Alan Minter Ali–Leon Spinks I undercard in Las Vegas, Nevada, he won his first bout in the United States by knocking out Sandy Torres in five. Then, he went to Italy once again to regain his European Middleweight title by knocking out Angelo Jacopucci in twelve rounds. Jacopucci died a few days afterwards, due to injuries sustained in the bout. Minter finished his year by avenging his loss to Tonna with a six-round knockout. In 1979, Minter won all four of his fights, two of them by knockout. On 16 March 1980, in Las Vegas, he was given a shot at World
Derek Minter a farm labourer to earn the extra money needed to buy his first bike in 1948, a 350 cc BSA which he also used for trials riding. After National Service in the Royal Air Force, Minter worked for motorcycle dealer Ray Hallet at Hallets of Canterbury. Hallet had been a road race and grass track rider and Minter accompanied him to the Isle of Man as his mechanic for the Manx Grand Prix. Hallet provided Minter with a CB34 500 cc BSA Gold Star which was prepared for racing and stripped of unnecessary weight, but retained the standard, roadster-based equipment