![]() Īs a result of Kim's death, the WBC took steps to shorten its title bouts to a maximum of 12 rounds. In addition, Kim's mother died by suicide three months after the fight, and the bout's referee, Richard Green, killed himself in July 1983. Mancini went through a period of reflection, as he blamed himself for Kim's death. He has said that the hardest moments came when people approached him and asked if he was the boxer who "killed" Duk Koo Kim. Mancini went to the funeral in South Korea and fell into a deep depression afterwards. The week after his death, the cover of Sports Illustrated magazine showed Mancini and Kim battling, under the title "Tragedy in the Ring". Moments after the fight ended, Kim collapsed and fell into a coma, having suffered a subdural hematoma, and died four days later. The title bout, at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, was televised live on CBS Sports. Kim had struggled to make the 135 pounds (61 kg) weight limit, and had to lose several pounds shortly before the fight. On November 13, 1982, a 21-year-old Mancini met 27-year-old South Korean challenger Duk Koo Kim. Mancini's first title defense, against former world champion Ernesto España, went smoothly with a Mancini knockout win in the 6th round. Ticket stub for Mancini's fight against Duk Koo Kim After many unanswered blows, referee Richard Greene stopped the fight at 2:54 in the first round, and the Mancini family finally had a world champion. Dazed, Frias got back up but Mancini immediately went on the offensive and trapped Frias against the ropes. Mancini recovered and dropped Frias right in the center of the ring with a combination. Fifteen seconds into the fight, Frias caught Mancini with a left hook to the chin and another combination made Mancini bleed from his eyebrow. On May 8, 1982, in a match held at The Aladdin in Las Vegas, he challenged the new World Boxing Association lightweight champion, Arturo Frias. Mancini would rebound from the loss to Argüello by winning his next two bouts, including a second successful defense of his NABF Lightweight title against Julio Valdez (10th-round TKO) which would earn him another chance at a world title. Mancini gave Argüello trouble early and built a lead on the scorecards, but Argüello used his experience to his advantage in the later rounds and stopped Mancini in the 14th round. ![]() The event was selected by many (including The Ring and ESPN) as one of the most spectacular fights of the 1980s. Mancini's first attempt at a world title came on October 3 when he was pitted against Alexis Argüello for his World Boxing Council lightweight title. ![]() Two months later, he successfully defended the title against José Luis Ramírez after a unanimous decision. In the post-match interview, Ray said that he was "keeping this title for myself because the world title is going to my dad". Over a year later on May 16, 1981, Mancini won his first major title by defeating Jorge Morales for the WBC-affiliated NABF Lightweight championship when the referee determined that Morales could not continue after the 9th round. On April 30, 1980, Mancini defeated Bobby Sparks with a knockout at 1:28 in the first round for the regional Ohio State Lightweight title. During this time Mancini defeated some notable boxers including former US champion Norman Goins in March 1981. His whirlwind punching style caught the attention of network executives at several American television networks, and he became a regular on their sports programming. On October 18, 1979, Mancini made his professional debut and defeated Phil Bowen with a first-round knockout. Thus, Ray then began his quest to win the world title for his father. Lenny inspired Ray to develop his boxing skills and encouraged him to train at a gym when he was quite young. He was a childhood friend and neighbor to future Oklahoma Sooners football head coach Bob Stoops. Although Lenny Mancini returned to boxing, limitations resulting from his injuries prevented him from fulfilling his potential. Lenny Mancini's dream, however, was dashed when he was wounded during World War II. Mancini's father, Lenny Mancini (the original "Boom Boom"), was a top-ranked contender during the 1940s. Boxing played a prominent role in the Mancini family history. Mancini, an American of Italian descent, was born Raymond Michael Mancino in Youngstown, Ohio on March 4, 1961.
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