 more victories, 10 by knockout. He then followed by defeating Buchanan for the lightweight championship. He made 12 (11 b y knockout) successful defenses of his title. He lost just one fight by decision in a non title fight to Esteban DeJesus. He avenged that loss with two knockout victories of DeJesus later. He left the lightweight division after 13 years and an incredible 71-1 record, securing his place as the greatest lightweight who ever lived.

His next moved up in weight and fought the undefeated, popular Sugar Ray Leonard for Leonard’s welterweight belt. In one of Boxing’s largest grossing, most anticipated fights; Duran manhandled Leonard and won by unanimous decision Leonard’s welterweight belt.

Leonard’s clever trainer, Angelo Dundee, knew of Duran’s penchant for partying for months, at a time, after a fight. He would gain 40 or 50 lbs between fights, due to gluttony, then furiously work to get back in shape before his next bout. So the Leonard camp asked for a rematch just 5 months after their first fight. Eleta, as Duran’s manager, accepted fearing that if he waited longer Duran would get even more out of shape. His strategy did not work. Duran partied and within a week of the match was forced to drop 30 lbs to make the weight limit. After 72 fights his habit of drinking, eating and partying between fights was hurting his career because as he got older and moved up in weight class his competition became greater. So he fought Leonard again in New Orleans. It is actually a close fight when Leonard started clowning with a wind up bolo punch and doing the Ali shuffle. But suddenly the audience was shocked when the toughest boxer in the world, Duran, quits. Saying, in his native Spanish “I do not want to fight this clown.” It would become known as the “No Mas” (No more) fight because supposedly that is what Duran said as well.

Duran shortly realized what the implications of doing that entailed. He lost most of his friends including Mr. Eleta and Ray Arcel his great trainer. He came home to Panama as a loser rather than the hero he once was. He hid in his house for months in depression. When he finally started boxing again he faced former welterweight champion Wilfred Benitez and was easily outpointed. Then he boxed a relatively unknown boxer by the name of Kirkland Laing. He lost that decision too in a lack luster performance due to his continuous lack of proper preparation. All the experts said Duran was finished. His great career was finally over.

Duran had other ideas. This became his first comeback. He finally trained properly and won a decision over a pretty good fighter. So the promoters give him another shot at another former champion, Pipino Cuevas, in the nadir of his career also trying to make a comeback after losing his championship to Thomas Hearns. Cuevas had tremendous knockout power but Duran was ready. Duran walked through Cuevas’s bombs and pounded the former champion winning by a vicious 4th round knockout.

The new Junoir middleweight champion, Davey Moore, was eager to fight Duran, who was still a huge box office draw. No one gave Duran a chance against a larger, younger undefeated champion.
Duran methodically took the younger champion apart with vicious hooks and uppercuts. With both eyes almost completely swollen shut Davey Moore struggled on until the Eight round when Duran landed a straight to his jaw causing Moore to crash down. The referee soon stopped the fight and Duran was the new Junior Middleweight champion.

The stage was now set for Duran to meet the current best boxer in the business. His name was Marvelous Marvin Hagler. Hagler was the menacing undisputed middle weight champion. Hagler had defended his title 12 times, winning all by knockout. The experts picked not only that Hagler would win but that Duran could get hurt in the process. However, Duran went toe to toe with the great middleweight champion exchanging blows equally. After 12 rounds Duran is leading on all three judges’ scorecards. However, Duran tired and Hagler won the last three rounds by being busier. Duran lost a close decision but remained a hero because of his great performance.

Just 6 months later he was squared off against another great fighter named Thomas “Hitman” Hearns. He did not train until the last two weeks of the fight and again had to lose tremendous amount of weight. He could not cancel because of the fight’s magnitude. So he shows up for the fight weak causing an experience he never felt before in his 82 fight career. Hearns slammed him with devastating right hands leaving Duran lifeless. He hung on to finish the first round. But he came out for the second and received more of the same finally being knocked out cold. The lesson he should have learned was to never get out of shape. He was such a huge draw that fights were scheduled for him in short notice.

