Primo Carnera facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Primo Carnera |
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Carnera
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| Statistics | |
| Nickname(s) |
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| Rated at | |
| Height | 6ft 6 in |
| Reach | 85 in |
| Nationality |
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| Born | 26 October 1906 Sequals, Italy |
| Died | 29 June 1967 (aged 60) Sequals, Italy |
| Stance | Orthodox |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 103; with the inclusion of newspaper decisions |
| Wins | 89 |
| Wins by KO | 72 |
| Losses | 14 |
Primo Carnera (born October 26, 1906 – died June 29, 1967) was a famous Italian boxer and wrestler. He was known as the Ambling Alp because of his huge size. Primo was the World Heavyweight Boxing Champion from June 29, 1933, to June 14, 1934. He won more fights by knockout than any other heavyweight champion in boxing history.
Contents
About Primo Carnera's Life
Primo Carnera was born in Sequals, a town in Italy. This area is now part of the Province of Pordenone.
On March 13, 1939, Primo married Giuseppina Kovačič. She worked at a post office. In 1953, Primo and Giuseppina became citizens of both Italy and America. They moved to Los Angeles, where Primo opened a restaurant and a store. They had two children, Umberto and Giovanna Maria. Umberto later became a medical doctor.
Primo's Boxing Career
Becoming a Giant Boxer
In America, people often said Primo Carnera was 6 feet 7 inches tall. This would have made him the tallest heavyweight boxer at that time. However, he was actually 6 feet 6 inches tall. He could weigh as much as 275 pounds (about 125 kg).
Before Primo, Jess Willard was the tallest world heavyweight champion at 6 feet 7 inches. Later, Nikolai Valuev became the tallest at 7 feet (213 cm) and weighed 328 pounds (149 kg). Even though Primo was an inch shorter than Willard, he was about 40 pounds (18 kg) heavier. He was the heaviest champion until Valuev.
In Primo's time, the average height in Italy was about 5 feet 5 inches. In the United States, it was about 5 feet 7 inches. So, Primo was truly seen as a giant!
He had a much longer reach than most of his opponents. When you watch old fight videos, he looks like a towering figure. Many heavyweights back then were often 60 pounds (27 kg) lighter and 7 inches (18 cm) shorter. One story about him said: "For breakfast, Primo has a quart of orange juice, two quarts of milk, nineteen pieces of toast, fourteen eggs, a loaf of bread and half a pound of Virginia ham." His huge size earned him the nickname "The Ambling Alp." Time magazine even called him "The Monster."
Starting His Boxing Journey
Primo Carnera's first professional boxing match was on September 12, 1928, in Paris. He won by knockout in the second round. He won his first six fights. Then, he lost one fight by disqualification. After that, he won seven more fights in a row.
In 1930, Primo moved to the United States. He traveled a lot and won his first seventeen fights there by knockout. On February 10, 1933, he knocked out Ernie Schaaf in New York City. Sadly, Schaaf passed away four days later. Schaaf had been badly beaten in another fight months earlier. Also, doctors found that Schaaf had a brain swelling and was recovering from the flu when he fought Primo.
Becoming World Heavyweight Champion
Primo's next big fight was against the world heavyweight champion, Jack Sharkey. This fight happened on June 29, 1933, in New York. Primo became the world champion by knocking out Sharkey in the sixth round!
He successfully defended his title against Paulino Uzcudun and Tommy Loughran. He won both of these fights after 15 rounds. But in his next fight on June 14, 1934, against Max Baer, Primo was knocked down many times. The referee stopped the fight in the 11th round. People disagree on exactly how many times Primo was knocked down. Some say 7, others 10, 11, or even 12 times.
After Losing the Title
After losing to Max Baer, Primo won his next four fights. Three of these were during a tour in South America. But then, on June 25, 1935, he was knocked out by Joe Louis in six rounds.
For the next two and a half years, he won five fights and lost three. In 1938, Primo had to have a kidney removed because he had diabetes. This made him retire from boxing by 1944. Primo Carnera's boxing record was 89 wins and 14 losses. His 72 wins by knockout put him in a special group of boxers.
Primo Carnera passed away in 1967 in his hometown. He died from liver disease and problems related to his diabetes.
