Happy Birthday, Eder Jofre! Today is 80th Birthday of Brazilian legend

[luigiR13]

Happy Birthday to Eder Jofre, the best Brazilian boxer and best bantamweight boxer ever.

Jofre turns 80 years old today.

I had the pleasure to write a homage for him during this month and I'd like to share it with you. It goes since the history of his family (Zumbano-Jofre, the most famous boxing clan in Brazil) to nowadays.

My favorite bout was against Medel. Eder was a really great boxer, and that fight shows it to us. The patience, the strentght, the chin and the heart of a true champion. Unfortunately, Brazil hasn't have any other fighter like that.

The homage is a 4 part article. Below you will find a short summary of each. Hope you like it!

Part I: http://round13.com.br/?pg=conteudo&artigo=270
The Zumbano-Jofre clan, Eder's childhood in Sao Paulo, highlights as an amateur and the first pro-fights.

Part II: http://www.round13.com.br/?pg=conteudo&artigo=282
Rivalries in South America against Ernesto Miranda and Claudio Barrientos, the war against Joe Medel and the win of the first world title in Brazil history against Eloy Sanchez

Part III: http://round13.com.br/?pg=conteudo&artigo=295
The domination of Bantamweight division for four years and the losses against Fighting Harada

Part IV: http://round13.com.br/?pg=conteudo&artigo=312
The comeback after a two-year retirement, winning the Featherweight world title against Jose Legra, the official retirement, and the life after boxing until today.

[scorpio83]

Happy Birthday Champ!

[elmersalsa]

One of the most underrated all time greats in the history of boxing. Happy birthday Eder! "The Golden Bantam" was indeed the best bantamweight ever

[giacomino]

Happy Birthday to Eder Jofre, the best Brazilian boxer and best bantamweight boxer ever.

Jofre turns 80 years old today.

I had the pleasure to write a homage for him during this month and I'd like to share it with you. It goes since the history of his family (Zumbano-Jofre, the most famous boxing clan in Brazil) to nowadays.

My favorite bout was against Medel. Eder was a really great boxer, and that fight shows it to us. The patience, the strentght, the chin and the heart of a true champion. Unfortunately, Brazil hasn't have any other fighter like that.

The homage is a 4 part article. Below you will find a short summary of each. Hope you like it!

Part I: http://round13.com.br/?pg=conteudo&artigo=270
The Zumbano-Jofre clan, Eder's childhood in Sao Paulo, highlights as an amateur and the first pro-fights.

Part II: http://www.round13.com.br/?pg=conteudo&artigo=282
Rivalries in South America against Ernesto Miranda and Claudio Barrientos, the war against Joe Medel and the win of the first world title in Brazil history against Eloy Sanchez

Part III: http://round13.com.br/?pg=conteudo&artigo=295
The domination of Bantamweight division for four years and the losses against Fighting Harada

Part IV: http://round13.com.br/?pg=conteudo&artigo=312
The comeback after a two-year retirement, winning the Featherweight world title against Jose Legra, the official retirement, and the life after boxing until today.

Good reads. Did Jofre think he got a fair shake in the Harada fights? Back in the 50s and 60s title fights in Japan (and elsewhere) often had two or three local judges and foreigners lost a lot of close decisions. Both of his Harada fights were close, and I know two of three judges were local in the return bout

[elmersalsa]

You had to kill the local Japanese boxer in those days in order to win. Although, Japan's Harada was a great fighter. The best Japan has ever produced.

[luigiR13]

Happy Birthday to Eder Jofre, the best Brazilian boxer and best bantamweight boxer ever.

Jofre turns 80 years old today.

I had the pleasure to write a homage for him during this month and I'd like to share it with you. It goes since the history of his family (Zumbano-Jofre, the most famous boxing clan in Brazil) to nowadays.

My favorite bout was against Medel. Eder was a really great boxer, and that fight shows it to us. The patience, the strentght, the chin and the heart of a true champion. Unfortunately, Brazil hasn't have any other fighter like that.

The homage is a 4 part article. Below you will find a short summary of each. Hope you like it!

Part I: http://round13.com.br/?pg=conteudo&artigo=270
The Zumbano-Jofre clan, Eder's childhood in Sao Paulo, highlights as an amateur and the first pro-fights.

Part II: http://www.round13.com.br/?pg=conteudo&artigo=282
Rivalries in South America against Ernesto Miranda and Claudio Barrientos, the war against Joe Medel and the win of the first world title in Brazil history against Eloy Sanchez

Part III: http://round13.com.br/?pg=conteudo&artigo=295
The domination of Bantamweight division for four years and the losses against Fighting Harada

Part IV: http://round13.com.br/?pg=conteudo&artigo=312
The comeback after a two-year retirement, winning the Featherweight world title against Jose Legra, the official retirement, and the life after boxing until today.

Good reads. Did Jofre think he got a fair shake in the Harada fights? Back in the 50s and 60s title fights in Japan (and elsewhere) often had two or three local judges and foreigners lost a lot of close decisions. Both of his Harada fights were close, and I know two of three judges were local in the return bout

Thanks! Really glad you liked it.

Jofre always said that he was robbed in those fights. He received a really good purse for the first bout, and in his opinion, he won it easily. In my opinion he won the first fight as well. He usually says that in those times it was really hard to win any fight in Japan, and that the fact that it was a split decision shows that he actually won that fight, but did not take it.

In the second one, he also thinks he won. In my opinion, it was a closer fight. I'd give it a draw, or maybe a close win for Harada. But, I think that Harada connected a lot of elbows and head-butts, so, he should have had a point deduction at any time. Jofre always tell the story that the Japanese that saw him after both fights stopped him in the streets and said that he should have won. Probably, Eder would have won them both if they have been placed in Brazil or even in the US. But Harada was a great fighter as well.

[giacomino]

Thanks for the reply. I am old enough to remember his comeback to win the FW belt and always thought, in general, he was an under-appreciated great fighter and a real champion, unlike many today.
I remember looking at a lot of scores in title fights in the 1950s through the 1970s in Japan and was surprised how often belt-holders were brought in and faced a situation where all three judges (or a majority) were Japanese and the Japanese fighters won close decisions. (Of course, had a Japanese champion fought in the US, there may have been all US judges). Kind of doubt that would happen today in Japan. Local fighters still win a lot of questionable close hometown decisions (Ioka taking Reveco's flyweight belt in April 2015 was probably the most recent example I saw), but that happens in the US, Germany, England, and at least the locals aren't using all local judges.

[Seamus]

I'm a big fan of Jofre, but it would take quite a stretch to make a case for him getting robbed against Harada in either fight.