Everyone thought this was the end of a great career but remarkably he managed one more comeback. He easily defeats two foes then lost a split decision by a ranked opponent. He rolls off 5 more victories. He is then matched to face the new middleweight champion, Iran Barkley. Again, Duran is against a larger man and again no one gave him a chance. This time would be different though. Duran was brilliant. He slipped Barkey’s powerful punches and countered with his own to perfection. The fight was close though until an 11th round combination sent Barkley crashing onto his bottom. When the judges announced the scores Duran raised his hands in another championship victory.

Duran continued on until 2001. He boxed in 5 decades. Only one other boxer has done that. He retired with a 103 wins and 16 losses with 70 wins by knockout. He also retired as one of the all time great fighters. The book goes into much more and I think it would be interested to most people, boxing fan or not.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall a good book. It's extremely focused on Duran's boxing career, which I imagine is why most people would read this. However, with a personality as complex and contradictory as Duran, I would have appreciated a little more research into the man. The bits that were focused on Duran's personal life were stuck primarily at the beginning and end, and were mostly based on quotes from rather questionable sources. Also, the writing and editing throughout was a bit sloppy at times, which is always a pet peeve of mine. All that aside, this book is still an enjoyable look into one of the best boxers of all time. Duran's rise from poverty to become a national hero in Panama and his subsequent fall due to lax training and diet - make his life and career an extremely interesting subject. Not the best boxing book I've read, but certainly not the worst either.

[Sorenconard · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed the detial of the interviews. I really thought the author took time to tell most sides of the storys in the book. What really stands out in my mind is the fact that the writer would ask about a certian event to Roberto, his manager, and his trainer and he would almost always get a completely different story from each on of them. It makes the book have this "old-gym" feel to it. If you like boxing bios or was a fan of Roberto's then this is pretty much a no brainer.

I gave it a five stars for the fact that I really enjoy boxing bios and think this one is one of the better ones.

[Alasdair · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a very detailed biography - fight by fight detail. Ultimately, I don't think it gave any great insight into Roberto Duran, the man and what drove him. The author seemed to lack the courage of his own opinions and consequently relates all points of view except his own.

[Stephanie Hutabarat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really nice true story. Everyone have their own talent since be born. The key is to train it and take it seriously. Love the book.

[Jerry Rocha · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great look at one of the most fascinating boxers in history

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

To be honest I knew very little of Roberto Duran...I was aware of his name from a Zodiac Mindwarp lyric and had a idea he was a boxer...my unawareness was odd as he boxed for decades including eras when I had more interest in boxing..however in truth ..at that point maybe he wasn't at his best.
This book however follows a long career of ups and downs, twists and turns..Duran the man seemed interesting too though the book is less invested in this...his seeming generosity seems to have dented his spending power.
Anyhow good stuff and shows how a good biography transcends your knowledge of the subject.

[Samar · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book because it taught how thoughtful was for his friends and the people who he loved. In the book the best bit was when he beat up Davey Moore real bad and also when he knocked out a horse called Endara. I thought this was the best bit because a lady in the pub asked him if he was really Duran or someone pretending to be Duran. She said that she will believe him if he can knock out that big horse in the stable. Then Duran just walked right over to Endara and knocked it out.

[Bobby24 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent, with the possible exception of Dave Andersons book on Sugar Ray Robinson i'd say this is probable the best boxing book i have read, reading it brings back the respect for boxing i once had...when fighters actually fought Man-O-Mano, instead of danced. I was brought a book on boxing greats in the late 1980's which i treasure still and obviously Duran was in it, and now i know why.

[Mario · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Well researched, good work on describing Duran's early life and subsequent career. Duran's since written an autobiography which was 10 years after this book was written and you could argue is more relevant. Having read both I prefer this one.

[Mike Boyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good read

A very comprehensive look into one of the greats in boxing. The author displays the multi faceted boxer, both great and complicated. Enjoyed the book thoroughly. A great book for boxing fans especially.

