Bobby Czyz
Name: Bobby Czyz
Alias: Matinee Idol - Chappie
Hometown: Wanaque, New Jersey, USA
Birthplace: Orange, New Jersey, USA
Stance: Orthodox
Height: 178cm
Reach: 175cm
Pro Boxer: Record
Amateur Boxer: Record
Trainer: Tommy Parks
Managers: Lou Duva (1980-1984), self-managed (1984-1998)
Bobby Czyz Gallery
Amateur Career
- Czyz had a purported amateur record of 22-4.
- Won two Junior Olympic state championship gold medals, two regional championship gold medals and one bronze medal in the nationals.
- Twice boxed for the United States national team.
- On March 14, 1980, a Polish airliner carrying 14 boxers and 8 staff members of the United States amateur boxing team crashed into a military fort near Warsaw's International Airport, see Warsaw Plane Crash. All 87 people on board were killed. Czyz was a member of the team and was supposed to be on the flight, but he stayed home in New Jersey due to a broken nose he suffered in a car crash.
Professional Career
- One of several young professional boxers showcased by NBC in the early 1980s. They were billed as Tomorrow's Champions.
- Suffered his first defeat in November 1982, losing to Mustafa Hamsho by a ten-round unanimous decision.
- Won the IBF light heavyweight championship with a fifth-round TKO of Slobodan Kacar in September 1986. Czyz successfully defended the title three times before losing it to Prince Charles Williams by a ninth-round RTD in October 1987.
- Won the WBA cruiserweight championship with a twelve-round split decision against Robert Daniels in March 1991. Czyz successfully defended the championship twice, but he was forced to relinquish the title after he was hit by a car in March 1993 and was unable to defend it.
- Returned to the ring in 1994 and won four of his last seven fights before retiring in 1998.
- Record of 7-3 (4 KOs) in world title fights.
- Record of 6-6 (1 KO) against future, current and former world champions.
- Won against Murray Sutherland, Slobodan Kacar, Leslie Stewart, Uriah Grant, Robert Daniels, Donny Lalonde
- Lost against Prince Charles Williams (twice), Dennis Andries, Virgil Hill, Evander Holyfield, Corrie Sanders
Notes
- Graduated sixth in a class of 335 students at Lakeland Regional High School in Wanaque, New Jersey.
- Member of Mensa, an organization for people whose IQ is in the top 2% of the population.
- His father, Robert Czyz Sr., committed suicide on June 12, 1983. He died from a single gunshot wound to the head.
- Commentator for Showtime from 1992 to 2003. Czyz was fired after he pleaded guilty to his fourth drunken-driving offense in six years.
- Inducted into the New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame in 1998.
- Inducted into the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame in 2004.
- Inducted into the National Polish American Sports Hall of Fame in 2009.
External Links
| Preceded by: Slobodan Kacar |
IBF Light Heavyweight Champion 1986 Sep 6 – 1987 Oct 29 |
Succeeded by: Charles Williams |
| Preceded by: Robert Daniels |
WBA Cruiserweight Champion 1991 Mar 8 – 1992 May 8 Vacated |
Succeeded by: Orlin Norris |