Italian Boxing Champions - Who Are Your Top Three of All Time?

With over four dozen Italian-American fighters who have held a world championship belt, it's a difficult choice to pick the top three of all time. Take a look at our list of the top three Italian boxing champions, and tell us yours...

Italian Boxing Champions

Over fifty fighters of Italian-American heritage have held world championship titles, ranging from bantamweights to heavyweights. Many of these fighters are acknowledged as the very best not only of their era, but all time. Here is our list of the top three Italian boxing champions of all time. When compiling this list, we took into account the impact of the fighter on their era as well as their ongoing legacy. Here are our top three...

Rocky Marciano: Heavyweight

Fighting out of Brockton, Massachusetts, Rocky Marciano may be one of the best known heavyweight boxing champions of all time.

He fought during an extremely competitive heavyweight era and conquered every fighter he faced. Marciano beat such notables as Joe Louis, Jersey Joe Wolcott, Ezzard Charles, and Archie Moore. When he retired in 1956, his record was an unblemished 49 wins against no losses.

Marciano maintained his popularity after retirement. He worked as a boxing commentator and a wrestling referee, as he had wrestled successfully as a youth. Sadly, Marciano died in a plane crash just one day before his 46th birthday in 1969.

Carmen Basilio: Two Class Champion

Born in 1927 in upstate New York, Carmen Basilio is our choice for the toughest pound for pound fighter of all time. He was not only a great defensive fighter but also a savage counter puncher who pursued his opponent relentlessly. A few of Basilio's fights are shown frequently on classic sports television, perhaps accounting for his continued popularity. One fight in particular, against Tony DeMarco in 1955, is regarded as one of the most entertaining welterweight title fights ever.

Basilio also had memorable fights as a middleweight against Sugar Ray Robinson. He won the middleweight crown versus Robinson in 1956. He retired from the ring in 1961 with a career record of 56 wins, 16 losses, and 7 draws.

Willie Pep: Featherweight Legend

Born in 1922, Willie Pep is probably the best known featherweight fighter of all time. He had a prodigious career that began in 1940 and ultimately ended in 1966.

He ascended to the world featherweight title in 1942, winning a fight against defending champion Chalky Wright. Through the rest of the 1940's, Pep remained a very busy fighter. He took on all levels of fighters and typically fought once a month on average. Through his career, he fought an astounding 241 times. He only lost 11 of those fights.

After his career ended in 1966, Pep remained active in boxing as a referee. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in its inaugural 1990 class, and often worked at the facility as a volunteer with his friend Carmen Basilio. Mr. Pep passed away in 2006 at age 84.

Summary

Rocky Marciano, Carmen Basilio, and Willie Pep are three of the greatest fighters of all time. Each left their imprint on the legacy of boxing and influenced generations of future boxers.

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