[Kevin Koppelmann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting way to remember the fights I watched as a kid.

[Luke Morgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was a nice read about a great boxer. Not sure if I’d recommend though

[Ron Maskell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read, as the usual boxer's story a lot of ups and downs. The author gives a pretty detailed picture. I'd recommend it for boxing enthusiasts.

[John Anthony · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVED IT!

[Dryan1066 · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought very balanced portrail. Unusual for a sports book. Learned a lot about Duran

[Lance · Rating 5 out of 5]

Roberto Duran’s boxing career had many high points and low points. Christian Guidance’s well-researched biography of the man many considered one of the greatest of all time dug deeply into those points as well as Duran’s childhood and life outside the ring. The book also introduces the reader to other people in Duran’s life who were important to him but may not be familiar to people who followed the boxer’s fights. These included his wife Felicidad and international businessman Carlos Eleta, who became Duran’s financial backer.

While these were important parts of the book, the best parts were Guidance’s recaps of the two biggest fights of Duran’s career – the two against Sugar Ray Leonard in 1980 that were both characteristic of the best and the worst of his career. The second one in particular, the famous “no mas” fight, was very well chronicled by Gudiance through other people that were at that fight and offered their own explanations of why Duran suddenly stopped fighting. Many of the well known theories are given by these people, such as stomach cramps and the humiliation he felt during the fight when Leonard changed tactics and was taunting Duran in the ring. Guidance wrote in the introduction that his curiosity about that fight was why he wanted to write the book. He didn’t offer his own opinions on the fight – he simply gathered some of the biggest names in all aspects of the sport and recorded their versions of the events. From writers (Bert Sugar) to trainers (Angelo Dundee, who was in Leonard’s corner) were included.

The connection Duran felt to his native Panama and the national pride felt whenever he was victorious is also an important part of the book and this was important in how Duran lived outside the ring. He was notorious for not always being in shape until it was close to the date of his next fight – but he would always give everything he had for his country. That is how he is portrayed and is the lasting image I have of him after reading this book.

Did I skim? No

Did I learn something new about the topic? Yes – while I did know about the Panamanian citizens’ idolization of Duran, I did not realize how strong a connection he felt toward them. The surprise Duran felt when they turned against him after the loss to Leonard was a great section of the book.

Pace of the book: Excellent

Positives: The research is thorough and detailed, the fights highlighted are well-documented and the reader learns a lot about Panama and its people in the beginning.

Negatives: No glaring weaknesses. Those who read these books just for the recaps of the fights may be disappointed that these don’t make up the majority of the book. But while crucial, this is a complete biography of Duran.

Do I recommend? YES – for any boxing fan.

[Shogun · Rating 4 out of 5]

Modern day boxers pale in comparisson to one of the sports true legends, transcending the sport of boxing and known throughout world. Roberto Duran was a real people's champion, as a boxing fan having watched many of his fights online, I wanted to reacquaint myself with the person.

The biography didnt disappoint, it showed another side to the man known as Hands of Stone. An especially touching moment came later on his career when upon hearing is old nemesis Esteban DeJesus was wasting away on some hospital bed dying from aids Roberto not only went to visit him, but hugged and kissed him at a time when next to nothing was known about such a ravaging illness. This action alone, to me is the embodiment of compassion.

Tales from his younger youth are widely known, but perhaps the most famous one being the time when, for a wager he knocked out a horse with a single hook. But for me the more interesting observations were made by some of his opponents he faced in the ring. It has been related that the cornermen of his opponents told their fighters not to look in Duran's eyes at the staredown, simply because Duran had an intimidating look and presence and had the ability to unsettle even the most self-assured and confident fighters of his generation.

There is more to be said about Duran's eyes and the way they glimmered like burning black fire, immediately giving the impression that this... was a dangerous man. But, I have yet to come accross any description of the man that truly encapsulates his overall appearance and demeanor during the period he was at his peak.

