Joe Louis vs. Tami Mauriello

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Challenger rankings
Org. Pos. As of Published
1+ Mth. Old
NBA 2 09.04.1946 09.04.1946
Ring N/A N/A N/A
2+ Mth. Old
NBA 2 09.04.1946 09.04.1946
Ring N/A N/A N/A
3+ Mth. Old
NBA 2 09.04.1946 09.04.1946
Ring N/A N/A N/A

Joe Louis 211 lbs beat Tami Mauriello 198 lbs by KO at 2:09 in round 1 of 15

  • Date: 1946-09-18
  • Location: Yankee Stadium, The Bronx, New York, USA
  • Referee: Arthur Donovan

Notes

Timeline

  • On March 1, promoter Mike Jacobs announced that undefeated British Heavyweight Champion Bruce Woodcock was booked to fight on May 13 at Madison Square Garden against either the winner of the fight between Mauriello and Joe Baksi or Lee Oma. If Woodcock won, he would face the winner of Joe Louis vs. Billy Conn in September.[2][3][4]
  • By March 9, Woodcock notified Jacobs that he would prefer to face the winner of Mauriello-Baksi.[5]
  • On March 11, Baksi withdrew from the Mauriello fight due to injuring his right elbow.[6] Four days later, it was announced that Mauriello had been signed to face John Thomas on March 22 in Detroit.[7] Mauriello stopped Thomas in the third round after a slugfest.
  • On March 30, Jacobs definitively matched Woodcock with Mauriello.[8]
  • On April 20, Woodcock confirmed that if he beat Mauriello, he would meet the winner of Louis-Conn in September.[9]
  • On May 17, Mauriello knocked Woodcock out in the fifth round. Joe Louis attended the fight.[10]
  • Columnist John M. Lee wrote for Detroit Tribune on June 1 that Jacobs "got himself the makings of another good and profitable show in September when Tami Mauriello slugged British Empire heavyweight champ Bruce Woodcock into a fifth-round slumber"[11], while Ben Gould reported on June 5 that Louis would defend his title against Mauriello at Yankee Stadium in September if he gets past Billy Conn.[12]
  • After Louis defeated Conn on June 19, Mike Jacobs told the press that he intended to line up Louis with either Mauriello or Walcott in September. Louis backed the statement.[13]
  • Negotiations with Mauriello were already ongoing as of June 25, when Jacobs met with Louis' manager Marshall Miles and Mauriello's manager James "Lefty" Remini. Both sides agreed to split 60% of the net purse, wiht Louis receiving 40% and Mauriello 20%. Miles said that the chances of the fight materializing were "extremely hopeful".[14]
  • Mauriello signed the deal on July 8; Louis did so on July 10.[15]

Ranking Movements

  • The day before Louis signed the deal, Mauriello was elevated from No. 2 to No. 1 heavyweight contender in the National Boxing Association rankings. Previous first-ranked Billy Conn was dropped to "honorable mentions".

The Fight

Louis hits Mauriello with a left.
Louis puts Mauriello down for the count.

Louis Finishes Mauriello Off In First Round
By Gayle Talbot, Associated Press, September 19, 1946

They dug up another heavyweight last night, Tami Mauriello, who was not scared of Joe Louis, and Tami wound up like so many of his predecessors have, blubbering in his dressing room after having been knocked out by the great negro fighter in the first round.

The Bronx barkeep was not overawed by the champion. With the very first punch of their title bout in Yankee stadium, Mauriello clipped Joe on the temple and sent him reeling into the ropes as the throng rose and bellowed its excitement.

And then Louis, more surprised than hurt, by his later admission, took after Tami, tore him apart and left him draped helplessly over the middle rope in 2:09 of the opening stanza. It was Joe's 23rd successful defense of his title.

"I thought I had him," Tami cried as he sat later with a towel draped around his dejected head. "I thought I had him, and I grew careless."

At that, and in the tradition of another tavern keeper, Tony Galento, Mauriello did not "die" on his way to fight Louis. He went in there cocky, exploded his best punches on the champion's jaw, and went down only after he had been beaten into helpless exhaustion.

That was much more than a number of other challengers have done. Last night's brief brawl, at a $30 top, gave the crowd of 38,494 that paid $335,063 more action and more thrills than the ballyhooed $100 number between Louis and Billy Conn three months ago.

The echo of the starting bell still was bouncing around through the stadium's triple deck when Mauriello threw the first punch of the fight, a looping right, that caught Louis flush and sent him floundering against the ropes.

Joe said later he never saw the punch coming—didn't even know whether it had been a right or a left. "I want to see the movies of that one," he admitted.

Though it was a stiff wallop, it didn't appear to daze the champ. He was right back, tearing into Mauriello with a flurry of terrific lefts and rights and within seconds nearly ripped Tami's head off with a clean left hook to the bottom.

Tami's 198½ pounds hit the canvas with a bump. He started to rise at five, but thought better of it and settled back for the count of nine. Then he came up punching.

From that point, until the end came about a minute later, it was a fine brawl. Almost second by second as Louis poured the leather to him, Tami's features became more puffed and bloody, but he never ceased to fight back.

Once, over in a neutral corner, he slammed home another right to the button that caused Louis to bend like a reed and momentarily stemmed the fury of the champion's attack. But only momentarily.

Heavy at 211½ pounds and obviously packing cruel power in his blows, Louis stayed on top of Mauriello and snapped them home. A few of them missed in Joe's anxiety to get it over with, but most of them landed.

Finally another left hook slammed the game Tami to the floor in the exact spot he had landed the first time. With a mighty effort he pulled himself to the middle strand, and with his face cradled in his glove and his legs powerless to lift him higher, he listened to referee Arthur Donovan count the final ten. [16]


Preceded by:
Louis vs. Conn II 		NBA Heavyweight Title Fight
# 36 		Succeeded by:
Louis vs. Walcott I
Preceded by:
Louis vs. Conn II 		NYSAC Heavyweight Title Fight
# 35 		Succeeded by:
Louis vs. Walcott I


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