Willie Pep facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Willie Pep |
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| Statistics | |
| Real name | Guglielmo Papaleo |
| Nickname(s) | Will o' the Wisp |
| Rated at | Featherweight |
| Height | 5 ft 5 in |
| Reach | 68 in |
| Nationality | American |
| Born | September 19, 1922 Middletown, Connecticut, United States |
| Died | November 23, 2006 (aged 84) |
| Stance | Orthodox |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 241 |
| Wins | 229 |
| Wins by KO | 65 |
| Losses | 11 |
| Draws | 1 |
| No contests | 0 |
Guglielmo Papaleo (September 19, 1922 – November 23, 2006) was an American professional boxer, better known as Willie Pep who held the World Featherweight championship twice between the years of 1942 and 1950. Pep boxed a total of 1,956 rounds in the 241 bouts during his 26-year career, a considerable number of rounds and bouts even for a fighter of his era. His final record was 229–11–1 with 65 knockouts. Pep, known for his speed, finesse and elusiveness, is considered to be one of the best fighters of the 20th century; after his 199th win, Kid Campeche described his experience by saying, "Fighting Willie Pep is like trying to stomp out a grass fire." Pep was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990. Pep was voted as the No. 1 featherweight of the 20th century by the Associated Press and ranked the No. 1 featherweight of all-time by the International Boxing Research Organization in 2005. He is currently ranked by BoxRec as the 31st greatest pound-for-pound fighter of all time. BoxRec also gave 10 of his victorious fights a 5-Star rating.
Contents
Boxing career
Amateur career
Pep first fought as an amateur in 1937. At the time, amateur boxers from Connecticut were allowed to fight for money. It was during the Great Depression and Pep's father was earning $15 per week at the Works Progress Administration. Pep worked as a shoeshine boy in downtown Hartford alongside Johnny Duke. Both boys joined a gym together and became sparring partners. Willie was soon earning more in one night of fighting each week. When his parents found out he was boxing, his mother was worried for him, but his father said that if he was making so much fighting on Fridays, maybe he should see about fighting on Tuesdays as well. "My old man, he was a sports fan" Pep later quipped.
In 1938 Pep fought Sugar Ray Robinson in the attic of a feed store in Norwich, Connecticut. Outweighing Pep nearly 130 to 105, the bigger Robinson won by decision. According to Pep's later telling, Robinson was an amateur champion in the state of New York, where amateurs were not paid, so he took a pseudonym to get bouts for money in Connecticut. Because of this, Pep did not know who he was fighting at the time. Before the fight he was told his unknown opponent was not good, but he recalls quickly learning otherwise once the bout began and Robinson was "all over me".
Professional career
Pep started boxing professionally on July 10, 1940, beating James McGovern by a decision in four rounds in Hartford, Connecticut. Like many boxers of the first half of the 20th century, Pep concentrated his early fighting career on boxing in New England, and he split his first 25 contests between Connecticut and Massachusetts. He was undefeated during that span and for fight number 26, he finally headed west, beating Eddie Flores by a knockout in the first round at Thompsonville, Michigan. A couple of fights later, he travelled further west and made his California debut, beating Billy Spencer by a decision in four rounds at Los Angeles.
By the time Pep stepped up his quality of opposition he was undefeated at 41–0, and met world title challenger Joey Archibald in 1942. He beat Archibald by a decision in ten rounds and, in his next bout, challenged Abe Denner for the New England-area featherweight title. He won the fight by a decision in 12, and his status among the world's top featherweights continued to climb. He won ten more bouts to reach 52–0, including a rematch win over Archibald, before he was given his first world championship try, in October. He became the World Featherweight Champion by outpointing the defending world champ Chalky Wright over the 15 round distance. He fought twice more to finish the year, winning both by knockout.
Pep began 1943 by winning six bouts in a row to find himself with a record of 62–0. But in his seventh bout of 1943, he suffered his first defeat, at the hands of Sammy Angott, another world champion boxer. Angott beat Pep over the ten round distance, by decision. Ten days later, Pep was back in the ring, beating Bobby McIntyre by a decision. He closed 1943 winning five fights in a row, including two over future world champion Sal Bartolo and one over Jackie Wilson. The second win over Bartolo was in a defense of the world title.
Nineteen forty-four was a very good year for Pep. He won all 16 of his bouts that year, including wins over bantamweight champions Willie Joyce and Manuel Ortiz. He fought and beat Wright two more times, with Pep's featherweight title on the line once. He also made his first fight abroad, beating fringe contender Jackie Lemus in Canada.
On June 6, 1944, he fought near featherweight contender, and rated lightweight Julie Kogon before a record crowd of 7,751 in an extraordinary bout in Hartford, Connecticut, and won soundly in an eight round decision. Pep was given eight rounds by one of the judges.
He had eight fights in 1945, winning seven and drawing one. He beat former world champion Phil Terranova to retain the title, and had a ten-round draw with Jimmy McAllister.
In 1946, Pep had 18 fights, and won all of them, including a 12-round knockout of Bartolo and a three-round knockout of Wright. He had a six-fight knockout win streak during a span that year.
