Tony Zale

Tony Zale
Tony Zale
	Tony Zale in 1940
Statistics
Real name	Anthony Florian Zaleski
Nickname(s)	Man of Steel[1]
Weight(s)	Middleweight
Height	5 ft 7 1⁄2 in (1.71 m)
Reach	69 in (175 cm)
Nationality	American
Born	May 29, 1913; Gary, Indiana, U.S.
Died	March 20, 1997 (aged 83)
Stance	Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights	87
Wins	67
Wins by KO	45
Losses	18
Draws	2
No contests	0

Anthony Florian Zaleski (May 29, 1913 – March 20, 1997), known professionally as Tony Zale, was an American boxer.[2] Zale was born and raised in Gary, Indiana, a steel town, which gave him his nickname, "Man of Steel".[3] In addition, he had the reputation of being able to take fearsome punishment and still rally to win, reinforcing that nickname. Zale, who held the World Middleweight title multiple times,[4] was known as a crafty boxer and strong body puncher who punished his opponents and steadily wore them down before knocking them out.[5]

World Middleweight Title match against Georgie Abrams, November 1941

Tony Zale in 1941

Tony Zale is getting married, March 1942

Zale met Georgie Abrams in Madison Square Garden in a World Middleweight Championship match on November 28, 1941 before a crowd of nearly 10,000. Despite knocking Zale down in the first round, a poke in the eye from Zale's glove left him with pain and blurred vision. From the fourth round on, Abrams fought with his left eye nearly closed. Blood from a cut opened above his right eye in the third from an accidental head butt from Zale caused additional vision problems from blood that dripped from the wound. Despite fighting half blind, Abrams fought courageously for fifteen rounds. The Associated Press actually placed Abrams with the win at eight rounds to Zale's seven. Abrams lost in a close match, due to the incessant body attacks of Zale in the late rounds, particularly the ninth where he received a severe two handed attack to the midsection.[6][7]

Bouts against Rocky Graziano, 1946–48

Zale was a 2-time world middleweight champion and made the Ring Magazine's list of 100 greatest punchers of all time. Zale is best remembered for his three bouts over a 21-month period with Rocky Graziano for the middleweight crown. These three bouts were among the most brutal and exciting middleweight championship matches of all time. The first match took place in Yankee Stadium, New York City. Zale had served in World War II, was thirty-three years old, and had been inactive for about four years. Graziano was on a winning knockout streak and seemed to be in his prime. In their first match (September 27, 1946), after flooring Graziano in the first round, Zale took a savage beating from Graziano, and was on the verge of losing the fight by TKO. However, he rallied and knocked out Graziano in the sixth round to retain his title. The rematch, a year later in Chicago (July 16, 1947), was a mirror image of their first fight. Graziano was battered around the ring, suffered a closed eye and appeared ready to lose by a knockout, then rallied and knocked Zale out in the sixth round, becoming middleweight champion of the world.

Their last fight was held in New Jersey the following year (June 10, 1948). Zale regained his crown, winning the match by a knockout in the third round. The knockout blows consisted of a perfect combination of a right to Graziano's body, then a left hook to Graziano's jaw. Graziano was knocked unconscious. This fight was Zale's last hurrah. His age and the many ring wars he fought seemed to catch up with him in his next fight against European Champion Marcel Cerdan later that year, who stopped him in the eleventh round to win the middleweight championship of the world (September 21, 1948). Graziano commented that years later he would wake up in a cold sweat having had the recurring nightmare of being back in the ring with Zale, who he said really was a man of steel.

Edith Piaf, who at the time was having an affair with Cerdan, was in the audience, praying to Saint Therese for his victory. Two of the three Graziano fights and the Cerdan fight were named Ring Magazine fights of the year.

Zale was a 1991 inductee to the International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF). In November 2015, his championship belts were stolen[8] from the IBHOF. The belts were on loan from Zale's family, and have yet to be returned.

