Wilfred Benitez defended his WBC world welterweight title against Sugar Ray Leonardbr br Date: November 30, 1979br br Venue: Caesars Palace, Las Vegasbr br Benitez stance: orthodoxbr br Leonard stance: othordoxbr br Wilfred Benitez turned pro when he was just 15, and a year later, he had world rankings from trhe WBA and WBC. Benitez won his first world title at the age of 17 - a record for the sport - when he gained a split decision over Antonio Cervantes to win the WBA light welterweight title in 1976. After two defences and nine non-title bouts, Benitez won the WBC welterweight title with a split decision over Carlos Palomino in 1979. In his first defence, Benitez avenged the only blemish on his record - a draw against Harold Weston - when he beat Weston on points.br br Sugar Ray Leonard was a gifted amateur who became Olympic light welterweight champion at the 1976 games in Montreal. Leonard was supposed to retire from boxing and go to college, but several family issues forced a change of plans, and Leonard turned pro in 1977. Leonard made steady progress in his first 25 bouts, beating a series of journeymen and fringe contenders. His best wins were a tenth round stoppage of Floyd Mayweather snr and a points win over Adolfo Viruet.