Despite being severely injured in a plane crash on January 5, Pep fought 10 bouts in 1947, again going undefeated. Many thought he had lost something as a fighter, especially after unexpectedly struggling in fights against Archie Wilmer (Pep won a majority decision) and Pedro Biesca (Pep was floored in the fourth round). He defended the world featherweight belt once that year, knocking out Jock Leslie in twelve rounds at Flint, Michigan.
Nineteen forty-eight was a year that would become important in Pep's life: He won 15 bouts before going into what would be the first fight of his four-fight series with Sandy Saddler. He retained the title by beating Humberto Sierra by a knockout in 10 and he beat former world champion Paddy DeMarco, also in ten, but by decision. Then, on October 29, he lost the world featherweight title to Saddler in a fourth-round knockout.
After two wins, he and Saddler met in 1949. On their rivalry's second installment, Pep recovered the World Featherweight Championship by beating Saddler in a 15-round decision, and then he engaged in a series of exhibition and ten round bouts before defending the crown against Eddie Campo, winning by a knockout in the seventh. He finished that year beating former bantamweight champion Harold Dade by a decision in ten at St. Louis.
In 1950, he won nine fights before meeting Saddler for a third time. Those nine bouts included defenses against Charlie Riley, knocked out in five, and France's Ray Famechon, beaten by decision in 15. Then came the third fight with Saddler. Pep once again lost his World Featherweight Championship to Saddler, being unable to come out for the eighth round due to a separated shoulder suffered at the end of the seventh round. Pep was ahead on all scorecards (5–2, 5–2, 4–2).
Nineteen fifty-one brought a hint of controversy to Pep's life. He won eight bouts in a row to start the year, but his ninth bout, the last chapter of the rivalry with Saddler, was his most important bout that year. Pep quit because blood from his right eye was bothering him. According to Nat Fleischer in The Ring, December 1951, this was an extremely dirty fight, with "wrestling, heeling, eye gouging, tripping, thumbing- in fact every dirty trick known to the old timers..." Referee Ray Miller "let the bout get out of hand..." "The pattern of the 'contest' never varied. Pep wouldn't make a fight of it and Sandy couldn't. Pep too frequently backed around the ring and Saddler just as often missed as he kept boring in trying to corner his man. Then when he did, the rowdy tactics got under way and ended only when either both were sprawled on the canvas still wrestling each other, or the referee was outside the ring trying pull the boys apart or both fighters and official were entangled in a pretzel formation on the ring floor." Pep was ahead on the scorecards of the officials after eight rounds, but he quit after nine rounds, "declaring he no longer could continue because of severe pains caused by a deep cut over the right eye."
In 1952, Pep had 12 fights, winning 11. He was knocked out in six by Tommy Collins, but also held two wins over Billy Lima that year.
Pep won all 11 fights in 1953, and entered 1954 on a 17-fight winning streak. After beating David Seabrooke by a decision, he lost to fringe contender Lulu Perez by TKO after a delayed reaction to a punch. Pep ended up winning three more bouts before the end of the year.
Pep went on boxing for five more years, retiring in 1960, and then he came back in 1964 and boxed for two more years. During that last period of his boxing career, he won 43 bouts and lost only five, but his only opponent of note during that time was Hogan Kid Bassey, a future World Featherweight Champion who knocked Pep out in nine rounds. Pep boxed in Caracas, Venezuela, losing to Sonny Leon by a decision in 10, and in his last fight, in 1966, he lost to Calvin Woodland by a decision in six.
Pep had a record of 229 wins, 11 losses and one draw, with 65 wins by knockout.
Post-career
After retiring, he and Saddler were involved in a series of exhibition bouts, and in 1980, Pep sued Sports Illustrated for running a story suggesting that he threw his fight with Perez. Pep lost the lawsuit, the jury deliberating just 15 minutes.
Pep remained active in boxing after hanging up the gloves, serving as an inspector and referee.
In 1977, Pep was elected to the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame.
As of March 2006, Pep resided at a nursing home in Connecticut, suffering from dementia pugilistica, before his death on November 23, 2006. He is buried in Rocky Hill, CT. He left four children, William "Billy" Papaleo, Mary Papaleo, Michael Papaleo and Melissa Papaleo, and three stepchildren, April, L.J., Holly Miller and Brian Boduch (husband).
Honors
In 1945, Pep was voted Fighter of the Year by The Ring magazine.
He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in its inaugural year of 1990.
Pep was ranked sixth on Ring Magazine's list of the 80 Best Fighters of the Last 80 Years in 2002. Pep was also named the third greatest fighter of all time by Bert Sugar.
Pep was ranked 5th on ESPN's 50 Greatest Boxers Of All Time list in 2007.
Willie Pep was voted as the Greatest Featherweight Ever by the Houston Boxing Hall Of Fame in 2014. The HBHOF is a voting body composed totally of current and former fighters.
"No-punch" round
There are claims that Pep won the third round in his fight against Jackie Graves in a fight on July 25, 1946, without throwing a punch. The "no-punch" winning round is disputed; several contemporary newspaper articles make no mention of it, and an account in The Minneapolis Star describes the third round as "toe to toe slugging with Pep inflicting his best punishment with a right to the body". Pep supposedly tipped off a few ringside reporters before the bout and told them he would win the third round without throwing "a punch of anger."