Zale was originally cast to play himself in the movie Somebody Up There Likes Me. According to director Robert Wise, Paul Newman (playing Graziano) was hesitant to fully engage Zale during rehearsal, fearing that Zale might reflexively knock him out if Newman inadvertently hit him too hard. As Newman had to appear aggressive against Zale in the film, Wise felt it was necessary to replace Zale with actor Courtland Shepard for the final fight scene.[9]

Professional boxing record

Professional record summary
87 fights	67 wins	18 losses
By knockout	45	5
By decision	22	13
Draws	2

No.	Result	Record	Opponent	Type	Round, time	Date	Location	Notes
87	Loss	67–18–2	Marcel Cerdan	RTD	11 (15)	Sep 21, 1948	Roosevelt Stadium, Jersey City, United States	Lost NBA, The Ring, and lineal middleweight titles
86	Win	67–17–2	Rocky Graziano	KO	3 (15)	Jun 10, 1948	Ruppert Stadium, Newark, United States	Won NBA, The Ring, and lineal middleweight titles
85	Win	66–17–2	Lou Woods	KO	3 (10)	Mar 19, 1948	Arena, Toledo, United States
84	Win	65–17–2	Bobby Claus	TKO	4 (10)	Mar 08, 1948	Little Rock, United States
83	Win	64–17–2	Al Turner	KO	5 (10)	Jan 23, 1948	Armory, Grand Rapids, United States
82	Loss	63–17–2	Rocky Graziano	TKO	6 (15)	Jul 16, 1947	Chicago Stadium, Chicago, United States	Lost NBA, The Ring, and lineal middleweight titles
81	Win	63–16–2	Cliff Beckett	TKO	6 (10)	May 08, 1947	Arena, Youngstown, United States
80	Win	62–16–2	Al Timmons	TKO	5 (10)	Apr 01, 1947	Memorial Hall, Kansas City, United States
79	Win	61–16–2	Tommy Charles	KO	4 (10)	Mar 20, 1947	Auditorium, Memphis, United States
78	Win	60–16–2	Len Wadsworth	KO	3 (10)	Feb 12, 1947	Forum, Wichita, United States
77	Win	59–16–2	Deacon Logan	TKO	6 (10)	Feb 03, 1947	Auditorium, Omaha, United States
76	Win	58–16–2	Rocky Graziano	KO	6 (15)	Sep 27, 1946	Yankee Stadium, Bronx, United States	Retained NBA, NYSAC, The Ring, and lineal middleweight titles
75	Win	57–16–2	Eddie Rossi	KO	4 (10)	May 02, 1946	Auditorium, Memphis, United States
74	Win	56–16–2	Ira Hughes	KO	2 (10)	Apr 12, 1946	City Auditorium, Omaha, United States
73	Win	55–16–2	Bobby Claus	KO	4 (10)	Feb 26, 1946	Houston, United States
72	Win	54–16–2	Oscar Boyd	KO	3 (10)	Feb 07, 1946	Coliseum, Des Moines, United States
71	Win	53–16–2	Tony Gillo	KO	5 (10)	Jan 17, 1946	Municipal Auditorium, Norfolk, United States
70	Win	52–16–2	Bobby Giles	KO	4 (10)	Jan 07, 1946	Municipal Auditorium, Kansas City, United States
69	Loss	51–16–2	Billy Conn	UD	12	Feb 13, 1942	Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, United States
68	Win	51–15–2	Georgie Abrams	UD	15	Nov 28, 1941	Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, United States	Retained NBA middleweight title Won vacant NYSAC, The Ring, and lineal middleweight titles
67	Win	50–15–2	Billy Pryor	KO	9 (10)	Aug 16, 1941	Juneau Park, Milwaukee, United States
66	Win	49–15–2	Ossie Harris	KO	1 (10)	Jul 23, 1941	Chicago Stadium Outdoor Arena, Chicago, United States
65	Win	48–15–2	Al Hostak	KO	2 (15)	May 28, 1941	Chicago Stadium Outdoor Arena, Chicago, United States	Retained NBA middleweight title
