Tami Mauriello vs. Lee Oma (1st meeting)
Tami Mauriello 194 lbs beat Lee Oma 193 lbs by KO at 1:41 in round 8 of 10
- Date: 1944-09-22
- Location: Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, USA
- Referee: Arthur Donovan
- Judge: Bill Healy
- Judge: Gunboat Smith
"Lee Oma, the Detroit heavyweight, had his 13th 'knocked out by' in the record books today - but he also was getting a lot of cheers. The 193 pound Oma was flattened in the 8th round last night by Tami Mauriello, the No. 2 ranking civilian heavyweight in MSG. Mauriello, 194, was a prohibitive favorite over Oma, but the Bronx boy took a good lacing from the Michigan man before landing a left hook to the chin which ended the proceedings. At the end of 7 rounds Oma had a long lead on points and appeared on his way to turning in a startling upset - but instead he was upset for the fatal 10. Oma's showing was so sparkling however, that promoter Mike Jacobs immediately set in motion the machinery leading to a return bout. Oma, who didn't train a minute for the scrap, was tiring at the finish, but in the 2nd round he had dropped Mauriello for a one-count, before the bell rang." -Associated Press
- Attendance - 10,496
- Gate - $24,280
- Oma substituted on 2 days notice for the ailing Joe Baksi, who claimed he was suffering from a cold. However, the NYSAC physician could find nothing wrong with Baksi so the commission suspended him for 45 days.