Professional boxing record
| 241 fights | 229 wins | 11 losses |
| By knockout | 65 | 6 |
| By decision | 164 | 5 |
| Draws | 1 | |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Type | Round | Date | Location | Notes |
| Loss | 229–11–1 |  Calvin Woodland |
UD | 6 | 1966-03-16 | City Arena, Richmond, Virginia, United States |
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| Win | 229–10–1 | Ray Coleman |
KO | 5 (8) | 1965-10-25 | Tucson, Arizona, United States |
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| Win | 228–10–1 |  Sergio Musquiz |
TKO | 5 (10) | 1965-10-14 | Sportatorium, Phoenix, Arizona, United States |
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| Win | 227–10–1 | Tommy Haden |
TKO | 3 (10) | 1965-10-04 | Rhode Island Auditorium, Providence, Rhode Island, United States |
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| Win | 226–10–1 | Willie Little |
TKO | 3 (10) | 1965-10-01 | War Memorial Arena, Johnstown, Pennsylvania, United States |
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| Win | 225–10–1 | Johnny Gilmore |
UD | 6 | 1965-09-28 | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States |
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| Win | 224–10–1 |  Benny Red Randall |
UD | 10 | 1965-07-26 | Quebec City, Quebec, Canada |
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| Win | 223–10–1 | Johnny Gilmore |
UD | 6 | 1965-05-21 | Crystal Arena, Norwalk, Connecticut, United States |
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| Win | 222–10–1 | Jackie Lennon |
UD | 6 | 1965-04-26 | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States |
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| Win | 221–10–1 | Harold McKeever |
UD | 8 | 1965-03-11 | Little River Auditorium, Miami, Florida, United States |
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| Loss | 220–10–1 |  Sonny Leon |
UD | 10 | 1959-01-26 | Nuevo Circo, Caracas, Venezuela |
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| Loss | 220–9–1 |  Hogan Bassey |
TKO | 9 (10) | 1958-09-20 |  Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, United States |
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| Win | 220–8–1 | Al Duarte |
UD | 10 | 1958-08-26 | Glovers Bowl, North Adams, Massachusetts, United States |
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| Win | 219–8–1 | Jesse Rodriguez |
UD | 10 | 1958-08-09 | Painesville, Ohio, United States |
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| Win | 218–8–1 |  Luis Carmona |
UD | 10 | 1958-08-04 | Presque Isle, Maine, United States |
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| Win | 217–8–1 | Bobby Bell |
UD | 10 | 1958-07-17 | Norwood, Massachusetts, United States |
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| Win | 216–8–1 | Bobby Soares |
UD | 10 | 1958-07-01 | Memorial Hall], Athol, Massachusetts, United States |
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| Win | 215–8–1 |  Pat McCoy |
UD | 10 | 1958-06-23 | Sargent Field, New Bedford, Massachusetts, United States |
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| Win | 214–8–1 | Bobby Singleton |
UD | 10 | 1958-05-20 | Mechanics Building, Boston, Massachusetts, United States |
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| Win | 213–8–1 | Jimmy Kelly |
UD | 10 | 1958-04-29 | Mechanics Building, Boston, Massachusetts, United States |
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| Win | 212–8–1 | Cleo Ortiz |
UD | 10 | 1958-04-14 | Arcadia Ballroom, Providence, Rhode Island, United States |
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| Win | 211–8–1 | George Stephany |
UD | 10 | 1958-04-08 | Bristol, Connecticut, United States |
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| Win | 210–8–1 | Prince Johnson |
UD | 10 | 1958-03-31 | Valley Arena, Holyoke, Massachusetts, United States |
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| Loss | 209–8–1 | Tommy Tibbs |
SD | 10 | 1958-01-14 | Mechanics Building, Boston, Massachusetts, United States |
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| Win | 209–7–1 | Jimmy Connors |
UD | 10 | 1957-12-17 | Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, United States |
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| Win | 208–7–1 | Russell Tague |
UD | 10 | 1957-07-23 | Sam Houston Coliseum, Houston, Texas, United States |
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| Win | 207–7–1 | Manny Castro |
UD | 10 | 1957-07-16 | Coliseum, El Paso, Texas, United States |
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| Win | 206–7–1 | Manny Castro |
UD | 10 | 1957-05-10 | Memorial Stadium, Florence, South Carolina, United States |
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| Win | 205–7–1 | Cesar Morales |
UD | 10 | 1957-04-23 | War Memorial Auditorium, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States |
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| Win | 204–7–1 | Hector Bacquettes |
TKO | 5 (10) | 1956-07-04 | Roosevelt Stadium, Lawton, Oklahoma, United States |
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| Win | 203–7–1 | Russell Tague |
UD | 10 | 1956-06-19 | Miami Beach, Florida, United States |
