Roberto ' Hands of Stone ' Durán, legendary four-time world boxing champion, was never intimidated or intimidated by anyone when he got into this sport because he was always like Superman, the former fighter told EFE this Wednesday in the middle of an unprecedented celebration of his 70th birthday.

"No (they intimidated me) because when I was starting out (as a boxer) I believed myself to be Superman, so it was very difficult for someone to fear Roberto Durán," said the Panamanian boxing legend during his visit to a training gym in a neighborhood. popular in the capital, where several boxers, between champions and former champions, sang "happy birthday" to him for reaching 70 years today.

"Manos de Piedra" Durán highlighted in the gym in that sense that people "are going to know the truth now", where his race of boxer comes from, since the blood of "Cherokee Indian" runs through his veins and he also has a family Mexican and relatives in Texas.

He also confessed that he would have liked to have a rematch fight with Thomas 'Hitman' Hearns, who delivered a devastating knockout in the second round in a fight held on June 15, 1984, the only time the Latin American legend lost in that way.

Roberto Durán, who during his visit to the gym was accompanied by Hearns's son, Thomás Hearns Jr, pointed out that he liked it when he told him that his father beat him "because you were not fit and you lost too much weight" for that fight. .

"At least he was kind," added the boxer 'Manos de Piedra'.

Hearns' son indicated that he is part of the group known as the "Fabulous Four", among which, in addition to his father, are the names of Marvin Hagler (now deceased), Durán and Sugar Ray Leonard, and that he is in Panama to take this country into account for a future interactive fighting project.

Roberto Durán Samaniego, known by the nickname 'Manos de Piedra' for the power of his punch, was born in Guararé on June 16, 1951.

He started in the world of boxing at 10 years old, and at 12 he managed to be a 'sparring' (training partner) of great figures who came to Panama to face boxer Ismael Laguna, the 1965 lightweight world champion.

After leaving school at the age of 13, Roberto Durán worked as a painter, waiter, shoe shine, until his talent for boxing was discovered. He retired in 2002 with 104 won fights, 70 knockouts and 16 losses.

BOXERS CELEBRATE THE LEGEND

Roberto Durán, who survived the coronavirus, was moved when as soon as he arrived at the gym called Pedro 'el Rockero' Alcázar, in the center of the capital, a group of boxers who trained surrounded him and sang "Happy Birthday" to him.

The four-time world champion highlighted with a broken voice that when he got to the gym he did not expect to meet all these boxers, and less than "they will sing me 'happy birthday' (...) those bastards made me cry."

However, he added that on the one hand he is happy about the date but on the other sad, since his mother Clara Samaniego is going through health problems.

Even so, the former boxer shared a moment of joy with the Efe Agency and with his 80th anniversary, sending him a message of congratulations jokingly simulating speaking Spanish.

"A warm greeting to all my friends in Spain and may God bless them, that they remember that I was there, so possibly we are going to meet there," he said.