By Robert Coster

Former light-flyweight title contender Hector Ray Melendez has passed away at age 64 in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. The diminutive Melendez (5′) compensated for his lack of height and power with speed, technique and a strong jaw. Dominican fans called him “a Champion without a belt.”

He fought WBC world Champion Sun Jun Kim in Korea and was the victim of a hometown draw (3-30-1979) after 15 rounds. Kim and Melendez fought again 7 months after, again in Korea, and Kim walked away with a close, controversial decision. Both boxers ended their rivalry in 1981 with a third match in Santo Domingo. Melendez won a clear cut ten round nod but Kim was no longer a champion by then.

Melendez retired from boxing with a 14-5-4, 3 KOs tab and became an evangelical pastor. He once said “God did not want me to be a world boxing champion, he had greater plans for me.”

RIP Hector Ray Melendez.