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| Win | 202–7–1 | Manuel Armenteros |
RTD | 6 (10) | 1956-05-22 | San Antonio, Texas, United States |
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| Win | 201–7–1 | Jackie Blair |
UD | 10 | 1956-04-17 | State Theatre, Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
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| Win | 200–7–1 | Buddy Baggett |
UD | 10 | 1956-03-27 | Sportatorium, Beaumont, Texas, United States |
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| Win | 199–7–1 | Kid Campeche |
UD | 10 | 1956-03-16 | Tampa, Florida, United States |
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| Win | 198–7–1 | Andy Arel |
UD | 10 | 1955-12-28 | Miami Beach, Florida, United States |
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| Win | 197–7–1 | Leo Carter |
TKO | 4 (8) | 1955-12-13 | Houston, Texas, United States |
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| Win | 196–7–1 | Pappy Gault |
UD | 10 | 1955-11-29 | Tampa, Florida, United States |
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| Win | 195–7–1 | Charley Titone |
UD | 10 | 1955-10-10 | Maple Arena, Brockton, Massachusetts, United States |
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| Win | 194–7–1 | Pappy Gault |
UD | 10 | 1955-09-27 | Valley Arena, Holyoke, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 193–7–1 | Jimmy Ithia |
TKO | 6 (10) | 1955-09-13 | Hedges Stadium, Bridgeport, Connecticut, United States |
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| Win | 192–7–1 | Hector Rodriguez |
UD | 10 | 1955-07-12 | Hedges Stadium, Bridgeport, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 191–7–1 | Mickey Mars |
TKO | 7 (10) | 1955-06-14 | Miami Beach, Florida, United States |
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| Win | 190–7–1 | Joey Cam |
TKO | 3 (10) | 1955-06-01 | Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 189–7–1 | Gil Cadilli |
UD | 10 | 1955-05-18 | Olympia Stadium, Detroit, Michigan, United States |
|
| Loss | 188–7–1 | Gil Cadilli |
SD | 10 | 1955-03-30 | San Francisco, California, United States |
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| Win | 188–6–1 | Charley Titone |
UD | 10 | 1955-03-22 | Holyoke, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 187–6–1 | Merrill Olmstead |
UD | 10 | 1955-03-11 | Bennington, Vermont, United States |
|
| Win | 186–6–1 | Mario 'Eladio' Colon |
UD | 10 | 1954-11-01 | Daytona Beach, Florida, United States |
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| Win | 185–6–1 |  Til LeBlanc |
UD | 10 | 1954-08-18 | Moncton Arena, Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada |
|
| Win | 184–6–1 | Mike Tourcotte |
UD | 10 | 1954-07-24 | Hartwell Field, Mobile, Alabama, United States |
|
| Loss | 183–6–1 | Lulu Perez |
TKO | 2 (10) | 1954-02-26 | Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |
|
| Win | 183–5–1 | Davey Seabrook |
UD | 10 | 1954-01-19 | Naval Air Station, Jacksonville, Florida, United States |
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| Win | 182–5–1 | Tony Longo |
UD | 10 | 1953-12-15 | Auditorium, Miami Beach, Florida, United States |
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| Win | 181–5–1 |  Billy Lima |
KO | 2 (10) | 1953-12-08 | City Auditorium, Houston, Texas, United States |
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| Win | 180–5–1 | Davey Allen |
UD | 10 | 1953-12-04 | Legion Arena, West Palm Beach, Florida, United States |
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| Win | 179–5–1 | Sonny Luciano |
UD | 10 | 1953-11-21 | Armory, Charlotte, North Carolina, United States |
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| Win | 178–5–1 | Pat Marcune |
TKO | 10 (10) | 1953-06-05 | Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |
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| Win | 177–5–1 | Jackie Blair |
UD | 10 | 1953-05-13 | Will Rogers Coliseum, Fort Worth, Texas, United States |
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| Win | 176–5–1 | Noel Paquette |
UD | 10 | 1953-04-07 | Auditorium, Miami Beach, Florida, United States |
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| Win | 175–5–1 | Joey Gambino |
UD | 10 | 1953-03-31 | Tampa, Florida, United States |
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| Win | 174–5–1 | Pepe Alvarez |
UD | 10 | 1953-02-10 | Municipal Auditorium, San Antonio, Texas, United States |
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| Win | 173–5–1 | Dave Mitchell |
UD | 10 | 1953-01-27 | Auditorium, Miami Beach, Florida, United States |
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| Win | 172–5–1 | Billy Lauderdale |
UD | 10 | 1953-01-19 |  Nassau Stadium, Nassau, Bahamas |
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| Win | 171–5–1 | Jorge Sanchez |
UD | 10 | 1952-12-05 | Legion Arena, West Palm Beach, Florida, United States |
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| Win | 170–5–1 | Fabela Chavez |
UD | 10 | 1952-11-19 | Oakland Avenue Arena, Saint Louis, Missouri, United States |
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| Win | 169–5–1 | Manny Castro |
