Editing Juan Laporte

{{Short description|Puerto Rican boxer (born 1959)}}
{{Distinguish|Joan Laporta}}
{{BLP sources|date=January 2011}}
{{Infobox boxer
|name=Juan Laporte
|image=Juan LaPorte 2013 cropped.jpg
|imagesize=200px
|caption=Juan LaPorte ringside during a boxing card in Queens, New York, May 4, 2013
|realname=Juan La Porte
|nickname=
|weight={{plainlist|
*[[Featherweight]]
*[[Super featherweight]]
*[[Light welterweight]]}}
|height=5 ft. 5 in. (165 cm.)
|reach=68 in. (173 cm.) 
|nationality={{flagicon|PUR}} Puerto Rican
|birth_date={{Birth date and age|1959|11|24|mf=y}}
|birth_place=[[Guayama, Puerto Rico]]
|style=[[Orthodox stance|Orthodox]]
|total=57
|wins=40
|KO=22
|losses=16
|draws=1
|no contests=0
}}

'''Juan Laporte''', also known as '''Juan La Porte''' (born November 24, 1959) is a former boxer<ref>{{cite news|title=Juan LePort Takes Title|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=U8NQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=dNAMAAAAIBAJ&pg=6868,1537351&dq=juan-laporte&hl=en|access-date=11 January 2011|newspaper=[[Portsmouth Daily Times]]|date=16 September 1982|page=12}}</ref> who was born in [[Guayama, Puerto Rico]]. In 1982, La Porte won the vacant WBC featherweight title, forcing undefeated Colombian Mario "Martillo" Miranda to quit on his stool. Throughout his 22-year-long career, La Porte fought some of the greatest fighters of each decade, including Hall of Fame members Salvador Sanchez, Eusebio Pedroza, Azumah Nelson, Wilfredo Gomez, Barry McGuigan, Kostya Tszyu & Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. He retired in 1999 with a record of 40–16, with many of his losses being highly competitive, and sometimes controversial, affairs.

==Amateur career==
Juan Laporte won the 1976 112&nbsp;lb [[New York Golden Gloves]] Sub-Novice Championship. He defeated [[Long Island]]'s Ricky Brown in the finals. Laporte was defeated by Joseph Nieto of the Police Athletic Leagues Lynch Center in the 1977 118&nbsp;lb Open Championship. Laporte trained at the Lunar Boys Club in [[Brooklyn, New York]]. He had an amateur record of 29–6, according to the March 1983 ''[[Ring Magazine]]''.

==Professional career==
Juan Laporte moved to New York at a young age, where he grew up into a pretty well known contender, but one that many [[boxing]] critics didn't consider to be material to become a world champion earlier in his career.

Laporte built a number of wins, combined with 1 loss, including a 7-round knockout of Jean Lapointe. But he still was an unknown when given his first chance at a world championship in December 1980 in [[El Paso, Texas]].

He met legendary Mexican world Featherweight champion [[Salvador Sánchez]] there. [[Salvador Sanchez vs. Juan Laporte|Laporte made Sanchez work hard and won a handful of rounds]]. He lost to Sanchez by a 15-round unanimous decision.

Laporte then fought future world champion [[Rocky Lockridge]] in 1981 at [[Las Vegas Valley|Las Vegas]], scoring a second-round knockout to become the United States Featherweight champion.

Given a second title shot, this time by the [[World Boxing Association|WBA]], Laporte met the also legendary world featherweight champion [[Eusebio Pedroza]] in 1982, losing a close and controversial unanimous decision, after having Pedroza hurt in round two. The fight was so close that [[World Boxing Council|WBC]] president [[José Sulaimán]] decided to give Laporte a rematch vs Sanchez for the [[World Boxing Council]]'s world title.

