How it unfolded
WBA lightweight champion Ray Mancini's challenger was Asia-Pacific champion Kim Duk-koo. The 23-year-old challenger had little international experience and was widely expected to lose easily, but Kim refused to back down in the outdoor ring at Caesars Palace and traded blows throughout. The fight became a slugfest through the 13th round, with both men's faces swelling badly. At 19 seconds into the 14th round, a clean Mancini right hand dropped Kim. He tried to rise by grabbing the ropes, but referee Richard Green stopped the fight. Kim, unconscious in the ring, was taken to hospital, underwent surgery to remove an acute subdural hematoma, and died four days later on November 17. The fight had been broadcast live nationwide on CBS. The tragedy deepened afterward when Kim's mother and referee Green both later took their own lives, and Mancini himself carried the aftereffects for years.
Why it still matters
This fight rewrote boxing's safety regulations from the ground up. The WBC cut championship fights from 15 rounds to 12, other bodies followed, and no 15-round title fight has been held since 1988. Mandatory medical exams, ringside physicians and standing-eight-count protocols were all tightened after this incident, and it remains the most painful name in Korean boxing history.