Happy Birthday To “The Rock”

Today is the birthday of legendary heavyweight champion Rocky Marciano and we will always pay tribute to the one and only “Brockton Blockbuster,” regardless of the fact his famous 49-0 career mark was “eclipsed” a few years back by Floyd Mayweather Jr. Happy Birthday, Rocco Francis Marchegiano; you were one of a kind. But okay, Floyd with his 50-0 record is “TBE,” The Best Ever, while Marciano is relegated to the slag heap of history. Fine. But call me a dreamy, nostalgic old man because I’m still going to count the ways Rocky proved himself an extraordinary pugilist, a phenomenon, a legend. And explain too why the whole undefeated record thing is a bunch of bull anyway.

The Rock: Ink drawing by Damien Burton

What makes Rocky Marciano special? Well, for starters there’s the fact he began boxing seriously at the ripe old age of 23, turning pro at 25. For someone to take up the sport that late and go on to stunning success is unheard of. Rocky did learn some of the rudiments of fisticuffs as a youngster, and while stationed with the army in Europe he sparred regularly, but he really only began boxing with serious intent after his attempts to make it as a baseball player hit a dead end. Not often (as in, never) does someone in their twenties turn to prizefighting as “Plan B” and go on to be a world champion. Crazy.

Then there’s the fact that, even back in the day, Rocky was a tad small for a heavyweight, but despite this he established himself as a certified wrecking machine. Standing 5’10” and rarely weighing more than 188 pounds, and in a time before anyone started taking steroids, Marciano had to focus on being in nothing less than phenomenal condition to overcome disadvantages in size and weight. For example, when Marciano knocked out Joe Louis in 1951, the aging former champion was almost thirty pounds heavier. But as they say, power is the great equalizer, and despite his small stature, Marciano could lower the boom like few fighters in boxing history. He blasted Louis out of the ring and then went on to achieve an amazing 88% knockout ratio before all was said and done.

Joe Louis feels Marciano’s power.

Admittedly, Rocky competed in a rather depleted heavyweight division, but he ducked no one and, thanks to his power, ferocity and amazing stamina, he holds wins over such certified legends as Louis, Jersey Joe Walcott, Ezzard Charles and Archie Moore. His ring style necessitated taking shots, but he had a chin of granite and was down only twice, to Walcott and KO king Moore. He faced the best fighters of his time and stopped them all inside the distance; his one-punch pasting of Walcott for the title is one of the greatest, not to mention one of the most brutal, knockouts in boxing history. He featured in three contests hailed by Ring magazine as Fight Of The Year, and his reputation as a relentless, all-action punching machine made him a hot ticket; huge crowds came to all of his title fights. But then, suddenly, it was over.

Marciano battling the great Ezzard Charles.

Few expected Marciano to end his career when he did. He was a dominant champion, hugely successful, only 32-years-old, but his family wanted him to walk away from the fight game. Even so, following his final match, a knockout over Moore in September of 1955, he told the press, “Personally, at this point, I don’t feel I should retire.”

At the time no one was particularly vexed about Rocky’s undefeated record one way or the other. Sure it was an impressive run, but back then defeats were not viewed as the terrible disgrace they are today. Losses were part of the game. Marciano’s spotless win streak was regarded as something weird and freakish as much as it was seen as a testament to his pugilistic greatness. More to the point, at the time few, if any, historians and boxing scribes saw Rocky as the “TBE” of the heavyweight division. Pretty much everyone rated Louis, Jack Dempsey, James J. Jeffries and Jack Johnson as superior, and all of those fighters had tasted defeat. Marciano’s image as an all-time great was something which gained credence more in hindsight, his stature rising on a tide of nostalgia in the 1960s and 70s.

A single devastating right hand made Marciano champion.

Today it’s difficult to determine his standing when the heavyweight division has become the domain of guys who belong at the top of a beanstalk. A fight between a 188 pound Marciano and a 250 pound Lennox Lewis, for example, is a non-starter for obvious reasons. And yet, a list of history’s greatest heavyweight champions that doesn’t include the name ‘Rocky Marciano’ is generally viewed as misguided. His power, strength, toughness and will-to-win, plus his victories over some truly great names, guarantee him pugilistic immortality.