This rematch wasn't going to happen, because Sanchez died in a car accident the morning of August 12, in [[Mexico City]]. Then, the [[World Boxing Council|WBC]] decided to put Laporte vs. Colombian [[Mario Miranda (boxer)|Mario Miranda]] for the vacant world title in a fight held at the [[Madison Square Garden]]. Laporte dropped Miranda in the tenth round and Miranda quit on his stool before the start of the 11th. Juan Laporte, the tough kid from New York who couldn't figure to become a world champ versus the legendary champions of the day, had become a world champion.

Around this time, Laporte was sponsored by the American jeans brand, [[Sasson Jeans|Sasson]],<ref>{{cite web | url=https://tss.ib.tv/boxing/featured-boxing-articles-boxing-news-videos-rankings-and-results/43455-mysterious-death-salvador-sanchez | title=Juan LaPorte and the Mysterious Death of Salvador Sanchez | date=24 July 2017 }}</ref> sporting their name and logo on his boxing trunks (shorts) during his fights.

Laporte defended his title twice, vs. [[Ruben Castillo (boxer)|Ruben Castillo]] and [[Johnny De La Rosa]], both 12 rounds decision wins, then lost it to another [[Puerto Rican people|Puerto Rican]] world champion, the legendary [[Wilfredo Gómez]].

In 1985, he went to Ireland, where he lost a ten-round decision to future world champion [[Barry McGuigan]].

In 1986, Laporte fought [[Julio César Chávez]] at the [[Madison Square Garden]], but he lost a unanimous decision in a contest for Chavez's WBC world Jr. Lightweight title.

His career went on and off after that day, and in 1989, his son died in a drowning accident. Laporte buried his title belt along with his son.

Upon hearing this, Sulaiman sent him a new world title belt to show him support and respect from the boxing community. Around that era, on April 29, 1989, Laporte fought on the [[World Boxing Organization|WBO]]'s inaugural world Junior Lightweight championship bout, losing by a 12 rounds unanimous decision for the vacant title to his countryman, [[John John Molina]], 18-2 before their fight, at the [[Roberto Clemente Coliseum]] in San Juan.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://boxrec.com/en/event/9576|title = Please login}}</ref> Laporte lost another disputed decision later on, this time to former world Jr Welterweight champion [[Billy Costello (boxer)|Billy Costello]] in 1999, and then finally retired from boxing.

==Life after boxing==
He has retired to his native Puerto Rico and dedicates his time to train children of all ages in his spare time.

==See also==
{{Portal|Biography|Puerto Rico}}
*[[List of featherweight boxing champions]]
*[[List of Puerto Rican boxing world champions]]
*[[List of Puerto Ricans]]
*[[French immigration to Puerto Rico]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*{{boxrec|id=2570}}

{{S-start}}
{{s-ach|ach}}
{{s-text|style=background:#C1D8FF; font-weight: bold;|text=Regional boxing titles}}
{{s-bef | before=Nicky Perez}}
{{s-ttl | title=[[North American Boxing Federation|NABF]] super featherweight champion | years=August 13, 1998 &ndash; October 13, 1990<br>''Lost bid for WBC title}}
{{s-vac | next=[[Gabriel Ruelas]]}}
{{s-text|style=background:#C1D8FF; font-weight: bold;|text=World boxing titles}}
{{s-break}}
{{s-vac|last=[[Salvador Sánchez]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[List of WBC world champions#Featherweight|WBC featherweight champion]]
|years=September 15, 1982 - March 31, 1984}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Wilfredo Gómez]]}}
{{S-end}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Laporte, Juan}}
[[Category:1959 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Guayama, Puerto Rico]]
[[Category:Puerto Rican people of French descent]]
[[Category:Featherweight boxers]]
[[Category:Super-featherweight boxers]]
[[Category:Light-welterweight boxers]]
[[Category:World featherweight boxing champions]]
[[Category:World Boxing Council champions]]
[[Category:Puerto Rican male boxers]]
[[Category:20th-century American sportsmen]]