Chuck Wepner-Amateur record

[Caractacus]

Chuck Wepner one of the last surviving heavyweight contenders from the "Golden Age of Boxing".
He first took up boxing when he joined the Marines becoming the HW Champion of his base he was stationed at.
After the Marines In September 1963 ,Wepner started boxing at the PAL (Police Athletic League in Bayonne ,New Jersey (coach Joe Barresi)
In February 1964 Wepner won the 1964 sub-novice HW New York Golden Gloves Champion at MSG.
and was also the
1964 AAU boxing champion.
Wepner had his first professional fight in August 1964.
Does anyone know his amateur record ?
Did he fight anyone in the amateurs who would also become a contender in the future ?

[Caractacus]

Reportedly the finals of the 1964 New York Golden Gloves were televised
in which Chuck Wepner fought another former Marine named Jim Sullivan for the sub-novice title
in front of a screaming crowd of 18,345 people in Madison Square Garden.
It was said to have been a real "Pier-Sixer" which Wepner won
and that fight was said to have what would be the start up of his fan base back then.

[Caractacus]

Chuck Wepner's amateur record is listed at 16-0.

[Caractacus]

this is from the NEW YORK TIMES of March.19.1964

" James Sullivan,A New York City policeman fighting unattached,and Charles Wepner of Bayonne N.J P.A.L
put on the nights most rousing battle in the Heavywight subnovice final.
Wepner,a secruity police officer,scored heavily in the final two rounds to earn the championship.
Sullivan weighed 210 pounds,Wepner 207."

[Caractacus]

here is an excerpt from an interview with Chuck Wepner that appeared in Doghouse Boxing March 2011.

"Wepner had an outstanding amateur career with a 16-0 record being the only boxer from New Jersey to ever win the NYGG.
That was in 1964.He was trained by Joe Barizzi and Ralph Palmaseno.
He also served in the United States Marine Corps where he was 3-0.
It's been reported he was 81-0
"That record included bar and street fights"said Wepner
"I knocked out 2 guys in those old phone booths you could sit down in at the Bayonne Broadway Tavern and another in the men's room"

[Kalan]

An amateur record of 16-0 isn't outstanding... It's good, but he never fought in nationals or internationals or fought anyone with skills.

If you want genuine amateur skills at the top level you need 50 fights or more... Joshua has just over 40 and certainly didn't look finished as the world's top amateur Heavyweight... AJ did it much more on size, height, reach, speed, power, and athleticism than sophistication... Foreman had even fewer fights -- but they were the world's top dogs -- and that's what attracts the money and great coaching... Nobody cares about swingers in regional Golden Gloves.

[Caractacus]

I read in another source his amateur record was 65-0,but I figured that was just some typo.
anyways Wepner just turned 23 years old when he won the NYGG.
sure would like to know the details of the story of him knocking out those guys in the phone booth and the men's bathroom.
Is it in the new movie ?
Wepner should write his autiobragraphy.
I think he did write one some 20 years ago or at least he coperated in a book about him.
It was written by Wepner's personal physician Dr. Glenn Van Warrebey,
it was entitled "TOE TO TOE ANY FOE "
from what I remember and was published in a very limited number of copies
in New Jersey. I remember I tried to find a copy of it on-line almost 20 years ago,but could not locate
a single one.

[Caractacus]

I came across this excellent article from January 2008 about Check Wepner including how he got into boxing.

https://njmonthly.com/articles/jersey-l ... big-chuck/

[Caractacus]

There was also a thread here a few years back about the sparring partners of Chuck Wepner from 1964-1978.
For his fight with Ali in 1975, Wepner used as sparring partners
John Dino Denis
Bob Rooney
Brian O'Melia
and Conrad Tooker
(three of which attended the movie premier of CHUCK ! back in May of this year in Bayonne NJ.

(check out this recent interview with Brian O'Melia ( active 1970-1980)
who had also been a sparring partner to Jerry Quarry and Floyd Patterson)

http://www.boxing.com/brian_omelia_arre ... rgies.html

also I remember reading somewhere that shorty after Wepner's second professional fight in August 1964,
Sonny Liston contacted him and
wanted to use him as a sparring partner when Liston was training for the orginal re-match
with Muhammad Ali set for Boston MA November 1964,
( at $40 per three minute round also room,board and transportation)
but Wepner didnt take up the offer.

[Caractacus]

Chuck Wepner also said he had sparred over 70 rounds with Joe Frazier when Frazier was training to fight Tony Alongi
at the Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles scheduled for June.23.1966.
The fight was cancelled because Alongi withdrew during training.
Wepner said he will never forget the feeling of Frazier's unforgivable left hook.
"I was throwing some right hands and he kept slipping and hitting me to the side and coming back to the head"
said Wepner,
"After the first round I stopped throwing rights".

[Caractacus]

Chuck Wepner joined the US Marines at age 17.
and stationed at the US Marine Air Base at Cherry Point, North Carolina.
He was chief of a crew that pulled pilots out of planes that had crashed landed.( pulling out 3 pilots.

Later on came to the aid of a buddy of his who was roughed up by three truck drivers by taking them on with lead-lined gloves.

I wonder if these events are in the new movie about him ?

[Caractacus]

I saw CHUCK last week and none of that stuff was in it. It just jumps almost straight to Wepner's fight with Terry Hinke in September 1974.
also missing from the new movie about Chuck Wepner was how he first met his manager Al Braverman.
It was in a Bronx Saloon when Braverman was about to be attacked by some bar patrons and Wepner stepped in..
"There were four of 'em on me" said Braverman in an interview in 1975.

[Bob]

2/21/64 - Mike Genovise - TKO 1 - Sunnyside Gardens - debut (opening round NYGG)
2/28/64 - Billy Whitehurst - W 3 - Sunnyside Gardens
3/06/64 - Francis Rindgin - W 3 - Sunnyside Gardens (NYGG quarters)
3/13/64 - Bob Listl - W 3 - Sunnyside Gardens (NYGG semis)
3/18/64 - Jim Sullivan - W 3 - Madison Square Garden (NYGG finals)
4/17/64 - Billy Whitehurst - TKO 3 - Sunnyside Gardens
6/10/64 - Tommy Clark - W 3 - Jersey City (Roosevelt Stadium)

The New Jersey newspapers said many times in 1964 that he took up boxing earlier that year. He may have had one fight prior to the NYGG debut, as it was stated that the 4/17 Whitehurst bout was either his 6th or 7th. He was a well-known basketball player in the Bayonne area during this time and was playing in leagues even as he was fighting in the NYGG.