TKO | 5 (10) | 1952-11-05 | Miami Beach, Florida, United States |
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| Win | 168–5–1 | Billy Lima |
UD | 10 | 1952-10-20 | Jacksonville, Florida, United States |
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| Win | 167–5–1 | Armand Savoie |
UD | 10 | 1952-10-01 | Chicago Stadium, Chicago, Illinois, United States |
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| Win | 166–5–1 | Bobby Woods |
UD | 10 | 1952-09-11 | Denman Auditorium, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada |
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| Win | 165–5–1 | Billy Lima |
UD | 10 | 1952-09-03 | Legion Field, Pensacola, Florida, United States |
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| Loss | 164–5–1 | Tommy Collins |
TKO | 6 (10) | 1952-06-30 | Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, United States |
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| Win | 164–4–1 | Claude Hammond |
UD | 10 | 1952-05-21 | Auditorium, Miami Beach, Florida, United States |
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| Win | 163–4–1 | Buddy Baggett |
KO | 5 (10) | 1952-05-10 | Eustis Park, Aiken, South Carolina, United States |
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| Win | 162–4–1 | Kenny Leach |
UD | 10 | 1952-05-05 | Golden Park, Columbus, Georgia, United States |
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| Win | 161–4–1 | Santiago Gonzalez |
UD | 10 | 1952-04-29 | Fort Homer Hesterly Armory, Tampa, Florida, United States |
|
| Loss | 160–4–1 | Sandy Saddler |
RTD | 9 (15) | 1951-09-26 | Polo Grounds, New York, New York, United States |
For NBA, NYSAC, and The Ring featherweight titles |
| Win | 160–3–1 | Corky Gonzales |
UD | 10 | 1951-09-04 | New Orleans, Louisiana, United States |
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| Win | 159–3–1 | Jesus Compos |
UD | 10 | 1951-06-04 | Baltimore, Maryland, United States |
|
| Win | 158–3–1 | Eddie Chavez |
SD | 10 | 1951-04-27 | Cow Palace, Daly City, California, United States |
|
| Win | 157–3–1 | Baby Ortiz |
TKO | 5 (10) | 1951-04-17 | Kiel Auditorium, Saint Louis, Missouri, United States |
|
| Win | 156–3–1 | Pat Iacobucci |
UD | 10 | 1951-03-26 | Auditorium, Miami Beach, Florida, United States |
|
| Win | 155–3–1 | Carlos Chavez |
UD | 10 | 1951-03-05 | Coliseum Arena, New Orleans, Louisiana, United States |
|
| Win | 154–3–1 | Eddie Webb |
TKO | 2 (10) | 1951-02-26 | Legion Coliseum, Sarasota, Florida, United States |
|
| Win | 153–3–1 | Tommy Baker |
TKO | 4 (10) | 1951-01-30 | Auditorium, Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Loss | 152–3–1 | Sandy Saddler |
RTD | 8 (15) | 1950-09-08 | Yankee Stadium, New York, New York, United States |
Lost NBA, NYSAC, and The Ring featherweight titles |
| Win | 152–2–1 | Proctor Heinhold |
UD | 10 | 1950-08-02 | Catholic Youth Center, Scranton, Pennsylvania, United States |
|
| Win | 151–2–1 | Bobby Bell |
UD | 10 | 1950-07-25 | Griffith Stadium, Washington D.C., United States |
|
| Win | 150–2–1 | Bobby Timpson |
UD | 10 | 1950-06-26 | Outdoor Arena, Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 149–2–1 | Terry Young |
UD | 10 | 1950-06-01 | Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States |
|
| Win | 148–2–1 | Asuncion Llanos |
KO | 2 (10) | 1950-05-15 | Bulkeley Stadium, Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 147–2–1 | Ray Famechon |
UD | 15 | 1950-03-17 | Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |
Retained NBA, NYSAC, and The Ring featherweight titles |
| Win | 146–2–1 | Jimmy Warren |
UD | 10 | 1950-02-22 | Miami, Florida, United States |
|
| Win | 145–2–1 | Roy Andrews |
UD | 10 | 1950-02-06 | Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 144–2–1 | Charley Riley |
KO | 5 (15) | 1950-01-16 | Kiel Auditorium, Saint Louis, Missouri, United States |
Retained NBA, NYSAC, and The Ring featherweight titles |
| Win | 143–2–1 | Harold Dade |
UD | 10 | 1949-12-12 | Kiel Auditorium, Saint Louis, Missouri, United States |
|
| Win | 142–2–1 | Eddie Compo |
TKO | 7 (15) | 1949-09-20 | Municipal Stadium, Waterbury, Connecticut, United States |
Retained NBA, NYSAC, and The Ring featherweight titles |
| Win | 141–2–1 |  Jean Mougin |
UD | 10 | 1949-07-12 | MacArthur Stadium, Syracuse, New York, United States |
|
| Win | 140–2–1 | Johnny LaRusso |
UD | 10 | 1949-06-20 | Century Stadium, West Springfield, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 139–2–1 | Al Pennino |
UD | 10 | 1949-06-14 | Wahconah Park, Pittsfield, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 138–2–1 | Luis Ramos |
UD | 10 | 1949-06-06 | New Haven, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 137–2–1 | Sandy Saddler |
UD | 15 | 1949-02-11 | Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |
Won NBA, NYSAC, and The Ring featherweight titles |
| Win | 136–2–1 | Teddy Davis |
UD | 10 | 1949-01-17 | Kiel Auditorium, Saint Louis, Missouri, United States |
|
| Win | 135–2–1 | Hermie Freeman |
UD | 10 | 1948-12-20 | Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Loss | 134–2–1 | Sandy Saddler |
KO | 4 (15) | 1948-10-29 | Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |
Lost NBA, NYSAC, and The Ring featherweight titles |
