Perez was 47-0 at the time and 4'11 1/2 inches tall.... Very nearly the shortest world champion in boxing history. Just a smidge taller than Baby Jake. Ramon Arias was the first Venezuelan to compete for a world title. He would retire with a 29 win, 17 loss record that saw him stopped only twice over the course of 448 rounds, one of those coming against the great Eder Jofre.
****ing great. Perez is just so insistent isn't he? And because he's a flyweight he is more likely to get away with risking more and more, which he does. He's the very definition of a fighter you need to keep honest because if you leave him to it you're going to find him throwing square jabs at you and the fight is just in the bin. But he does enough, also, to make a fighter attempting to keep him honest think he is doing well - you can hit him with a few punches, he gives ground and let's you reclaim a portion of the ring and you can just tell yourself that this isn't strategically lost while he's busting you up. Perez thought deeply about boxing from what I can glean and I believe that it shows. What a great little fighter.