But as for 49-0 …

The whole truth did not come out for years, but when Marciano retired from boxing in April of 1956 his decision was less about the wishes of his family and more about the fact that Rocky was fed up with his manager, Al Weill. A former professional ballroom dancer, Weill was a total control freak and not much fun to work with. Not only did he get a fifty percent take of Marciano’s ring earnings, but he insisted on restricting Rocky’s public appearances and demanded a percentage of any payments the champion received for work outside the ring. If Marciano did a commercial or a television appearance, or even just a talk at the local boat show, Weill got a big, juicy bite of the proceeds.

Hammering the great Archie Moore to the canvas in his final fight in 1955.

The result was Rocky became paranoid about any and all financial transactions and did everything he could to conceal his income from Weill. This led to some bizarre behavior. His daughter has recounted inadvertently discovering thousands of dollars in a paper bag Rocky had forgotten under his chair in a movie theater, and it’s well known that he hid cash in all kinds of strange places, including light fixtures and curtain rods. He happily turned away checks worth thousands in favor of only hundreds in cash, because there was always a chance checks could be tracked down by Weill. This obsession with money led directly to Rocky’s death when he was only 45. Offered a free flight from Chicago to Des Moines on a small private plane, he couldn’t resist. The pilot was inexperienced and the plane crashed, killing all on board.

Rocky Marciano. Painting by Damien Burton.

The point is, money and Marciano’s hatred of Weill were the chief reasons for his choosing to retire when he did. His undefeated record was barely an afterthought. At the time, no one, including Rocky, really cared all that much about 49-0. Yes, becoming world champion and then retiring undefeated is an impressive accomplishment, but that by itself does not signify ring greatness and everyone at the time understood that. Besides, it was well known many of Rocky’s wins were over sub-par opponents and that at least two of his victories were suspect. The decision in the first of two matches with Ted Lowry was booed by the crowd and widely viewed as a gift, and many regarded his first points win over Roland LaStarza as a blatant robbery. But as time went on these facts faded away while the 49-0 mark accrued greater significance with the public.

Rocky and Weill.

Marciano had become a full-fledged legend by the 1980’s with the Rocky Balboa movies augmenting his fame (“Ya kinda remind me of ‘The Rock'”), and in 1985 Larry Holmes was in position to tie the 49-0 mark with a victory over light heavyweight champion Michael Spinks. But it was Spinks who scored a massive upset with a close decision win and Larry then went on to utter his infamous “Rocky couldn’t carry my jockstrap” line during a truly extraordinary post-fight press conference. Since then no heavyweight champion has managed to match or break the record. But even so, Marciano is hardly alone in terms of retiring undefeated, and in fact there are a number of longer and more significant win streaks.

Spinks thwarted Holmes’ attempt to match Marciano’s record.

Let’s start with Jimmy Wilde, without question one of the greatest fighters of all-time, who owns what may be the longest such streak in pugilistic history. In fact, it’s so long that it remains beyond precise account as some sources say Wilde went 93-0 before losing to Tancy Lee in 1915, while others say the number went as high as 104. Either way, it’s a mark that dwarfs 50-0. Wilde is regarded by many as both the greatest flyweight of all-time and the best fighter to ever emerge from Great Britain, and in addition to retiring with an incredible final tally of 132-3-1, he had 99 knockouts in his 132 wins, making him, pound-for-pound, one of the greatest punchers in boxing history. Bottom line: if Jimmy Wilde doesn’t put 49-0 into perspective for you, then you need to put down the “TBE” Kool-Aid and give your head a shake.

The great Jimmy Wilde in action.

