Gabriel Elorde

Flash Elorde
Statistics
Real name	Gabriel Elorde
Nickname(s)	Flash
Rated at	Junior Lightweight
Height	5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)
Reach	68 in (173 cm)
Nationality	Filipino
Born	(1935-03-25)March 25, 1935 Bogo, Cebu, Philippine Islands
Died	January 2, 1985(1985-01-02) (aged 49)
Stance	Southpaw
Boxing record
Total fights	117
Wins	89
Wins by KO	33
Losses	27
Draws	2

Flash Elorde (born Gabriel Elorde; March 25, 1935 – January 2, 1985) was a Filipino professional boxer. He was born and raised in the town of Bogo, Cebu (since a city).

Elorde was a World Junior Lightweight Champion, he won the title in 1960. In 1963, he was inaugurated as WBC and WBA champion. He still holds the junior lightweight division record for longest title reign, and is considered as one of the greatest junior lightweight champion in history. It spanned for seven years, and in doing-so he legitimized the division. Elorde is considered as one of the best Filipino boxers of all-time along with eight-division world champion Manny Pacquiao and flyweight champion in the 1920s, Pancho Villa. He was much beloved in the Philippines as a sports and cultural icon, being the first Filipino international boxing champion since middleweight champion Ceferino Garcia.

Fighting style

A southpaw, Flash Elorde was known for his boxing skills and speed. Writer Robert Lipsyte once described his style as the "subtle little temple-dancer moves".

Early life

Gabriel Elorde was born in the town of Bogo, Cebu. The youngest of 15 children, he came from a poor family.

Elorde finished only the 3rd grade of his elementary education and was forced to drop out due to extreme poverty. He then began to work as a bearer of bowling balls and, beside this, as a carpenter.

His love for boxing came from a friend, Lucio Laborte, a former professional boxer. Laborte taught him how to box, and Elorde quickly learned the sport and pursued his dream to become a boxer. At the time he was only 16 years old.^[1]

Professional career

Flash Elorde knocks down Harold Gomes during their March 16, 1960 world title fight.

Elorde made his professional debut at the age of 16 on June 16, 1951, against Kid Gonzaga. The bout was held in Cebu, Philippines. The boxing newcomer stopped his foe in the 4th round.

Within a year, Elorde was able to win the national bantamweight title. His potential was evident: he was a solidly built southpaw whose major asset were his quick hands and relentless body attack on his opponents.

In his first 14 fights he suffered 2 defeats and 1 draw before coming into his own. He defeated Tanny Campo and Hiroshi Horiguchi both in 12 round decisions to win the Philippine and Asian bantamweight titles. He also outpointed all-time great featherweight champion Sandy Saddler in 1955 in a non-title bout.

In 1956, he was given a rematch with Saddler, this time with Saddler's featherweight title on the line. However, Elorde suffered a cut in his eye and lost the fight on a 13th round TKO. Many boxing experts criticized Saddler, known as a very rough and vicious fighter, for the result of the bout. Jack Fiske of the San Francisco Chronicle wrote: "It was a dirty fight throughout and all the onus must be on the 126-pound champion's skinny shoulders. From this corner it appeared highly improbable that he could have successfully defended the title ... if he hadn't resorted to all the so-called tricks in and out of the rule book."^[2]

He won the world super featherweight title on March 16, 1960 by knocking out the defending world champion Harold Gomes in seven rounds. That night, Elorde ended the country's 20-year world championship drought. The crowd estimated to be around 30,000, inside the newly built Araneta Coliseum, rushed into the ring after seeing Gomes go down to his knees at the one-minute-50-second mark of the seventh round. The event happened two decades after compatriot Ceferino Garcia, known as the father of the 'bolo punch', lost the middleweight division he lorded over until 1940.

