Rolando Navarrete

Rolando Navarrete (born February 14, 1957) is a Filipino ex-boxer who briefly held a junior lightweight (super featherweight) world title in the 80s.

Fighting style

A fine boxer, Navarrete had a good talent and was known for his hard-hitting punches. Known to be a slugger and one of the greatest Filipino knockout artists.

Professional career

He first fought for a world title in 1980 against Alexis Argüello but lost by TKO to the legendary champion. On August 29, 1981, he would win the WBC Super featherweight title by knocking out popular fellow southpaw Cornelius Boza Edwards in the 5th round of a title match held in Italy. He later defended the title against unknown Choi Chung-Il of Korea, stopping the gritty challenger in the 11th round of a controversial bout held in Manila in January 1982. In his second title defense four months later in Las Vegas, Nevada, Navarrete took on Rafael "Bazooka" Limón. The champion led on all scorecards before getting knocked out by Limón in the 12th round. Thereafter, Navarrete's career went downhill and he would never again figure in big-money fights. Sometime in the mid-'80s, he was convicted of sexual assault and served three years in a Hawaiian prison.