| Win | 134–1–1 | Johnny LaRusso |
UD | 10 | 1948-10-19 | Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 133–1–1 | Chuck Burton |
UD | 8 | 1948-10-12 | Jersey City, New Jersey, United States |
|
| Win | 132–1–1 | Paddy DeMarco |
UD | 10 | 1948-09-10 | Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |
|
| Win | 131–1–1 | Johnny Dell |
TKO | 8 (10) | 1948-09-02 | Municipal Stadium, Waterbury, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 130–1–1 | Teddy Davis |
UD | 10 | 1948-08-17 | Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 129–1–1 | Teddy Davis |
UD | 10 | 1948-08-03 | Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 128–1–1 | Young Junior |
KO | 1 (10) | 1948-07-28 | Utica, New York, United States |
|
| Win | 127–1–1 | Luther Burgess |
UD | 10 | 1948-06-25 | Flint, Michigan, United States |
|
| Win | 126–1–1 | Miguel Acevedo |
UD | 10 | 1948-06-17 | Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States |
|
| Win | 125–1–1 | Charley Cabey Lewis |
UD | 10 | 1948-05-19 | Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States |
|
| Win | 124–1–1 | Leroy Willis |
UD | 10 | 1948-05-07 | Olympia Stadium, Detroit, Michigan, United States |
|
| Win | 123–1–1 | Humberto Sierra |
TKO | 10 (15) | 1948-02-24 | Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida, United States |
Retained NBA, NYSAC, and The Ring featherweight titles |
| Win | 122–1–1 | Joey Angelo |
UD | 10 | 1948-01-19 | Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 121–1–1 | Jimmy McAllister |
UD | 10 | 1948-01-12 | Kiel Auditorium, Saint Louis, Missouri, United States |
|
| Win | 120–1–1 | Pedro Biesca |
UD | 10 | 1948-01-06 | Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 119–1–1 | Lefty LaChance |
TKO | 8 (10) | 1947-12-30 | Manchester, New Hampshire, United States |
|
| Win | 118–1–1 | Alvaro Estrada |
UD | 10 | 1947-12-22 | City Hall, Lewiston, Maine, United States |
|
| Win | 117–1–1 | Archie Wilmer |
MD | 10 | 1947-10-27 | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States |
|
| Win | 116–1–1 | Jean Barriere |
KO | 1 (10) | 1947-10-21 | Portland, Maine, United States |
|
| Win | 115–1–1 | Jock Leslie |
KO | 12 (15) | 1947-08-22 | Atwood Stadium, Flint, Michigan, United States |
Retained NBA, NYSAC, and The Ring featherweight titles |
| Win | 114–1–1 | Humberto Sierra |
UD | 10 | 1947-07-23 | Auditorium Outdoor Arena, Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 113–1–1 | Paulie Jackson |
UD | 10 | 1947-07-15 | New Bedford, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 112–1–1 | Jean Barriere |
KO | 4 (10) | 1947-07-11 | North Adams, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 111–1–1 | Leo LeBron |
UD | 8 | 1947-07-08 | Crystal Arena, Norwalk, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 110–1–1 | Joey Fontana |
KO | 5 (10) | 1947-07-01 | Hawkins Stadium, Albany, New York, United States |
|
| Win | 109–1–1 | Victor Flores |
UD | 10 | 1947-06-17 | Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 108–1–1 | Chalky Wright |
KO | 3 (10) | 1946-11-27 | Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States |
|
| Win | 107–1–1 | Tomas Beato |
KO | 2 (10) | 1946-11-15 | State Armory, Waterbury, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 106–1–1 | Paulie Jackson |
UD | 10 | 1946-11-01 | Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States |
|
| Win | 105–1–1 | Lefty LaChance |
TKO | 3 (10) | 1946-09-17 | Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 104–1–1 | Walter Kolby |
TKO | 5 (10) | 1946-09-04 | Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, New York, United States |
|
| Win | 103–1–1 | Doll Rafferty |
KO | 6 (10) | 1946-08-26 | Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States |
|
| Win | 102–1–1 | Jackie Graves |
TKO | 8 (10) | 1946-07-25 | Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States |
|
| Win | 101–1–1 | Harold Gibson |
TKO | 7 (10) | 1946-07-10 | Civic Stadium, Buffalo, New York, United States |
|
| Win | 100–1–1 | Sal Bartolo |
KO | 12 (15) | 1946-06-07 | Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |
Retained NYSAC and The Ring featherweight titles; Won NBA featherweight title |
| Win | 99–1–1 | Jimmy Joyce |
UD | 8 | 1946-05-27 | Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States |
|
| Win | 98–1–1 | Jose Aponte Torres |
UD | 10 | 1946-05-22 | Kiel Auditorium, Saint Louis, Missouri, United States |
|
| Win | 97–1–1 | Joey Angelo |
UD | 10 | 1946-05-13 | Rhode Island Auditorium, Providence, Rhode Island, United States |
|
| Win | 96–1–1 | Ernie Petrone |
UD | 10 | 1946-05-06 | New Haven, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 95–1–1 | Georgie Knox |
TKO | 3 (10) | 1946-04-08 | Rhode Island Auditorium, Providence, Rhode Island, United States |
|
| Win | 94–1–1 | Jackie Wilson |
UD | 10 | 1946-03-26 | Kansas City, Missouri, United States |
|
| Win | 93–1–1 | Jimmy McAllister |
KO | 2 (10) | 1946-03-01 | Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |
|
| Win | 92–1–1 | Jimmy Joyce |
UD | 10 | 1946-02-13 | Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, New York, United States |
|
| Win | 91–1–1 | Johnny Virgo |
KO | 2 (10) | 1946-01-15 | Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, New York, United States |