Elorde floored Gomes in the second round with a right hook to the head. The Filipino challenger knocked down the 25-year-old Gomes again in the third and in the fifth, sending him over the ring's lower rope at the end of the round. In the next round, Gomes mounted a brief comeback, but at the start of the seventh, Elorde hammered him again, connecting with rights to the head followed by a left to the jaw that sent him down once more. Gomes got up but was floored again after receiving a combination of lefts and rights. He then met a series of combinations that led the referee Barney Ross to count him out. When Gomes recovered, he went to Elorde's corner and whispered: "It was a good fight".^[3]

He defended the crown 10 times until June 15, 1967 where he lost a majority decision to Yoshiaki Numata of Japan. This made him the longest reigning world junior lightweight champion ever (seven years and three months).

Elorde also challenged lightweight Carlos Ortiz for his world title on two occasions. He was stopped both times by Ortiz in the 14th round.

Elorde retired with a record of 88 wins (33 KOs), 27 losses and 2 draws. He is considered the greatest super featherweight champion of all time in WBC history.^[4]

Outside the ring

After his retirement, Elorde remained in the Philippines within the public eye. He was a prominent commercial endorser, especially for San Miguel Beer. In fact, his San Miguel Beer TV commercial (together with Bert Marcelo and Rico J. Puno), wherein he famously said the words ".... isang platitong mani" (one plate of peanuts), was recently named as the No.1 Filipino advertisement of all time. Another commercial showed him saying the popular line "Wag namang bara-bara, Bay."

Death

Elorde died of lung cancer on January 2, 1985 at the age of 49. He was a chain smoker during his retirement.^[5]

Legacy

In 1993, he became the first Asian inducted into the New York-based International Boxing Hall of Fame.^[6][7] He was also enshrined into the World Boxing Hall of Fame. Elorde was also voted the 78th best fighter by the Ring Magazine's writers in 2002 when the Ring Magazine's list of the 80 Best Fighters of the Last 80 Years was released.

On March 25, 2010, Elorde's family, headed by his widow Laura, commemorated his 25th death anniversary and 75th birth anniversary. They also celebrated his historical win against defending WBA junior-lightweight champion Harold Gomes that ended the RP's 20-year world championship drought.

Filipino boxers Brian Viloria, Donnie Nietes, Rodel Mayol, Marvin Sonsona and Gerry Peñalosa received an award for their contributions. Z Gorres also attended the event. Manny Pacquiao was also a special guest in the ceremony.^[3][8] The Gabriel "Flash" Elorde Memorial Boxing Awards & Banquet was launched in 2000 honoring the former and current boxers in the Philippines living or posthumously celebrating their victories throughout held every year.

In popular culture

The Elorde Sports Center in Parañaque was founded in 1983 (two years before his death in 1985) was dedicated to him. It hosts boxing matches and future fights.

Author James Ellroy, an avid boxing fan, named a character in his novel American Tabloid after Elorde.

Personal life

He was married to Laura Elorde. His sons Gabriel Jr. (Bebot), Marty and Johnny went into the world of boxing as promoters and managers. His daughters, as well as the rest of his family have been in the boxing industry since the death of the great "Flash". As a family, they have expanded the Elorde name into becoming a brand. They have made merchandise and gyms throughout the country. International endeavors are still being considered.