But check this out: Young Griffo won 124 fights in a row, while the great Packy McFarland won 98. Sugar Ray Robinson went 91 straight without a loss, while Willie Pep owns not one, but two amazing win streaks. The “Will o’ the Wisp” reeled off 62 victories before dropping a decision to Sammy Angott, and then picked up where he left off to notch 72 in a row. Julio Cesar Chavez vanquished 87 consecutive opponents, while Carlos Monzon once went eighty straight without a loss. And though the records are a bit sketchy, some maintain that British lightweight Hal Bagwell won a grand total of 180 consecutive pro tilts, but you don’t hear anyone saying Bagwell is the “TBE,” do you?

Sugar Ray Robinson: 91 straight wins.

But we’re far from done. Ruben Olivares boasts 61 consecutive victories; Freddie Steele put together 54, and Carlos Zarate, 52. Nino Benvenuti had a run of 65 straight, while the amazing Harry Greb once racked up over seventy wins without a loss in less than three years. Duilio Loi put together a run of 59 fights without a defeat, while minimumweight champion Chayaphon Moonsri went 54-0 before taking his first loss. Then there’s Ricardo Lopez retiring with a record of 51-0-1, while Jimmy Barry, aka “The Little Tiger,” walked away with a record of 58-0. And don’t forget lesser known middleweight contender Teddy Yarosz who went 58-0, in the process beating guys like Billy Conn, Lou Brouillard, Vince Dundee, Eddie “Babe” Risko and Archie Moore. But no one goes around saying Teddy Yarosz is the best ever; maybe they should.

Perhaps Larry Merchant put it best when he stated that Marciano’s famous win streak “doesn’t make him a greater fighter, but a larger figure.” In other words, it’s a notable and famous achievement, but it does not constitute iron-clad evidence of Marciano’s greatness. And the same is true for Floyd Mayweather, whose 50-0 mark means very little in the context of boxing history. Especially when win number fifty came against a guy with a sterling ring record of 0-0-0.

Floyd is 50-0, but does it mean anything?

Of course the Mayweather vs McGregor fight of 2017 should never have been sanctioned and should not count as an official bout on Floyd’s pro record. But on the other hand, nothing could be more fitting that such an absurd swindle, a con which fleeced the public of hundreds of millions of dollars, should be the one that broke the hallowed 49-0 mark. For years, Floyd has been much more about the sizzle, not the steak, and Mayweather’s 50-0 ledger will always be more about marketing than anything else. Just as the aptly titled “Money Fight” had little to do with sports and everything to do with exploiting boxing so Floyd and Conor McGregor could collect outlandish paydays.

Simply put, “The Rock’s” 49-0 will always mean more than Floyd’s 50-0. In his final fight, Marciano took on a Hall of Fame champion and true all-time great in Archie Moore, surviving a knockdown to go toe-to-toe with the man with the most elite-level knockouts in boxing history, before stopping him in nine thrilling rounds. Meanwhile, Floyd took on an MMA fighter with almost no boxing experience, carried him for several rounds, and then beat him up when he got tired.

Number 49: “The Old Mongoose” and “The Rock From Brockton” go to war.

Floyd Mayweather added nothing to his legacy with that win, quite the opposite. And in fact, his credentials as a true all-time great were shaky to begin with. When boxing historian Monte Cox compiled his lists of the all-time greatest boxers, Floyd’s name failed to make an appearance. Here’s Mr. Cox explaining why:

“Floyd Mayweather’s career does not give him a spot [in the top ten welterweights of all-time]. Luis Rodriguez, for example, had a better career than Floyd [with wins over] Emile Griffith, Benny Paret, Hurricane Carter, Curtis Cokes, Georgie Benton and Bennie Briscoe. I cannot in all honesty put Mayweather in the top ten welterweights based on a career of hand-picked opponents and having never unified a major title. Floyd avoided fights with Mosley, Margarito and Pacquiao when they meant something. Mayweather just does not have the competition to be considered an all-time great.”

So Happy Birthday, Rocky, and rest easy. I doubt 49-0 ever meant half as much to you as it does to many Floyd Mayweather fans, but, surprisingly, it still means more than 50-0. And that’s the truth.        