|
| Draw | 90–1–1 | Jimmy McAllister |
MD | 10 | 1945-12-13 | Baltimore Garden, Baltimore, Maryland, United States |
|
| Win | 90–1 | Harold Gibson |
UD | 10 | 1945-12-05 | Lewiston Armory, Lewiston, Maine, United States |
|
| Win | 89–1 | Eddie Giosa |
UD | 10 | 1945-11-26 | Mechanics Building, Boston, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 88–1 | Mike Martyk |
TKO | 5 (10) | 1945-11-05 | Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, New York, United States |
|
| Win | 87–1 | Paulie Jackson |
UD | 8 | 1945-10-30 | Bulkeley Stadium, Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 86–1 | Phil Terranova |
UD | 15 | 1945-02-19 | Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |
Retained NYSAC and The Ring featherweight titles |
| Win | 85–1 | Willie Roache |
UD | 10 | 1945-02-05 | New Haven, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 84–1 | Ralph Walton |
UD | 10 | 1945-01-23 | Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 83–1 | Chalky Wright |
UD | 10 | 1944-12-05 | Cleveland, Ohio, United States |
|
| Win | 82–1 | Pedro Hernandez |
UD | 10 | 1944-11-27 | Uline Arena, Washington D.C., United States |
|
| Win | 81–1 | Charley Cabey Lewis |
UD | 10 | 1944-11-14 | Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 80–1 | Jackie Leamus |
UD | 10 | 1944-10-25 | Montreal, Quebec, Canada |
|
| Win | 79–1 | Chalky Wright |
UD | 15 | 1944-09-29 | Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |
Retained NYSAC and The Ring featherweight titles |
| Win | 78–1 | Charley Cabey Lewis |
TKO | 8 (10) | 1944-09-19 | Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 77–1 | Joey Peralta |
UD | 10 | 1944-08-28 | West Springfield, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 76–1 | Lulu Costantino |
UD | 10 | 1944-08-04 | Municipal Stadium, Waterbury, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 75–1 | Manuel Ortiz |
UD | 10 | 1944-07-17 | Braves Field, Boston, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 74–1 | Willie Joyce |
UD | 10 | 1944-07-07 | Comiskey Park, Chicago, Illinois, United States |
|
| Win | 73–1 | Julie Kogon |
UD | 10 | 1944-06-06 | Bulkeley Stadium, Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 72–1 | Joey Bagnato |
KO | 2 (10) | 1944-05-23 | Buffalo, New York, United States |
|
| Win | 71–1 | Frankie Rubino |
UD | 10 | 1944-05-19 | Chicago, Illinois, United States |
|
| Win | 70–1 | Jackie Leamus |
UD | 10 | 1944-05-01 | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States |
|
| Win | 69–1 | Harold 'Snooks' Lacey |
UD | 10 | 1944-04-20 | New Haven, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 68–1 |  Leo Francis |
UD | 10 | 1944-04-04 | Bulkeley Stadium, Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 67–1 | Sal Bartolo |
UD | 15 | 1943-06-08 | Braves Field, Boston, Massachusetts, United States |
Retained NYSAC and The Ring featherweight titles |
| Win | 66–1 | Jackie Wilson |
UD | 12 | 1943-04-26 | Duquesne Gardens, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States |
|
| Win | 65–1 | Angel Aviles |
UD | 10 | 1943-04-19 | Tampa, Florida, United States |
|
| Win | 64–1 | Sal Bartolo |
SD | 10 | 1943-04-09 | Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 63–1 | Bobby McIntire |
UD | 10 | 1943-03-29 | Arena Gardens, Detroit, Michigan, United States |
|
| Loss | 62–1 | Sammy Angott |
UD | 10 | 1943-03-19 | Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |
|
| Win | 62–0 | Lou Transparenti |
KO | 6 (10) | 1943-03-02 | Bulkeley Stadium, Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 61–0 | Bill Speary |
UD | 10 | 1943-02-15 | Baltimore, Maryland, United States |
|
| Win | 60–0 | Davey Crawford |
UD | 10 | 1943-02-11 | Mechanics Building, Boston, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 59–0 | Allie Stolz |
UD | 10 | 1943-01-29 | Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |
|
| Win | 58–0 | Bill Speary |
UD | 10 | 1943-01-19 | Bulkeley Stadium, Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 57–0 |  Vince Dell'Orto |
UD | 10 | 1943-01-04 | New Orleans, Louisiana, United States |
|
| Win | 56–0 | Joey Silva |
RTD | 9 (10) | 1942-12-21 | Jacksonville, Florida, United States |
|
| Win | 55–0 | Jose Aponte Torres |
TKO | 7 (10) | 1942-12-14 | Turner's Arena, Washington D.C., United States |
|
| Win | 54–0 | Chalky Wright |
UD | 15 | 1942-11-20 | Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |
Won NYSAC and The Ring featherweight titles |
| Win | 53–0 | George Zengaras |
UD | 10 | 1942-10-27 | Bulkeley Stadium, Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 52–0 | Joey Archibald |
UD | 10 | 1942-10-16 | Rhode Island Auditorium, Providence, Rhode Island, United States |
|
| Win | 51–0 | Bobby McIntire |
UD | 10 | 1942-10-05 | Holyoke, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 50–0 | Vince Dell'Orto |
UD | 10 | 1942-09-22 | Bulkeley Stadium, Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 49–0 | Frank Franconeri |
TKO | 1 (8) | 1942-09-10 | Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |
|
| Win | 48–0 | Bobby Ivy |
TKO | 10 (10) | 1942-09-01 | Bulkeley Stadium, Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 47–0 | Nat Litfin |