Professional boxing record

89 Wins (33 knockouts, 57 decisions), 27 Losses (4 knockout, 23 decisions), 2 Draws, 0 No Contest - Notes[9]
Res.	Record	Opponent	Type	Rd., Time	Date	Location	Notes
Loss	89-27-2	Hiruyuki Murakami	UD	10	1971-05-20	Tokyo
Win	89-26-2	Shunkichi Suemitsu	UD	10	1971-04-01	Manila, Metro Manila
Win	88-26-2	Isao Ichihara	KO	6(10)	1971-02-12	Manila, Metro Manila
Loss	87-26-2	Isao Ichihara	UD	10	1970-12-18	Recreation Center, Agana
Win	87-25-2	Tatsunao Mitsuyama	UD	10	1970-10-31	Davao City, Davao del Sur,
Win	86-25-2	Chico Andrade	TKO	(5)10	1970-08-28	Araneta Coliseum, Quezon City, Metro Manila
Win	85-25-2	Kenji Iwata	TKO	10	1970-06-27	Manila, Metro Manila
Win	84-25-2	Isao Ichihara	KO	(9)10,	1970-05-16	Manila, Metro Manila
Win	83-25-2	Munchai Rorfortor	TKO	(5)10, 2:54	1970-03-01	Manila, Metro Manila
Loss	82-25-2	Jaguar Kakizawa	UD	10	1969-04-26	Araneta Coliseum, Quezon City, Metro Manila
Loss	82-24-2	Eugenio Espinoza	UD	10	1969-02-16	Quito
Loss	82-23-2	Akihisa Someya	UD	10	1967-10-28	Manila, Metro Manila
Loss	82-22-2	Yoshiaki Numata	MD	15	1967-06-15	Kokugikan, Tokyo	Lost Lineal, WBC & WBA world super featherweight titles.
Win	82-21-2	Fujio Mikami	SD	10	1967-04-25	Honolulu, Hawaii
Loss	81-21-2	Carlos Ortiz	KO	14(15),2:01	1966-11-28	Madison Square Garden, New York, New York City	For WBA world lightweight title.
Win	81-20-2	Vicente Milan Derado	MD	15	1966-10-22	Araneta Coliseum, Quezon City, Metro Manila	Retained Lineal, WBC & WBA world super featherweight titles.
Win	80-20-2	Percy Hayles	UD	10	1966-08-07	Araneta Coliseum, Quezon City, Metro Manila
Loss	79-20-2	Yoshiaki Numata	UD	12	1969-06-09	Nihon University Auditorium, Tokyo	Lost OPBF lightweight title
Win	79-19-2	Ismael Laguna	UD	10	1966-03-19	Araneta Coliseum, Quezon City, Metro Manila
Win	78-19-2	Kang-Il Suh	UD	10	1965-12-04	Araneta Coliseum, Quezon City, Metro Manila	Retained Lineal, WBC & WBA world super featherweight titles.
Win	77-19-2	Frankie Narvaez	SD	10	1965-08-04	Madison Square Garden, New York, New York City
Win	76-19-2	Teruo Kosaka	KO	15(15),2:14	1965-06-05	Araneta Coliseum, Quezon City, Metro Manila	Retained Lineal, WBC & WBA world super featherweight titles.
Win	75-19-2	Rene Barrientos	UD	12	1965-02-27	Cebu Coliseum,, Cebu City, Cebu	Retained OPBF lightweight title.
Win	74-19-2	Kang-Il Suh	MD	12	1964-11-21	Araneta Coliseum, Quezon City, Metro Manila	Retained OPBF lightweight title.
Win	73-19-2	Teruo Kosaka	TKO	12(15),1:45	1964-07-27	Kokugikan, Tokyo	Retained Lineal, WBC & WBA world super featherweight titles.
Win	72-19-2	Takashi Matsumoto	UD	12	1964-05-08	Araneta Coliseum, Quezon City, Metro Manila	Retained OPBF lightweight title.
Loss	71-19-2	Carlos Ortiz	TKO	14(15),1:44	1964-02-15	Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, Manila, Metro Manila	For WBC & WBA world lightweight titles.
