Boxing has lost its eldest world champion.
Eder Jofre, the two-time world champion and Hall of Famer from Brazil, has died at 86 in his hometown of Sao Paulo after a long illness, according to multiple reports.
Some regard Jofre (72-2-4, 50 KOs) as the greatest bantamweight of all time. He could box and could stop any opponent in an instant. He was No. 85 on The Ring Magazine’s list of the 100 greatest punchers of all time.
Hall of Fame boxing writer Bert Sugar had Jofre ranked No. 28 on one of his lists of the 100 greatest fighters ever regardless of weight.
“Remember, while most American fans didn’t get a chance to see [Jofre] in action, there was a time in the early-and mid 60s where he was considered the best fighter pound-for pound in the world,” Ed Brophy, executive director of the International Boxing Hall of Fame, told The Ring.
Jofre competed in the 1956 Olympics, reaching the quarterfinals, before turning professional the following year.
He went undefeated in his first 50 fights over an eight-year span, during which he won the bantamweight championship by stopping Eloy Sanchez in six rounds in 1960 and successfully defended seven times.
Then he ran into his nemesis for the first of two times, Hall of Famer Fighting Harada of Japan, who defeated Jofre by a split decision in Nagoya to become the 118-pound king in May 1965. Harada outpointed Jofre a second time a year later.
Jofre “retired” after the second setback and spent more than three years out of boxing. He returned as a featherweight in August 1969, making one of the most successful comebacks of all time.
He won 14 consecutive fights to earn a shot at Jose Legra’s title and defeated the Cuban by a majority decision to become a two-time champion at 37 years old in May 1973.
Jofre fought seven more times – including a fourth-round knockout of Hall of Famer Vicente Saldivar in his only defense – before retiring for good.