UD | 10 | 1942-08-20 | White City Stadium, West Haven, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 46–0 | Pedro Hernandez |
UD | 10 | 1942-08-11 | Bulkeley Stadium, Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 45–0 | Joey Silva |
RTD | 7 (8) | 1942-08-01 | Waterbury, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 44–0 | Abe Denner |
UD | 12 | 1942-07-21 | Bulkeley Stadium, Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
Won United States New England featherweight title |
| Win | 43–0 | Joey Archibald |
UD | 10 | 1942-06-23 | Bulkeley Stadium, Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 42–0 | Joey Iannotti |
UD | 8 | 1942-05-26 | Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 41–0 | Aaron Seltzer |
UD | 8 | 1942-05-12 | Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 40–0 | Curley Nichols |
UD | 8 | 1942-05-04 | New Haven, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 39–0 | Spider Armstrong |
KO | 4 (8) | 1942-04-14 | Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 38–0 | Johnny Compo |
UD | 8 | 1942-03-18 | New Haven, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 37–0 | Willie Roache |
UD | 8 | 1942-02-24 | Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 36–0 | Angelo Callura |
UD | 8 | 1942-02-10 | Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 35–0 | Abie Kaufman |
UD | 8 | 1942-01-27 | Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 34–0 | Sammy Parotta |
UD | 6 | 1942-01-16 | Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |
|
| Win | 33–0 | Mexican Joe Rivers |
TKO | 4 (8) | 1942-01-08 | Fall River, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 32–0 | Ruby Garcia |
UD | 6 | 1941-12-12 | Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |
|
| Win | 31–0 | Davey Crawford |
UD | 8 | 1941-11-24 | Holyoke, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 30–0 | Buddy Spencer |
UD | 6 | 1941-11-07 | Legion Stadium, Hollywood, California, United States |
|
| Win | 29–0 | Connie Savoie |
TKO | 2 (8) | 1941-10-21 | Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 28–0 | Carlos Manzano |
UD | 8 | 1941-10-09 | New Haven, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 27–0 | Jackie Harris |
TKO | 1 (8) | 1941-09-25 | New Haven, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 26–0 | Eddie Flores |
KO | 1 (8) | 1941-08-11 | Carpet City Arena, Thompsonville, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 25–0 | Paul Frechette |
TKO | 3 (6) | 1941-08-05 | Bulkeley Stadium, Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 24–0 | Jimmy Gilligan |
UD | 8 | 1941-07-15 | Bulkeley Stadium, Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 23–0 | Eddie DeAngelis |
TKO | 3 (8) | 1941-06-24 | Bulkeley Stadium, Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 22–0 | Harry Hintlian |
UD | 6 | 1941-06-19 | Manchester, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 21–0 | Johnny Cockfield |
UD | 6 | 1941-05-12 | Holyoke, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 20–0 | Lou Pugliese |
KO | 2 (6) | 1941-05-06 | Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 19–0 | Joey Silva |
UD | 6 | 1941-04-22 | Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 18–0 | Henry Vasquez |
UD | 6 | 1941-04-14 | Holyoke, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 17–0 | Joey Gatto |
KO | 2 (6) | 1941-03-31 | Holyoke, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 16–0 | Marty Shapiro |
UD | 6 | 1941-03-25 | Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 15–0 | Ruby Garcia |
UD | 6 | 1941-03-03 | Holyoke, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 14–0 | Ruby Garcia |
UD | 6 | 1941-02-17 | Holyoke, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 13–0 | Don Lyons |
KO | 2 (6) | 1941-02-10 | Holyoke, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 12–0 | Augie Almeda |
TKO | 6 (6) | 1941-01-28 | New Haven, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 11–0 | Joe Echevarria |
UD | 6 | 1941-01-13 | Holyoke, Massachusetts, United States |
|
| Win | 10–0 | Jim Mutane |
KO | 2 (6) | 1940-12-06 | New Britain, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 9–0 | Frank Topazio |
TKO | 5 (6) | 1940-11-29 | New Britain, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 8–0 | Carlo Daponde |
TKO | 6 (6) | 1940-11-22 | New Britain, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 7–0 | Jimmy McAllister |
UD | 4 | 1940-10-24 | New Haven, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 6–0 | Jimmy Riche |
TKO | 3 (6) | 1940-10-03 | Randolph-Clowes Stadium, Waterbury, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 5–0 | Jack Moore |
UD | 6 | 1940-09-19 | Bulkeley Stadium, Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 4–0 | Joey Marcus |
UD | 4 | 1940-09-05 | Randolph-Clowes Stadium, Waterbury, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 3–0 | Tommy Burns |
TKO | 1 (4) | 1940-08-29 | Bulkeley Stadium, Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 2–0 | Joey Wasnick |
KO | 3 (4) | 1940-08-08 | Bulkeley Stadium, Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
|
| Win | 1–0 | Joey Marcus |
UD | 4 | 1940-07-25 | Bulkeley Stadium, Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
See also
In Spanish: Willie Pep para niños