Win	71-18-2	Love Alottey	DQ	11(15),1:44	1963-11-16	Araneta Coliseum, Quezon City, Metro Manila	Retained Lineal, WBC & WBA world super featherweight titles.
Win	70-18-2	Love Alottey	UD	10	1963-08-03	Araneta Coliseum, Quezon City, Metro Manila
Win	69-18-2	Tsunetomi Miyamoto	TKO	9(12),0:45	1963-06-01	Manila, Metro Manila
Win	68-18-2	Johnny Bizzaro	UD	15	1963-02-16	Manila, Metro Manila	Retained Lineal super featherweight title. Inaugural WBC & WBA world super featherweight titles.
Win	67-18-2	Solomon Boysaw	UD	10	1962-12-21	Araneta Coliseum, Quezon City, Metro Manila
Win	66-18-2	Isarasak Puntainorasing	TKO	3(12)	1962-11-17	Manila, Metro Manila	Retained OPBF lightweight title.
Win	65-18-2	Teruo Kosaka	UD	12	1962-08-04	Cebu Coliseum, Cebu City, Cebu	Won OPBF lightweight title.
Win	64-18-2	Auburn Copeland	MD	15	1962-06-23	Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, Manila, Metro Manila	Retained World super featherweight title.
Loss	63-18-2	Teruo Kosaka	SD	12	1962-04-30	Korakuen Gym, Tokyo	Lost OPBF lightweight title.
Win	63-17-2	Somkiat Kiatmuangyom	KO	2(12)	1962-03-10	Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, Manila, Metro Manila	Retained OPBF lightweight title.
Win	62-17-2	Sergio Caprari	TKO	1(15), 2:22	1961-12-06	Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, Manila, Metro Manila	Retained World super featherweight title.
Win	61-17-2	Teruo Kosaka	SD	12	1961-09-02	Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, Manila, Metro Manila	Retained OPBF lightweight title.
Win	60-17-2	Giordano Campari	UD	10	1961-05-31	Araneta Coliseum, Quezon City, Metro Manila
Win	59-17-2	Joey Lopes	UD	15	1961-03-19	Manila, Metro Manila	Retained World super featherweight title.
Win	58-17-2	Vicente Rivas	UD	10	1960-12-16	Araneta Coliseum, Quezon City, Metro Manila
Win	57-17-2	Sakuji Shinozawa	UD	12	1960-10-17	Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, Manila, Metro Manila	Retained OPBF lightweight title.
Win	56-17-2	Harold Gomes	KO	1(15), 1:20	1960-08-17	Cow Palace, Daly City, California	Retained World super featherweight title.
Win	55-17-2	Hachiro Ito	TKO	5(15), 2:43	1960-07-09	Araneta Coliseum, Quezon City, Metro Manila
Win	54-17-2	Harold Gomes	KO	7(15), 1:50	1960-03-16	Araneta Coliseum, Quezon City, Metro Manila	Won World super featherweight title.
Win	53-17-2	Bert Somodio	UD	10	1959-12-15	Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, Manila, Metro Manila
Win	52-17-2	Isami Ikeyama	RTD	4(10),3:00	1959-11-26	Nihon University Auditorium, Tokyo
Win	51-17-2	Hisao Kobayashi	PTS	12	1959-10-07	Tokyo	retained OPBF lightweight title.
Loss	50-17-2	Solomon Boysaw	UD	12	1959-07-29	Arena, Cleveland, Ohio
Loss	50-16-2	Vicente Rivas	PTS	10	1959-06-15	Caracas
Win	50-15-2	Sonny Leon	PTS	10	1959-05-25	Nuevo Circo, Caracas
Win	49-15-2	Teddy Davis	UD	10	1959-03-31	Civic Auditorium, Stockton, California
Loss	48-15-2	Paolo Rosi	SD	10	1959-02-23	Cow Palace, Daly City, California
