From The Scottish Daily Record - Mar 8, 2001


ROBERTO DURAN will finally break the longest silence in sport later this month by paying tribute to Ken Buchanan, the man whose WBA and WBC lightweight titles he took back in 1972.

Promoters Ian McLeod and Michael Antoniou are holding a testimonial dinner for Scotland's greatest boxer at Glasgow's Moat House Hotel on March 22 and Duran is hoping to bury the hatchet on one of the fight game's most enduring feuds by praising him.

Duran ended Buchanan's reign as world champion in controversial circumstances at Madison Square Garden, felling the Scot with a low blow in the 13th round.

Many believed the challenger should have been disqualified but instead he took the belts.

An all-time great following memorable bouts with Sugar Ray Leonard, Thomas Hearns, Marvin Hagler and Davey Moore, Duran has always maintained that Buchanan was his toughest opponent - which is presumably why there was never a rematch.

Buchanan was so desperate for a second crack at him that he once flew to New York on spec in an attempt to goad him into another fight. But his efforts were in vain.

Incredibly (and sadly), he is still active at 49 but following negotiations with his lawyer, Antonio Gonzalez, McLeod is confident the great man will send his best wishes by way of a video message on the night.

It looks like being one of the highlights of a star-studded evening and it all came about due to a chance meeting with the Panamanian legend on McLeod's honeymoon.

The former Commonwealth super-featherweight champion was in Las Vegas with new wife Fiona when he bumped into Duran.

McLeod said: "I'd gone along to a Press conference for Erik Morales' fight with Guty Espadas and I'd been chatting with Wayne McCullough and Emanuel Steward when there was this huge commotion.

"Duran had turned up and brought the place to a standstill. Everyone wanted to speak to him or get an autograph.

"When I managed to introduce myself to him through his lawyer, I let him know I was from Scotland and Ken's name cropped up.

"Duran said he didn't think Ken liked him and I replied that if he'd punched me where he punched him then I wouldn't like him much either."

"I had watched him continue his career as mine slipped away. Whatever he achieved I still felt he didn't deserve to be world champion, rolling in dough and glory. I keep seeing the big picture in my head of June 1972 and Duran is jumping about the ring with my title. I go white-hot with anger...nothing can cool me down.

All I ever wanted was a return fight but Duran stayed well ouut of my road. Every time I was in position to ask for a title fight there was some excuse...so here I am working as a joiner more than 20 years later and I can't take it. Any time I have tried to talk to another person about this, they just tell me, "Ken, it's just one of those things".

But it's not just one of those things. For the rest of the world it might be just one of those things, but for me it is the thing. And by now I am old enough and ugly enough to know that it has to be dealt with. If I had a pound for every time somebody asked me if I would have beat Duran [in a rematch] i'd be a millionare. And every time I got asked that question my heart broke just a little bit further.

I flew from Edinburgh to London...I got a flight to Kennedy Airport...to be honest it felt like it was just the day before I was fighting Duran. When we landed in America my heart was pounding. I was looking out the taxi thinking, what was I doing? One man in a city of ten million trying to find another single human being amongst the those ten million.

We arrived in Harlem where the bed and breakfast was. I got out of the cab and caught a few people loooking at me. But that didn't bother me. Nothing much frightens me at all now...the door opens and this woman pokes her head otu. She's about five feet nothing in her socks.

"Yes?"

"I phoned from the terminal. You said you had me a room for a couple of weeks."

"But man - you is white!"

"Jesus - you're the second person today to tell me that!"

"You're white!"

"Yes brilliant, Christ, I know that."

I smile, she smiles, and she lets me in. She takes me to Mrs. Wells restraunt up the street. Up the stairs we go and people are looking. She opens the door and we go in. The place falls silent. Not a fork or a knife s****ing a plate. Mouths are hanging open. There is a white man in the doorway...but I didn't give a **** - to be honest there are times in your life when nothing matters, and I think people pick up on that.

After about ten days looking for Duran in all the gyms and bars, I decided I was never going to find him...So after two weeks in Harlem I went back to Scotland..."

(Ken Buchanan)