— Michael Carbert  

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11 thoughts on “Happy Birthday To “The Rock”

  • September 1, 2017 at 10:43 pm
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    Just because Floyd’s style isn’t as photogenic as Rocky’s doesn’t mean he isn’t a pure mastermind of the mechanics of boxing. In fact, you could say he was a more well-rounded fighter than Rocky. Especially in his younger years, he excelled in aggression, achieving knockouts by picking apart his opponents’ guard. As he aged, he adopted a more defensive, counterpunching style and he won some fights via punchstats, sure, but that’s credit to his will to achieve victory by any means.

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    • September 2, 2017 at 3:10 am
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      Very well written article. Marciano was truly a great fighter for different reasons than Floyd. Floyd is a defensive genius while Marciano was crafty in his own way but he mostly led with his rock hard chin with the confidence he could knock anyone out. Floyd had a great chin but he was very conscious about hitting and not getting hit. Let’s forget about the fact that you may not like Floyd’s personality or you feel that Floyd cared too much about money and winning. When he went up against all of the greats of his generation, he beat them all convincingly although he went the distance in nearly half of his fights. But if you put Floyd up against Rocky, P4P, in their respective primes, I would say Rocky had a puncher’s chance but that usually means that he doesn’t have much of a chance against a true boxer that was almost impossible to hit solidly. I don’t think Floyd would knock out Rocky but I do think it would have gone the distance with Floyd winning a lopsided unanimous decision. Rocky was most boxing fans favourite type of fighter, a guy that got hit hard and kept moving forward, a fighter that could knock you out with one booming shot, but Mayweather was a true boxer.

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    • November 15, 2019 at 6:49 pm
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      Rocky, in our time would have weighed around 220. His fighting pace would have burned many modern fighters out after eight rounds. Additionally, Rocky, banged his opponents’ arms like no one before or after. Ali, Lewis and all others would have had great difficulty surviving his arm attacks. Yes, he could be hit, but not solid. I have studied and promoted professional boxing for years. His balance and body movements were second to none. Rocky would have been a nightmare to any of the so-called big heavyweights! Anyone who discounts Rocky isn’t knowledgeable!

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    • May 29, 2020 at 7:09 pm
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      Some say Rocky was fighting old fighters, but they forget Rocky himself was old when he started his career. Twenty-five is very late to become a pro boxer.

      Reply
  • September 5, 2017 at 8:30 pm
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    Let the racist baseball nostalgia die out. Floyd is the greatest Marquess of Queensberry practitioner we’ve had by about a mile. There were stronger, faster, quicker, sharper fighters in the sports history but none as astute and dedicated to his craft. He’s the high grandmaster and has more in common with a karate redbelt than a boxer.

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    • November 15, 2019 at 6:56 pm
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      I could have knocked Floyd out in my prime! He was and is a joke! Additionally, he fought some of the most boring fights in history! However, he was the best at running a sham and getting rich!

      Reply
  • February 26, 2018 at 4:48 pm
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    Joe Louis said Marciano could beat him in his prime himself, and Ali too. Rocky’s KO percentage was the highest of all-time, higher than Foreman, Tyson, Ali, Frazier, Dempsey or Liston. This despite the face he was outweighed in every fight but one. He dominated in an era where boxing was the biggest sport in the world and just five years after he started boxing seriously, and with the shortest reach of any heavyweight champion.

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    • March 31, 2020 at 2:40 am
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      Have you seen this article? ROCKY MARCIANO: Is He A Top 5 All Time Heavyweight? “Show me a fighter whose undefeated and I’ll show you a fighter who hasn’t fought anybody.” –Whitey Bimstein Check it out: http://coxscorner.tripod.com/rocky.html
           

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  • October 19, 2018 at 11:13 pm
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    Marciano was a pure puncher. What made him so powerful was his short arms and compact body. It did not take any time for a punch to be delivered with full impact. And he was proud of who he was. That’s why when they wanted to give him an Irish name he just laughed.

    Reply

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