Gregorio Peralta vs. Wayne Thornton (1st meeting)

Gregorio Peralta 179 lbs beat Wayne Thornton 179 lbs by SD in round 10 of 10

• Date: 1963-11-15
• Location: Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, USA
• Referee: Arthur Mercante 4-5
• Judge: Artie Aidala 6-4
• Judge: Tony Rossi 6-3

"After whipping Wayne Thornton in a bruising 10 rounder Friday night Argentine Gregorio Peralta probably will have to beat the Californian again to get a title fight with light heavyweight champion Willie Pastrano. The heavyweight king of Argentina chopped and poked his way to a split verdict over the light heavyweight contender from Fresno in a television thriller at MSG. Peralta broke up a tight battle, fought mostly at close range, by sweeping the 5th, 6th and 7th rounds. He was cut over the left eye in the 8th round and Thornton won that big to narrow the margin." -Associated Press

• Unofficial AP scorecard - 6-3-1 Peralta
• Unofficial Boxing Illustrated scorecard - 5-4-1 Thornton
• The director of boxing at the Garden, Harry Markson, offered Thornton and Peralta a rematch on December 13th at the Garden, and both accepted provided there was a written guarantee that the winner fights Willie Pastrano for the title.

Post fight comment

• "I thought I was robbed. I think those judges were swayed by the crowd. What have I got to do to win, kill the guy?" -Wayne Thornton