Win	48-14-2	Takeo Sugimori	PTS	10	1959-02-06	Nihon University Auditorium, Tokyo	Retained OPBF lightweight title.
Win	47-14-2	Kiyoaki Nakanishi	TKO	4(10)	1958-12-27	Davao City, Davao del Sur
Win	46-14-2	Keiichi Ishikawa	RTD	6(12)	1958-11-15	Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, Manila, Metro Manila	Retained OPBF lightweight title.
Win	45-14-2	Hisao Kobayashi	PTS	12	1958-09-02	Tokyo	Retained OPBF lightweight title.
Win	44-14-2	Ike Chestnut	UD	10	1958-06-10	Honolulu Stadium, Honolulu, Hawaii
Win	43-14-2	Javellana Kid	UD	10	1958-05-03	Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, Manila, Metro Manila	Retained OPBF lightweight title.
Win	42-14-2	Hiroshi Okawa	UD	10	1958-02-02	Tokyo	Won OPBF lightweight title.
Win	41-14-2	Leo Alonzo	UD	12	1957-10-23	Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, Manila, Metro Manila
Loss	40-14-2	Shigeji Kaneko	MD	10	1957-09-24	Metropolitan Gym, Tokyo
Win	40-13-2	Salika Yontrakit	KO	3(10), 0:58	1957-08-03	Bangkok
Loss	39-13-2	Omsap Laemfapha	PTS	12	1957-06-23	Bangkok	Lost OPBF lightweight title.
Win	39-12-2	Hideto Kobayashi	PTS	12	1957-04-27	Nagoya, Aichi	Won vacant OPBF lightweight title.
Win	38-12-2	Tommy Romulo	UD	12	1957-03-16	Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, Manila, Metro Manila
Win	37-12-2	Hidemi Wada	KO	5(10),1:50	1957-02-05	Osaka
Loss	36-12-2	Miguel Berrios	UD	10	1956-11-09	Madison Square Garden, New York, New York City
Win	36-11-2	Luke Sandoval	KO	2(10)	1956-10-16	Civic Auditorium, San Jose, California
Loss	35-11-2	Miguel Berrios	SD	10	1956-08-22	San Francisco Gardens, San Francisco, California
Win	35-10-2	Dave Gallardo	UD	10	1956-07-24	San Jose, California
Win	34-10-2	Cecil Schoonmaker	KO	9(10),0:27	1956-06-26	Stockton, California
Win	33-10-2	Gil Velarde	TKO	7(10),2:58	1956-06-11	San Francisco Gardens, San Francisco, California
Win	32-10-2	Chico Rosa	PTS	10	1956-05-08	Civic Auditorium, Stockton, California
Win	31-10-2	Cleo Lane	TKO	1(10),2:26	1956-04-23	San Francisco Gardens, San Francisco, California
Loss	30-10-2	Sandy Saddler	TKO	13(15),0:59	1956-01-18	Cow Palace, Daly City, California	For World featherweight title. The bout was stopped on a bad cut suffered by Elorde.
Loss	30-09-2	Shigeji Kaneko	PTS	10	1955-10-13	Tokyo
Win	30-08-2	Sandy Saddler	UD	10	1955-07-20	Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, Manila, Metro Manila
Loss	29-08-2	Leo Alonzo	SD	12	1955-06-15	Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, Manila, Metro Manila
Win	29-07-2	Severino Fuentes	PTS	10	1955-04-15	Bullfight Arena , Manila, Metro Manila
Loss	28-07-2	Masashi Akiyama	PTS	10	1955-01-12	Metropolitan Gym, Tokyo
Win	28-06-2	Masashi Akiyama	PTS	10	1954-11-27	Manila, Metro Manila
Win	27-06-2	Katsumi Kosaka	TKO	8(12),1:55	1954-11-20	Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, Manila, Metro Manila
Win	26-06-2	Yoichi Hayashi	PTS	8	1954-11-02	Prefectural Gymnasium, Osaka, Osaka