64	Win	47–15–2	Steve Mamakos	KO	14 (15)	Feb 21, 1941	Chicago Stadium, Chicago, United States	Retained NBA middleweight title
63	Win	46–15–2	Steve Mamakos	PTS	10	Jan 10, 1941	Chicago Stadium, Chicago, United States
62	Win	45–15–2	Tony Martin	TKO	7 (10)	Jan 01, 1941	Auditorium, Milwaukee, United States
61	Win	44–15–2	Fred Apostoli	PTS	10	Nov 19, 1940	Civic Auditorium, Seattle, United States
60	Loss	43–15–2	Billy Soose	UD	10	Aug 21, 1940	Civic Stadium, Seattle, United States
59	Win	43–14–2	Al Hostak	TKO	13 (15)	Jul 19, 1940	Civic Stadium, Seattle, United States	Won NBA middleweight title
58	Win	42–14–2	Baby Kid Chocolate	KO	4 (10)	Jun 12, 1940	Idora Park, Youngstown, United States
57	Win	41–14–2	Ben Brown	KO	3 (10)	Mar 29, 1940	Chicago Stadium, Chicago, United States
56	Win	40–14–2	Enzo Iannozzi	KO	4 (10)	Feb 29, 1940	Rayen-Wood Auditorium, Youngstown, United States
55	Win	39–14–2	Al Hostak	UD	10	Jan 29, 1940	Chicago Stadium, Chicago, United States
54	Win	38–14–2	Babe Orgovan	KO	3 (8)	Dec 08, 1939	Chicago Stadium, Chicago, United States
53	Win	37–14–2	Eddie Meleski	TKO	1 (10)	Nov 13, 1939	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, United States
52	Win	36–14–2	Al Wardlow	KO	3 (10)	Oct 31, 1939	Rayen-Wood Auditorium, Youngstown, United States
51	Win	35–14–2	Sherman Edwards	TKO	3 (6)	Oct 06, 1939	Chicago Stadium, Chicago, United States
50	Win	34–14–2	Milton Shivers	KO	3 (10)	Aug 14, 1939	Marigold Gardens Outdoor Arena, Chicago, United States
49	Win	33–14–2	Babe Orgovan	PTS	6	May 23, 1939	Madison Square Garden, New York, United States
48	Win	32–14–2	Johnny Shaw	KO	5 (8)	May 01, 1939	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, United States
47	Loss	31–14–2	Nate Bolden	PTS	10	Jan 02, 1939	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, United States
46	Win	31–13–2	Enzo Innazzi	PTS	6	Nov 18, 1938	Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, United States
45	Win	30–13–2	Jimmy Clark	KO	2 (8)	Oct 31, 1938	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, United States
44	Win	29–13–2	Tony Cisco	UD	10	Oct 10, 1938	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, United States
43	Loss	28–13–2	Billy Celebron	PTS	10	Aug 22, 1938	Marigold Gardens Outdoor Arena, Chicago, United States
42	Draw	28–12–2	Billy Celebron	PTS	10	Jul 18, 1938	Marigold Gardens Outdoor Arena, Chicago, United States
41	Win	28–12–1	Jimmy Clark	TKO	8 (8)	Jun 13, 1938	Marigold Gardens Outdoor Arena, Chicago, United States
40	Win	27–12–1	Bobby LaMonte	TKO	5 (8)	May 16, 1938	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, United States
39	Win	26–12–1	King Wyatt	PTS	8	Mar 28, 1938	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, United States
38	Loss	25–12–1	Jimmy Clark	KO	1 (8)	Feb 21, 1938	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, United States
37	Win	25–11–1	Henry Schaft	PTS	8	Jan 24, 1938	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, United States
36	Win	24–11–1	Nate Bolden	SD	8	Jan 03, 1938	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, United States
35	Win	23–11–1	Nate Bolden	PTS	5	Nov 22, 1937	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, United States
