# Antonio Esparragoza

Antonio Esparragoza Betancourt (born 2 September 1959) is a Venezuelan former boxer who is a former WBA Featherweight Champion of the World.

## Amateur career

Esparragoza represented Venezuela as a Featherweight at the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games. Below are the results from that tournament:
* Round of 64: bye
* Round of 32: lost to Peter Hanlon (Great Britain) by decision, 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 against seven contenders before losing the belts to Yong-Kyun Park 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.

## Professional boxing record

| 36 fights | 30 wins | 2 losses |
| By knockout | 27 | 1 |
| By decision | 3 | 1 |
| Draws | 4 | 4 |
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
| 36 | Loss | 30–2–4 | Park Yong-kyun | UD | 12 | Mar 30, 1991 | Mudeungsan Hotel, Gwangju City, South Korea | Lost WBA featherweight title |
| 35 | Win | 30–1–4 | Chan Mok Park | UD | 12 | May 12, 1990 | Hilton Hotel, Seoul, South Korea | Retained WBA featherweight title |
| 34 | Win | 29–1–4 | Eduardo Montoya | KO | 5 (12), 1:30 | Sep 22, 1989 | Plaza de Toros Calafia, Mexicali, Mexico | Retained WBA and The Ring featherweight titles |
| 33 | Win | 28–1–4 | Jean Marc Renard | KO | 6 (12), 2:25 | Jun 2, 1989 | Palais des Expositions, Namur, Belgium | Retained WBA and The Ring featherweight titles |
| 32 | Win | 27–1–4 | Mitsuru Sugiya | KO | 10 (12), 2:07 | Mar 26, 1989 | Municipal Gymnasium, Kawasaki, Japan | Retained WBA and The Ring featherweight titles |
| 31 | Win | 26–1–4 | Jose Marmolejo | KO | 8 (12), 1:26 | Nov 5, 1988 | Palazzo Dello Sport, Marsala, Italy | Retained WBA and The Ring featherweight titles |
| 30 | Draw | 25–1–4 | Marcos Villasana | SD | 12 | Jun 23, 1988 | Sports Arena, Los Angeles, California, US | Retained WBA and The Ring featherweight titles |
| 29 | Win | 25–1–3 | Pascual Aranda | KO | 10 (12), 2:48 | Jul 26, 1987 | Las Americas Arena, Houston, Texas, US | Retained WBA and The Ring featherweight titles |
| 28 | Win | 24–1–3 | Steve Cruz | TKO | 12 (12), 2:48 | Mar 6, 1987 | Will Rogers Coliseum, Fort Worth, Texas, US | Won WBA and The Ring featherweight titles |
| 27 | Win | 23–1–3 | Octavio Quinones | RTD | 3 (10), 1:52 | Jan 16, 1987 | Veteran's Memorial Coliseum, Phoenix, Arizona, US | |
| 26 | Draw | 22–1–3 | Nelson Rodriguez | PTS | 10 | May 19, 1986 | San Juan, Puerto Rico | |
| 25 | Win | 22–1–2 | Bernardo Checa | KO | 2 (10) | Mar 22, 1986 | Turmero, Venezuela | |
| 24 | Win | 21–1–2 | Jose M. Ortiz | KO | 2 (?) | Feb 17, 1986 | Turmero, Venezuela | |
| 23 | Win | 20–1–2 | Johnny De La Rosa | TKO | 3 (10) | May 4, 1985 | Concorde Boxing Arena, Oranjestad, Aruba | |
| 22 | Win | 19–1–2 | Joe Rivera | KO | 2 (?) | Feb 23, 1985 | Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic | |
| 21 | Win | 18–1–2 | Jeff Roberts | KO | 7 (?) | Feb 2, 1985 | Coliseo Roberto Clemente, San Juan, Puerto Rico | |
| 20 | Draw | 17–1–2 | Bernardo Checa | PTS | 10 | Oct 10, 1984 | Porlamar, Venezuela | |
| 19 | Win | 17–1–1 | Jose Guerrero | UD | 10 | Aug 11, 1984 | Concorde Boxing Arena, Oranjestad, Aruba | |
| 18 | Win | 16–1–1 | Eduardo Laguna | KO | 4 (?) | Jul 7, 1984 | Maracaibo, Venezuela | |
| 17 | Win | 15–1–1 | Jose de Jesus Acosta | TKO | 3 (?) | May 15, 1984 | Elias Mansur Stadion, Oranjestad, Aruba | |
| 16 | Win | 14–1–1 | Ruben Veliz | KO | 3 (?) | Dec 16, 1983 | Ciudad Bolivar, Venezuela | |
| 15 | Win | 13–1–1 | Fabio Mosquera | KO | 3 (?) | Oct 1, 1983 | Caracas, Venezuela | |
| 14 | Win | 12–1–1 | Alberto Parra | KO | 3 (?) | May 13, 1983 | Porlamar, Venezuela | |
| 13 | Win | 11–1–1 | Jose Mosqueda | KO | 7 (?) | Mar 26, 1983 | Catia La Mar, Venezuela | |
| 12 | Win | 10–1–1 | Antonio Rodriguez | KO | 3 (?) | Feb 19, 1983 | Cumana, Venezuela | |
| 11 | Win | 9–1–1 | Freddy Pitalua | PTS | 10 | Nov 6, 1982 | Caracas, Venezuela | |
| 10 | Draw | 8–1–1 | Bernardo Piñango | PTS | 10 | Oct 4, 1982 | Caracas, Venezuela | |
| 9 | Win | 8–1 | Angel Torres | KO | 9 (?) | Jul 26, 1982 | Cumana, Venezuela | |
| 8 | Win | 7–1 | Tito Roque | KO | 2 (?) | Jun 21, 1982 | Cumana, Venezuela | |
| 7 | Win | 6–1 | Alejandro Garcia | KO | 2 (?) | May 24, 1982 | Cumana, Venezuela | |
| 6 | Win | 5–1 | Francisco Leta | KO | 5 (?) | May 10, 1982 | Cumana, Venezuela | |
| 5 | Loss | 4–1 | Angel Torres | KO | 6 (?) | Feb 1, 1982 | Caracas, Venezuela | |
| 4 | Win | 4–0 | David Siso | KO | 3 (?) | Jan 25, 1982 | Barquisimeto, Venezuela | |
| 3 | Win | 3–0 | Luis Solorzano | KO | 2 (?) | Oct 31, 1981 | Maracay, Venezuela | |
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | Ramon Bolivar | KO | 2 (?) | Oct 1, 1981 | Maracay, Venezuela | |
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Anthony Wanza | KO | 2 (?) | Feb 24, 1981 | Cumana, Venezuela | |