Miguel Angel Cuello vs. Jesse Burnett

Carlos Monzon celebrates with Miguel Cuello

Miguel Angel Cuello 173 lbs beat Jesse Burnett 169 lbs by TKO in round 9 of 15

• Date: 1977-05-21
• Location: Stade Louis II, Fontvieille, Monaco
• Referee: Ray Solis

For the vacant WBC light-heavyweight title. The prior champion, John Conteh, signed on April 27[1] to face Cuello but was stripped of his crown for failing to keep the contractual agreement. Burnett was rushed in as a substitute, having to face a 24 hour journey from Los Angeles 48 hours before the bout. Cuello was dropped by a hard right in the fourth round, taking a mandatory eight count. The knockout of Burnett was from a left hook.

• Burnett was up at the count of seven but referee Ray Solis counted him out on his feet.
• Cuello was informed he had 90 days to defend his title against Mate Parlov of Yugoslavia. However, the fight did not take place until the following January.
• Had John Conteh gone through with the fight as scheduled, his purse would have come to 117,000 pounds British Sterling.

Post fight comments:

• "John Conteh may find himself a pariah after the way he behaved, dropping out of the fight three days before. He can't expect people to come begging for him now. Personally, I would never deal with him again unless a very fat forfeit bond was posted." -Bob Arum, President of Top Rank

• "I plan to sue Conteh in London this week for damages and breach of contract." -Promoter Rodolfo Sabbatini

• "When he knocked me down I was surprised. It wasn't a big punch but it caught me off guard. I was surprised more than hurt." -Miguel Cuello

• "Cuello hit him with a hard right and broke his left rib one from the bottom." -Burnett's manager Jesse Reid, stating that Burnett's rib was broken in the 3rd round.

• "It seemed a quick count. But he hit hard with both hands and cracked my rib with a right early on. He was just as tired as me, but he had the punch." -Jesse Burnett