To retain his knockout ability as he climbed the weight divisions in itself is beyond belief, however, in conclusion I would say we will never see another fighter or person like Roberto in a thousand years!

Thanks.

[Steve Parcell · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent insight in to the life and times of one of the greatest sportsmen Panama has produced. His rise and fall in the world of Boxing was a real page turner.

Born in the rough impoverished area of Panama, the book details how his Boxing talent allowed him to rise up and escape from being a street kid to a boxing icon.

But he never forgot his roots and used to go back to hand money and gifts out to people and take some with him to fights to live a life of luxury in expensive hotels and restaurant.

Boy what a Boxer and a flawed yet generous and impetuous man. I am glad I read the book behind one of the great Boxers of the 70's and 80's.

[Sunny · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this was right up there as one of my all time favourite boxing biographies. It took me a while to read because I was busy annotating so many parts of the book and there was lots that’s going to help my own boxing also. Duran was the only person to have beaten sugar ray leonard in his prime. Nuff said. The “no mas” rematch is one of the most infamous sporting occasions of the boxing world. The legends about this guy are incredible. He knocked out a horse as a 15 years old, and around the same age was walking a girlfriend home when 5 men started on his and his gf and he knocked all 5 of them out – one of them turned out to be his uncle. He earned millions and gave away millions. He was vile and feral at times and those deep coal like black eyes could scare the life out of people before they touched gloves to start fighting. It was no wonder that he was tyson’s favourite boxer. He won at multiple weight categories. His weight would balloon between fights (like hatton) but he would almost always come back into shape. He was know as manos de piedra – “hands of stone”. For me out of the 4 kings (haggler, hearns, leonard and duran) – duran at his peak would have beaten all of them at theirs.

[Sean · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a great book - ably but not excellently written - but great for its subject matter, full of touching stories, truth-is-stranger-than-fiction anecdotes, and insight into the life and mind of a truly captivating and compelling athlete, a pure fighter, and a champion's champion, Roberto Duran. Mr. Giudice appears to have left no stone unturned venturing into backwoods panama to interview Duran's relatives, and has just as thoroughly covered the many battles in and out of the ring, that coloured Duran's life. It reads fairly and judiciously, but does not pass judgment on Duran, or any of the other characters (though real people, 'characters' is surely the correct word) in his life, though it would be easy to do so from a distance as they include military dictators, corrupt businessmen, the denizens of the fight game such as Don King, among others. If you're a fan of boxing, or a fan of the human spirit, pick this book up and give it a read.

[Brian D'Souza · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great book on one of the greatest boxers of all time, hands down.

Duran didn't save his money or think about the future. And his glory years were supplanted by a lot of headaches.

A real story about life, a dream, and other realities of the fight game.

[Peter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyed the book, although it made me wonder if boxing's a bit lie blues music? You got to lead a hard life before you're any good?

[Ta0paipai · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Hands of Stone" captivated me for the meat of Duran's matches, but repetitive moments makes it feel unorganized and the gratuitous finale drags on much like Duran's career.

[Jonathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book provided many perspectives on Duran's personal life and boxing career. I could tell the author did a lot of research and it was interesting what he found. There were many great stories, but the book did feel a little long. Duran did have a long career though, so it would be hard to make the book much shorter.

[Joseph Ramsden · Rating 4 out of 5]

A decent, well-balanced account, the writer presents Duran's story in a very journalistic manner. It doesn't have the almost fiction-feel of Remnick's 'King of the World' and I guess, being a romantic, I missed that.

[Nathan Hipol]

Roberto Duran, one of the greats in boxing, will always be defined by this moment in history. In a fight with Sugar Leonard, in a string of fights with him, he gave up and embarrassed his country. His life is shown, from his early struggles as a kid feeding his family, to a bad manager booking a fight when he was not ready, this books shows his rise and his sudden and sad fall.

[Drew · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the better boxing biographies that I’ve read. Durán, in my opinion, doesn’t always get a fair shake, but this book does an excellent job of capturing his appeal and importance in boxing history.