34	Win	22–11–1	Leon Jackson	PTS	6	Nov 10, 1937	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, United States
33	Loss	21–11–1	Nate Bolden	PTS	5	Nov 01, 1937	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, United States
32	Win	21–10–1	Bobby Gerry	KO	2 (4)	Oct 18, 1937	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, United States
31	Win	20–10–1	Billy Brown	KO	1 (4)	Oct 11, 1937	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, United States
30	Win	19–10–1	Elby Johnson	TKO	3 (4)	Sep 17, 1937	White City Arena, Chicago, United States
29	Loss	18–10–1	Manuel Davila	PTS	4	Aug 16, 1937	Marigold Gardens Outdoor Arena, Chicago, United States
28	Win	18–9–1	Elby Johnson	PTS	4	Jul 26, 1937	Marigold Gardens Outdoor Arena, Chicago, United States
27	Draw	17–9–1	Jack Moran	PTS	5	Apr 13, 1936	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, United States
26	Loss	17–9	Dave Clark	PTS	5	Jul 02, 1935	Comiskey Park, Chicago, United States
25	Loss	17–8	Johnny Phagan	KO	6 (8)	May 06, 1935	Midway Gardens, Chicago, United States
24	Loss	17–7	Roughhouse Glover	TKO	9 (10)	Mar 27, 1935	Music Hall Arena, Cincinnati, United States
23	Win	17–6	Max Elling	PTS	8	Mar 11, 1935	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, United States
22	Win	16–6	Young Jack Blackburn	PTS	6	Feb 25, 1935	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, United States
21	Loss	15–6	Joey Bazzone	PTS	6	Dec 28, 1934	Chicago Stadium, Chicago, United States
20	Loss	15–5	Jack Gibbons	PTS	10	Dec 17, 1934	Midway Gardens, Chicago, United States
19	Loss	15–4	Kid Leonard	PTS	10	Nov 26, 1934	Peoria, United States
18	Win	15–3	Jack Charvez	PTS	8	Nov 05, 1934	Midway Gardens, Chicago, United States
17	Win	14–3	Jack Schwartz	TKO	4 (8)	Oct 29, 1934	Auditorium, Milwaukee, United States
16	Win	13–3	Frankie Misko	KO	6 (8)	Oct 22, 1934	Midway Gardens, Chicago, United States
15	Win	12–3	Young Jack Blackburn	PTS	8	Oct 08, 1934	Midway Gardens, Chicago, United States
14	Win	11–3	Mickey Misko	KO	4 (8)	Sep 17, 1934	White City Arena, Chicago, United States
13	Loss	10–3	Mickey Misko	PTS	8	Sep 03, 1934	White City Arena, Chicago, United States
12	Win	10–2	Wilbur Stokes	PTS	8	Aug 27, 1934	White City Arena, Chicago, United States
11	Loss	9–2	George Black	PTS	6	Aug 15, 1934	Auditorium, Milwaukee, United States
10	Loss	9–1	Billy Hood	PTS	6	Aug 13, 1934	White City Arena, Chicago, United States
9	Win	9–0	Bruce Wade	KO	3 (4)	Aug 07, 1934	Peoria, United States
8	Win	8–0	Bobby Millsap	PTS	4	Jul 30, 1934	White City Arena, Chicago, United States
7	Win	7–0	Einar Hedquist	TKO	4 (4)	Jul 16, 1934	White City Arena, Chicago, United States
6	Win	6–0	Lou Bartell	PTS	4	Jul 09, 1934	White City Arena, Chicago, United States
5	Win	5–0	Ossie Jefferson	KO	3 (4)	Jul 02, 1934	White City Arena, Chicago, United States
4	Win	4–0	Johnny Liston	KO	3 (4)	Jun 25, 1934	White City Arena, Chicago, United States
3	Win	3–0	Bobby Millsap	KO	1 (4)	Jun 21, 1934	Bacon's Arena, Chicago, United States
2	Win	2–0	Johnny Simpson	PTS	4	Jun 15, 1934	Northwest Stadium, Chicago, United States
1	Win	1–0	Eddie Allen	PTS	4	Jun 11, 1934	Marigold Gardens Outdoor Arena, Chicago, United States

