Leonard Doroftei
Doroftei in 2014
Born
Leonard Dorin Doroftei[1]

(1970-04-10) April 10, 1970
Ploieşti, Romania[1]
NationalityRomanian
Other namesThe Lion
Statistics
Weight(s)Lightweight
Light welterweight
Height1.63 m (5 ft 4 in)
StanceOrthodox
Boxing record
Total fights24
Wins22
Wins by KO8
Losses1
Draws1
Medal record
Representing  Romania
Romania National Amateur Boxing Championships
Silver medal – second place 1991 Bucharest -60 kg
Gold medal – first place 1992 Bucharest -63.5 kg
Gold medal – first place 1993 Constanța -63.5 kg
Gold medal – first place 1994 Brăila -60 kg
Gold medal – first place 1997 Bucharest -60 kg
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place1992 Barcelona-63.5 kg
Bronze medal – third place1996 Atlanta-60 kg
World amateur championships
Gold medal – first place 1995 Berlin -60 kg
European amateur championships
Bronze medal – third place 1993 Bursa -63.5 kg
Gold medal – first place 1996 Vejle -60 kg

Leonard Dorin Doroftei (Romanian pronunciation: [le.oˈnard dorofˈtej] ⓘ, also known as Leonard Dorin; born 10 April 1970)[2] is a Romanian former boxer, the WBA Lightweight World Champion from 5 January 2002 to 24 October 2003.

Amateur highlights

Doroftei took up boxing at the age of 14 at the Ploieşti boxing club. From 1983 to 1984, he won every Romanian national junior title. He went on to win four national senior titles in 1992–1994 and 1997. He won bronze medals at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona and the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta.[1] In addition, he was declared World Champion in 1995 and European Champion in 1996. His record as an amateur was 239 victories and 15 defeats.[3]

Olympic results

1992 (as a Light Welterweight)

1996 (as a Lightweight)

Professional career

Doroftei in 1995

In 1997, Doroftei turned professional, signing with the Canadian club Interbox. Throughout his career, Dorin competed on ESPN, Showtime, and HBO. On 5 January 2002 he won the WBA world lightweight title, winning in a thrilling split decision over Argentinian boxer Raul Horacio Balbi 112–115, 114–113, 115–112. On 31 May the two fought again in Bucharest; this time, Dorin scored a knockdown en route to a clear cut unanimous decision victory, 118–111, 117–112 and 118–110.

A lightweight title unification bout on 17 May 2003 with American boxer Paul Spadafora, the IBF champion, ended in a draw, 114–114, 115–113, 114–115. The bout took place in Spadafora's hometown of Pittsburgh, and Dorin was a significant underdog. However, Dorin seemed to control the vast majority of the fight. He got to Spadafora early and often, surprising the champ with his intensity and workrate. Most observers agreed that Dorin had been robbed of a decision he deserved. Unfortunately for both fighters and boxing fans, a rematched never materialized.

On 24 October 2003, Doroftei was to fight a match against Panamanian boxer Miguel Callist. Doroftei had already announced that this would be his last professional match regardless of the result. As it turned out, the match was cancelled after Doroftei exceeded the maximum weight for lightweights at the weigh-in: he was 4+1⁄4 pounds (1.9 kg) over the 135 pounds (61 kg) weight limit, so he lost his WBA title.

On 24 July 2004, Doroftei lost his undefeated mark when he tried to get the WBC title, getting knocked out with a body shot in two rounds by Arturo Gatti.[2]

Retirement

He now resides in Romania with his wife and 3 children and is working as a trainer for boxing prospects. He has his own pub-restaurant in Ploieşti, which is decorated with his photos and memories from his boxing career. In November 2012, he was elected President of Romanian Boxing Federation.[4]

Professional boxing record

24 fights 22 wins 1 loss
By knockout 8 1
By decision 14 0
Draws 1
No. Result Record Opponent Type Round, time Date Location Notes
24 Loss 22–1–1 Canada Arturo Gatti KO 2 (12) Jul 24, 2004 United States Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. For WBC super lightweight title
23 Win 22–0–1 United States Charles Tschorniawsky TKO 4 (12) Mar 20, 2004 Canada Montreal Casino, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
22 Draw 21–0–1 United States Paul Spadafora SD 12 May 17, 2003 United States Petersen Events Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S. Retained WBA lightweight title;
For IBF lightweight title
21 Win 21–0 Argentina Raul Horacio Balbi UD 12 May 31, 2002 Romania Sala Polivalentă, Bucharest, Romania Retained WBA lightweight title
20 Win 20–0 Argentina Raul Horacio Balbi SD 12 Jan 05, 2002 United States Freeman Coliseum, San Antonio, Texas, U.S. Won WBA lightweight title
19 Win 19–0 United States Emanuel Augustus UD 10 Sep 28, 2001 United States War Memorial Gymnasium, San Francisco, California, U.S.
18 Win 18–0 United States Martin O'Malley TKO 9 (10) Jul 21, 2001 United States Bally's Atlantic City, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. O'Malley sustains a hairline fracture in his left ring finger and spends the next six weeks in a cast
17 Win 17–0 Canada Darelle Sukerow KO 5 (8) Dec 15, 2000 Canada Molson Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
16 Win 16–0 Australia Gairy St Clair UD 10 Sep 08, 2000 Canada Molson Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
15 Win 15–0 Puerto Rico Jose Aponte TKO 8 (8) Jun 16, 2000 Canada Molson Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
14 Win 14–0 Argentina Gustavo Fabian Cuello SD 10 Apr 06, 2000 Canada Air Canada Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
13 Win 13–0 United States Rudolfo Lunsford UD 8 Mar 07, 2000 Canada Molson Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
12 Win 12–0 United States Verdell Smith UD 10 Dec 10, 1999 Canada Molson Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
11 Win 11–0 United States Darien Ford UD 8 Oct 29, 1999 Canada Molson Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
10 Win 10–0 Canada Jean-Luc Morin TKO 3 (8) Oct 13, 1999 Canada Molson Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
9 Win 9–0 Guyana Dillon Carew PTS 12 Apr 30, 1999 United States Turning Stone Casino, Verona, New York, U.S. For WBC Continental Americas super lightweight title
8 Win 8–0 United States Bernard Harris SD 10 Feb 05, 1999 Canada Centre Pierre Charbonneau, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
7 Win 7–0 United States Steve Valdez TKO 6 (8) Nov 27, 1998 Canada Molson Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
6 Win 6–0 United States Khalil Shakeel UD 8 Nov 06, 1998 Canada Centre Pierre Charbonneau, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
5 Win 5–0 United States Michael Balagna KO 1 (6) Oct 14, 1998 Canada Centre Pierre Charbonneau, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
4 Win 4–0 Canada Don Sponagle TKO 2 (6) Sep 24, 1998 Canada Centre Pierre Charbonneau, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
3 Win 3–0 United States Sean Knight UD 6 May 28, 1998 United States Westchester County Center, White Plains, New York, U.S.
2 Win 2–0 Canada Martin Aubut UD 6 May 05, 1998 Canada Pavillon de la Jeunesse, Trois-Rivières, Quebec, Canada
1 Win 1–0 United States Jerry Villareal UD 4 Apr 24, 1998 Canada Palais Sports Leopold-Drolet, Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada

References

  1. 1 2 3 Leonard Doroftei. sports-reference.com
  2. 1 2 "Leonard Doroftei". Boxrec.com. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
  3. ↑ Leonard Doroftei. Romanian Olympic Committee
  4. ↑ "Doroftei, noul preşedinte al Federaţiei Române de box!" (in Romanian). Prosport. 23 November 2012.
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