Primo Carnera's Legacy in Boxing
Primo Carnera was the third European boxer to become a world heavyweight champion. The others were Bob Fitzsimmons and Max Schmeling. He was the last European champion until Ingemar Johansson won the title in 1959.
Primo was also the first boxer to win the European Heavyweight title and then become the World Heavyweight champion.
Primo's 1933 title defense against Tommy Loughran held a record for 73 years. It was the biggest weight difference between two fighters in a world title match. Primo was 86 pounds (39 kg) heavier than Loughran! This record was broken by Nikolai Valuev in 2006.
Valuev also broke Primo's record for being the heaviest world champion. Primo weighed around 270 pounds (122 kg), but Valuev weighed as much as 328 pounds (149 kg). Primo still ranks as the fourth-heaviest world champion ever.
Primo's 1933 title defense against Paulino Uzcudun in Italy was important. It was the first heavyweight title fight in Europe since 1913. It was also the first time two European boxers fought for the World Heavyweight championship.
Primo Carnera's 72 career knockouts are the most by any world heavyweight champion.
Primo's Acting Career
Primo Carnera appeared in a short film in 1931. When he was world champion, he played a version of himself in the 1933 movie The Prizefighter and the Lady. In this movie, he plays the heavyweight champion who almost loses his title. This film was made just a year before Primo fought Max Baer in real life. The real fight was as exciting as the movie, but Primo lost by knockout.
Primo also had a small role in the 1949 movie Mighty Joe Young. He played himself in a scene where he has a tug-of-war with a giant gorilla. After the ape pulls him into a pool, Primo tries to punch the gorilla, but it doesn't work!
He also played a strong wrestler in the 1955 movie A Kid for Two Farthings. Primo appeared in at least ten Italian movies between 1939 and 1943. He also acted in several movies in the 1950s, like Prince Valiant. His last movie role was as the giant Antaeus in Hercules Unchained (1959).
Primo's Professional Wrestling Career
In 1945, Primo briefly returned to boxing and won two fights. But in 1946, people noticed his talent for wrestling. He became a professional wrestler and was very popular. For several years, he was one of the biggest stars in wrestling. Primo continued to be a wrestling attraction into the 1960s.
Primo won his first wrestling match on August 22, 1946. He defeated Tommy O'Toole in California. By November 19, 1946, Primo was undefeated with a record of 65 wins and no losses. He went 120 wrestling matches without a loss (119 wins, 0 losses, 1 draw). His first loss was on August 20, 1947, to Yvon Robert. Primo's biggest wrestling win was on December 7, 1947, when he defeated former world heavyweight champion Ed "Strangler" Lewis.
In May 1948, Primo had a record of 143 wins, 1 loss, and 1 draw when he faced world heavyweight champion Lou Thesz. Thesz defeated Primo in that world title match.
Boxing Record Summary
All information in this section comes from BoxRec.
| 104 fights | 89 wins | 14 losses |
| By knockout | 72 | 5 |
| By decision | 15 | 7 |
| By disqualification | 2 | 2 |
| Newspaper decisions/draws | 1 | |
- Total Fights: 103
- Wins: 89
- Wins by Knockout (KO): 72
- Losses: 14
Championships and Awards
Boxing Achievements
- International Boxing Union
- IBU Heavyweight Champion (1933–1935)
- National Boxing Association
- NBA World Heavyweight Champion (1933–1934)
- New York State Athletic Commission
- NYSAC World Heavyweight Champion (1933–1934)
Professional Wrestling Achievements
- NWA Hollywood Wrestling
- NWA International Television Tag Team Champion (1 time) – with Bobo Brazil
- NWA San Francisco
- NWA World Tag Team Champion (San Francisco version) (1 time) – with Sandor Szabo
- WWE
- WWE Hall of Fame (Class of 2019)
Images for kids
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Primo Carnera
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Primo Carnera with his family in August 1953, when they became dual citizens.
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Primo Carnera training around 1934.
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Primo Carnera and Audrey Dalton in the movie Casanova's Big Night (1954).
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Primo Carnera in 1955.
See also
In Spanish: Primo Carnera para niños
- Walk of Fame of Italian sport
- List of heavyweight boxing champions