Win	25-06-2	Tommy Romulo		12	1954-08-18	Manila, Metro Manila
Win	24-06-2	Roy Higa	UD	10	1954-08-05	Korakuen Ice Palace, Tokyo
Loss	23-06-2	Shigeji Kaneko	UD	12	1954-06-29	Metropolitan Gym, Tokyo	For OPBF featherweight title.
Win	23-05-2	Hiroshi Okawa	UD	12	1954-04-21	Kokugikan, Tokyo
Win	22-05-2	Kiyoaki Nakanishi	UD	12	1954-01-28	Kokugikan, Tokyo
Loss	21-05-2	Masashi Akiyama	UD	10	1953-11-26	Kokugikan, Tokyo
Win	21-04-2	Noboru Tanaka	PTS	10	1953-10-08	Korakuen Gym, Tokyo
Loss	20-04-2	Shigeji Kaneko	PTS	10	1953-08-08	Koshien Baseball Stadium, Nishinomiya, Hyogo
Win	20-03-2	Akiyoshi Akanuma	UD	12	1953-07-01	Korakuen Ice Palace, Tokyo	Retained OPBF bantamweight title.
Loss	19-03-2	Larry Bataan	PTS	12	1953-05-20	Manila, Metro Manila	For OPBF featherweight title.
Win	19-02-2	Al Cruz	PTS	10	1953-03-15	Manila, Metro Manila	Retained OPBF bantamweight title.
Win	18-02-2	Willie Brown	TKO	4(?)	1953-02-18	Rizal Memorial Coliseum, Manila, Metro Manila
Draw	17-02-2	Akiyoshi Akanuma	PTS	10	1952-11-29	Kokugikan, Tokyo
Win	17-02-1	Hiroshi Horiguchi	SD	12	1952-10-18	Kokugikan, Tokyo	Won vacant OPBF bantamweight title.
Win	16-02-1	Little Dundee	KO	4(12)	1952-08-12	Davao City, Davao del Sur
Win	15-02-1	Tanny Campo	PTS	12	1952-07-26	Rizal Memorial Coliseum, Manila, Metro Manila
Win	14-02-1	Tanny Campo	PTS	8	1952-05-31	Grace Park Stadium, Caloocan City, Metro Manila
Win	13-02-1	Paulito Escarlan	PTS	6	1952-05-10	Grace Park Stadium, Caloocan City, Metro Manila
Win	12-02-1	Benny Escobar	PTS	8	1952-05-03	Caloocan City, Metro Manila
Draw	11-02-1	Tommy Romulo	PTS	10	1952-03-16	Davao City, Davao del Sur
Loss	11-02-0	Little Dundee	PTS	8	1952-02-24	Davao City, Davao del Sur
Win	11-01-0	Tenejeros Boy	PTS	8	1952-01-30	Davao City, Davao del Sur
Win	10-01-0	Lucky Strike	KO	5(?)	1951-12-01	Cebu
Loss	09-01-0	Kid Independence	KO	10(10)	1951-10-16	Cebu
Win	09-00-0	Star Flores	PTS	10	1951-09-15	Cebu
Win	08-00-0	Little Patilla	KO	6	1951-09-08	Cebu
Win	07-00-0	Fighting Chavez	KO	7	1951-08-20	Cebu
Win	06-00-0	Fighting Chavez	KO	1	1951-08-11	Cebu
Win	05-00-0	Star Mercado	KO	1	1951-07-28	Cebu
Win	04-00-0	Kid Santos	KO	5	1951-07-14	Cebu
Win	03-00-0	Mike Sanchez	PTS	5	1951-07-14	Cebu
Win	02-00-0	Young Basiliano	KO	3	1951-06-23	Cebu
Win	01-00-0	Kid Gonzaga	KO	3	1951-06-16	Cebu	Professional Debut

See also

• Suntukan
• Lineal champions in boxing
• History of boxing in the Philippines
• List of WBC world champions
• List of undisputed boxing champions

References

External links

• Professional boxing record for Gabriel Elorde from BoxRec
• Philboxing.com - Gabriel "Flash" Elorde
• Elorde Gyms Manila
• HBO: Boxing: Feature: Before there was Manny Pacquiao, there was Flash Elorde
• Gabriel "Flash" Elorde - IBHOF Biography
• Elorde Flattens Gomes to Win Junior Lightweight Ring Title The Day. AP. 17 March 1960.
• Elorde Puts Away Gomes In The 1st The Times News. UPI. 18 August 1960.