Joey Giambra
Encyclopedia
Joey Giambra was a former middleweight
boxer who faced and defeated most of the top contenders of his era. Giambra also defeated future middleweight champion, Joey Giardello
, in two out of three matches and claimed May 18 on the wildly popular KQRS/Minneapolis Morning Show that he was "robbed" in the first bout.
Giambra never was given the missed opportunity to fight for the world middleweight championship. Interestingly, he defeated Rocky Castellani
twice. Nevertheless, Castellani was given the opportunity to fight in an elimination bout for the world title against Sugar Ray Robinson
.
On August 26, 1955 world middleweight champion Bobo Olson
agreed to fight Giambra in a non-title match on national TV. Giambra continually beat the champion to the punch and rocked him many times, but Olson was awarded a split decision. After this bout, Giambra was hailed by many as the "uncrowned" king of the middleweight division.
Joey Giambra retired after 77 fights, in which he suffered 10 losses and two draws. He was never KO'd. His record was 65-10-2 with 31 knockouts.
Giambra later became a referee and was the third man in the 1977 Jerry Quarry-Lorenzo Zanon heavyweight championship bout. He currently resides in Las Vegas, Nevada
.
Middleweight
Middleweight is a division, or weight class, in boxing. Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have begun in the 1840s. In the bare-knuckle era, the first middleweight championship fight was between Tom Chandler and Dooney Harris in 1897...
boxer who faced and defeated most of the top contenders of his era. Giambra also defeated future middleweight champion, Joey Giardello
Joey Giardello
Carmine Orlando Tilelli was an American boxer who was the middleweight champion of the world from 1963 to 1965, and was better known by his professional pseudonym of Joey Giardello.-Early life:...
, in two out of three matches and claimed May 18 on the wildly popular KQRS/Minneapolis Morning Show that he was "robbed" in the first bout.
Giambra never was given the missed opportunity to fight for the world middleweight championship. Interestingly, he defeated Rocky Castellani
Rocky Castellani
Attilio N. "Rocky" Castellani was an American boxer. He was born in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, to Attilio Castellani and Rose Isopi Castellani , who later moved to Margate City, formerly South Atlantic City, in Atlantic County in eastern New Jersey...
twice. Nevertheless, Castellani was given the opportunity to fight in an elimination bout for the world title against Sugar Ray Robinson
Sugar Ray Robinson
Sugar Ray Robinson was an African-American professional boxer. Frequently cited as the greatest boxer of all time, Robinson's performances in the welterweight and middleweight divisions prompted sportswriters to create "pound for pound" rankings, where they compared fighters regardless of weight...
.
On August 26, 1955 world middleweight champion Bobo Olson
Bobo Olson
Carl Olson was an American boxer. He was the world middleweight champion between October 1953 and December 1955, the longest reign of any champion in that division during the 1950s, although he is probably best remembered for his three knockout losses against Sugar Ray Robinson.His nickname, Bobo,...
agreed to fight Giambra in a non-title match on national TV. Giambra continually beat the champion to the punch and rocked him many times, but Olson was awarded a split decision. After this bout, Giambra was hailed by many as the "uncrowned" king of the middleweight division.
Joey Giambra retired after 77 fights, in which he suffered 10 losses and two draws. He was never KO'd. His record was 65-10-2 with 31 knockouts.
Giambra later became a referee and was the third man in the 1977 Jerry Quarry-Lorenzo Zanon heavyweight championship bout. He currently resides in Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
.