Carmen Basilio vs. Italo Scortichini (1st meeting)
Carmen Basilio 149 lbs drew with Italo Scortichini 153 lbs by SD in round 10 of 10
- Date: 1954-01-16
- Location: Dinner Key Auditorium, Coconut Grove, Florida, USA
- Referee: Eddie Coachman 97-94
- Judge: Mark Erwin 96-96
- Judge: Jerry Sherrard 94-96
"Counter-punching Italo Scortichini, 152 3/4, of Italy battled favored Carmen Basilio, 149 1/4, to a 10-round draw last night in a nationally-televised bout. Basilio, leading welterweight contender from Syracuse, showed none of the class that carried him 15 rounds with champion Kid Gavilan last September. He was rocked repeatedly by hard lefts and rights thrown by Scortichini, in the overweight contest. A looping left hook and sharp right uppercuts proved Basilio's best weapons. In the 7th round, Scortichini's best, the flashy Italian staggered Basilio several times with jarring left hooks. There were no knockdowns but both fighters suffered cut eyes and Scortichini was bothered with a bleeding nose." -Syracuse Herald-American
- Attendance - 2,754 (although nationally-televised, this bout was blacked out locally)
- Gate - $5,625
Post-fight comments
- "I won the fight going away and took it easy. The judging was lousy." -Carmen Basilio
- "Basilio is nothing but a rough guy, not as smart as Gavilan." -Italo Scortichini