César Bazán’s Lightweight Upset
On June 13, 1998, César Bazán defeated previously unbeaten WBC lightweight champion Stevie Johnston by split decision in El Paso, Texas. The victory gave the Mexico City boxer the world title. Johnston reclaimed the championship in their February 27, 1999 rematch, also by split decision.
The bout was close enough to go to the judges, but the split decision went Bazán’s way. He had taken the championship from a favored, undefeated titleholder, and the result announced him as a genuine force at 135 pounds. It was more than a single upset: Bazán had reached the top of one of boxing’s deepest divisions by beating the man who had held the belt through a long unbeaten run.
A champion’s work began immediately. Bazán made two successful defenses, building a short but substantial reign around the victory that had won him the belt. Johnston, meanwhile, had the rematch clause and a clear reason to come back prepared. The two met again in Miami on February 27, 1999, with the championship at stake.
This time Johnston edged the twelve-round contest by split decision and reclaimed the WBC title (BoxRec championship chronology). Their two meetings left a neat but hard-fought rivalry: Bazán had handed Johnston the first defeat of his career, while Johnston answered by taking back the championship. Bazán’s reign lasted only about eight months, yet his win over the unbeaten champion remains its defining achievement.
Bazán later returned to a world-title fight against another formidable lightweight. In January 2001 he faced José Luis Castillo, then the WBC champion. Castillo stopped him in the sixth round. The bout marked a very different kind of test from the Johnston fights, illustrating the challenges posed by one of the era’s most relentless pressure fighters.
A Rivalry Decided on the Scorecards
Bazán’s two bouts with Johnston produced contrasting outcomes but the same official method: split decisions after twelve rounds. Bazán won the first meeting, handing Johnston his first professional defeat. Johnston won the rematch to regain the WBC lightweight title. Both contests are essential to understanding the length of Bazán’s reign and why his breakthrough deserves recognition even though it did not last a full year.
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César Bazán, Stevie Johnston, José Luis Castillo, WBC Lightweight, Boxing History