References

"Tony Zale, Boxing's 'Man Of Steel,' Dies At 82 – tribunedigital-chicagotribune". Articles.chicagotribune.com. March 21, 1997. Retrieved March 28, 2016.
Zale Is Still A Quiet Worker. NYTimes.com (August 4, 1982). Retrieved on September 11, 2017.
Bob Mee (March 24, 1997). "Obituary: Tony Zale | Obituaries | News". The Independent. Retrieved March 28, 2016.
"The Lineal Middleweight Champions". The Cyber Boxing Zone Encyclopedia.
Effect of War On Tony Zale. NYTimes.com (August 15, 1982). Retrieved on September 11, 2017.
Silver, Mike (2016). Stars in the Ring, Jewish Champions. Rowman and Littlefield, Guilford, Connecticut. pp. 103–105. ISBN 1630761397.
Abrams came close to winning the fight according to the AP in "Zale, King of 160 pounders Licks Abrams", The Des Moines Register, Des Moines, Iowa, p. 63, November 30, 1941
Stein, Jeff (November 14, 2015). "Theft of a Boxer's Championship Belts Devastates His Upstate Hometown". New York Times. Retrieved January 22, 2016.
Wise, Robert. "Somebody Up There Likes Me". afi.com. Retrieved January 14, 2018.

External links

Achievements
Preceded by Al Hostak	NBA Middleweight Champion July 19, 1940 – July 16, 1947	Succeeded by Rocky Graziano
Preceded by Billy Soose Retired	NYSAC World Middleweight Champion November 28, 1941 – July 16, 1947
Vacant Title last held by Freddie Steele	The Ring Middleweight Champion November 28, 1941 – July 16, 1947
Vacant Title last held by Mickey Walker	World Middleweight Champion November 28, 1941 – July 16, 1947
Preceded by Rocky Graziano	The Ring Middleweight Champion June 10, 1948 – September 21, 1948	Succeeded by Marcel Cerdan
Preceded by Rocky Graziano	World Middleweight Champion June 10, 1948 – September 21, 1948	Succeeded by Marcel Cerdan

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[1] "Tony Zale, Boxing's 'Man Of Steel,' Dies At 82 – tribunedigital-chicagotribune". Articles.chicagotribune.com. March 21, 1997. Retrieved March 28, 2016.

[2] Zale Is Still A Quiet Worker. NYTimes.com (August 4, 1982). Retrieved on September 11, 2017.

[3] Bob Mee (March 24, 1997). "Obituary: Tony Zale | Obituaries | News". The Independent. Retrieved March 28, 2016.

[4] "The Lineal Middleweight Champions". The Cyber Boxing Zone Encyclopedia.

[5] Effect of War On Tony Zale. NYTimes.com (August 15, 1982). Retrieved on September 11, 2017.

[6] Silver, Mike (2016). Stars in the Ring, Jewish Champions. Rowman and Littlefield, Guilford, Connecticut. pp. 103–105. ISBN 1630761397.

[7] Abrams came close to winning the fight according to the AP in "Zale, King of 160 pounders Licks Abrams", The Des Moines Register, Des Moines, Iowa, p. 63, November 30, 1941

[Stolen_Belt-8] Stein, Jeff (November 14, 2015). "Theft of a Boxer's Championship Belts Devastates His Upstate Hometown". New York Times. Retrieved January 22, 2016.

[9] Wise, Robert. "Somebody Up There Likes Me". afi.com. Retrieved January 14, 2018.