Pat Valentino/The Original-original Italian Stallion?

[Brutu]

If only because his father was a second cousin to Rudolf Valentino(no joking).

How good was Pat Valentino as a heavyweight contender?

http://boxrec.com/media/index.php/Pat_Valentino

[Brutu]

Here is Pat Valentino fighting Ezzard Charles for the Undisputed Heavyweight Championship of the World,
14.October.1949.

Charles record 62-5-1
Valentino record 44-10-4



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYroq5Kb1nI

[dempseyfire]

Valentino was a tough, durable brawler type with a good punch. His KO of a prime Turkey Thompson in 42 (avenging an earlier defeat and a big upset at the time) is probably his best win, but two draws with Joey Maxim shows he could hang with a top-notch boxer. He also gave Charles a pretty good tussle of it although he ended up being outclassed.

[Brutu]

Just 53 days after Valentino fought for the Heavyweight championship(Oct.14.1949) and was knocked out by Ezzard Charles,
Pat Valentino boxed in a scheduled 10 round exhibition (Dec.7.1949)against Joe Louis in Chicago and was brutally knocked out in the Eighth round .
A 35 year old Joe Louis outweighed Valentino by 39 pounds.
Valentino retired from the ring for good after this exhibition.
Youtube once had all 8 rounds(or most of it)on-line.
Here are the last few seconds of it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRsAbgV3tdk

[Brutu]

I made a mistake by stating that Charles and Valentino had fought for the 'undisputed" heavyweight championship of the world.
When of course it was disputed at that time.
When Joe Louis retired in March 1949 in the middle of an exhibition tour,and then took it upon himself to appoint
who it would be to fight for his vacated title,Jersey Joe Walcott and Ezzard Charles
The New York Boxing Commission refused to acknowledge it as well as the British Boxing Board who instead recognized Lee Savold
as the heavyweight champion of the world after his fight with Bruce Woodcock.
Louis of course was also the promoter of Walcott-Charles and Charles-Valentino.
Apparently sensitive to the criticism(and needing the money)
Although he publlcley he refused to admit it.It was the knockout of Valentino in the December 1949 exhibition,that convinced Joe Louis to fight Ezzard Charles
for the heavyweight championship of the world to settle it once and for all

[Brutu]

Just 53 days after Valentino fought for the Heavyweight championship(Oct.14.1949) and was knocked out by Ezzard Charles,
Pat Valentino boxed in a scheduled 10 round exhibition (Dec.7.1949)against Joe Louis in Chicago and was brutally knocked out in the Eighth round .
A 35 year old Joe Louis outweighed Valentino by 39 pounds.
Valentino retired from the ring for good after this exhibition.
Youtube once had all 8 rounds(or most of it)on-line.
Here are the last few seconds of it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRsAbgV3tdk

That was (apparently)Joe Louis's "Mr.Mean"period when he was beating up on out of shape opponents(with 10 ounce gloves)
Pat Valentino only received 6 thousand dollars for that beating.
Joe Louis had also beat up on Johnny Flynn(who only received $457.00 for that exhibition)
Johnny Shkor(knocked down 3 times),Joe Cheshul(kd)
and Al Hoosman was bitter still almost 20 years later,when Louis had knocked him out in their exhibition.
(he thought there was a gentlemens agreement to take it easy if either was hurt).
After the Valentino massacre,Lee Oma(a ranked fighter) pulled out of a scheduled exhibition that was scheduled after it
Dec.9.1949,,because if it was going to be a real fight, he wanted it made as a real fight and not an exhibition and get 35,000 dollars for it.