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Cassius Clay vs. Tony Esperti

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Cassius Clay vs. Tony Esperti
DateJanuary 17, 1961
VenueMiami Beach Auditorium, Miami Beach, Florida
Tale of the tape
Boxer United States Cassius Clay United States Tony Esperti
Nickname "The Louisville Lip" "Big Tony"
Hometown Louisville, Kentucky Baltimore, Maryland
Pre-fight record 2–0 (1 KO) 9–5–2 (5 KO)
Age 19 years Unknown
Height 6 ft 3 in (191 cm) 6 ft 3 in (191 cm)
Weight 195 lb (88 kg) 197 lb (89 kg)
Style Orthodox Orthodox
Recognition 1960 Olympic light heavyweight Gold Medallist
Result
Clay won by TKO in 3rd round (1:30)

Cassius Clay vs. Tony Esperti was a professional boxing match contested on January 17, 1961.[1]

Background

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The fight took place on Clay's 19th birthday and was part of the undercard to Gomeo Brennan vs. Cecil Shorts. Esperti was making his first appearance inside the ring in 6 years.

The fight

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Clay won the bout through a technical knockout when the referee stopped the fight in the third round after Esparti's left eye had been cut by Clay's jabs.

Aftermath

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Esperti was later convicted of first degree murder for gunning down mafia boss Thomas Altamura, a member of the Gambino crime family.[2][3][4][5]

Undercard

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Confirmed bouts:[6]

References

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  1. ^ "Muhammad Ali vs. Tony Esperti". boxrec.com. BoxRec. Retrieved 21 August 2024.
  2. ^ Thomas Hauser (1991). Muhammad Ali: His Life and Times. Simon & Schuster. pp. 38.
  3. ^ Felix Dennis & Don Atyeo (2003). Muhammad Ali: The Glory Years. miramax books. p. 37.
  4. ^ "Revisiting Miami's Most Famous Mob Hit". Ocean Drive. 1 October 2012. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
  5. ^ "In Miami, the murder plots rival the movie plots". Miami Herald. 17 June 2015. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
  6. ^ "BoxRec - event".
Preceded by Cassius Clay's bouts
17 January 1961
Succeeded by
Preceded by
vs. Al Anderson
Tony Esperti's bouts
17 January 1961
Succeeded by
vs. JW DeBoe