Andy Thomas

Name: Andy Thomas
Alias: Antonio Perrainao
Hometown: Brooklyn, New York, USA
Died: 1923-02-06 (Age:21)
Pro Boxer: Record

Andy Thomas was born Antonio Perrainao in Brooklyn, New York, sometime between 1901 and 1902. He grew up in Mulberry Bend, close by the Five Points of the Brooklyn Bowery, and learned to fight with his fists like the other Ghetto kids. The fighting eventually led him into the ring, where he hooked up with old-time fighter Jimmy Kelly of the Johnny Keyes stable who changed his name to Andy Thomas. Under Kelly’s tutelage, Thomas quickly established himself as a rising star with wins over Joe Welling, Jimmy Murphy, Westside Jimmy Duffy, and Bobby Michaels; draws with Joe Tiplitz and Pete Hartley. Andy was fighting as a welterweight and was being touted as a possible contender for champion Mickey Walker.

On October 30, 1922, legendary syndicated sports cartoonist and reporter Robert Edgren described Thomas as tall for his weight and slimly built, with wide shoulders and long arms. His syndicated column stated, “Thomas is a welterweight at present. But he is growing rapidly and in another year will be a middleweight. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him middleweight champion. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him pick up the welterweight title on the way. He has a real fighting brain and is aggressive in a deliberate and unhurried way. He steps in constantly, and as he steps in, he hits with either hand. He never wastes a step or a punch. He makes no false moves. He doesn’t dance and throw away his strength. He very seldom fails to land the blow he starts. And he hits hard. As a complementary virtue, he can take a hard punch”.

Sadly, Andy’s rapidly growing weight became challenging for him to lose weight. When he signed up to fight Johnny Clinton, he trained, soaked himself in hot baths, and dieted to get himself down to 136 pounds. In the 1920s, if you didn’t make weight, you lost your forfeit money. Andy was almost exhausted when he went to the Broadway club for the fight. Many believe that this weakened condition contributed to his tragic death at the hands of Johnny Clinton on February 5, 1923, at the tender age of 21. His career record was 18-4-2 (KO 10/KO by 1).

Andy Thomas collapsed in the ring during a fight with Johnny Clinton and died the following day. Cause of death was listed as a concussion. [1]