Marciano may have had a relatively short boxing career, but in that time he proved himself one of the most dominant heavyweights of all time. At this point, however, Marciano receives as much attention for his tragic death as for his fame in the ring. Marciano was born in in Brockton, Massachusetts. After a stint in the army, and an unsuccessful attempt to become a major league baseball player, he fought his first pro boxing match in Soon he had amassed 15 straight victories, winning all of those matches by knockout.
In October of that year, he successfully defeated former heavyweight champion Joe Louis — yeah, that Joe Louis. In , Marciano won the heavyweight crown.
He was known for his "relentless fighting style," "iron chin", and stamina. His nearly 90 percent win-to-knockout ratio remains one of the highest ever, and he successfully defended his heavyweight title six times. Below is a listing of his perfect career record. Marciano scored knockouts in 23 of his first 25 professional fights during a three-year period. Marciano won the world heavyweight title in and defended it several times until his retirement in Marciano took the title in a September bout against Jersey Joe Walcott.
Marciano defended the title twice in and twice each year for the next two years. He knocked out his challengers in every bout. Marciano announced his retirement in April with a perfect record. They married on December 31, They had one daughter, Mary Ann, and adopted a son, Rocco Kevin. After boxing, in , Marciano hosted a weekly boxing show on TV. He also worked as a referee and boxing commentator in boxing matches for many years.
On August 31, , the eve of his 46th birthday, Marciano was killed in a tragic plane crash. Five years later, Barbara succumbed to lung cancer at age We strive for accuracy and fairness. If you see something that doesn't look right, contact us! Subscribe to the Biography newsletter to receive stories about the people who shaped our world and the stories that shaped their lives.
African American boxer Joe Louis, who reigned as world heavyweight champion from until , is regarded as one of his sport's all-time greats. Joe Frazier was the world heavyweight boxing champion from February until January and fought in the famous "Thrilla in Manila" in Baseball legend Joe DiMaggio set a record with his game hitting streak in and won nine World Series titles during his 13 years with the New York Yankees.
In a comparison Joe Louis fought much better competition than did Rocky Marciano. Marciano never fought the big pounds plus hitters and giants that Louis did.
The only top notch heavyweights that Marciano defeated who weighed over pounds were a fat Don Cockell who weighed , and Joe Louis in his last fight. Louis was at his absolute best against the big men because of his speed and explosive power.
The two best punchers that he did fight, Jersey Joe Walcott and Archie Moore both put him on the canvas. Marciano would be favored over the giants that Louis defeated, but he simply never faced anyone of such size and strength in his career. Could Marciano make 25 successful title defenses against Louis competition?
Possibly, but he would have struggled more doing so. He made only 6 title defenses and decided to rest on his laurels. Marciano would be an underdog to Ali and would likely lose a decision.
It seems highly unlikely that Marciano could overcome the freakish power of the much larger Foreman in a slugfest. Frazier holds a win over Muhammad Ali and defeated other quality heavyweights such as Jerry Quarry who were superior to most of Marciano's competition.
Had the two all time greats switched era's Frazier would have been and Marciano would likely have had losses to Ali and Foreman on his record. He never faced topnotch fighters like they did. He fought them all and that is what a champion is supposed to do. Many believe that Marciano actually did lose to Roland LaStarza in their first fight but got a gift decision.
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