Tony DeMarco won the undisputed welterweight championship of the world in April of 1955, an era when boxing had just eight weight divisions, and only one champ per division. There were no “alphabet soup” titles.
DeMarco, the pride of Boston’s North End, fibbed about his age and changed his name (he was born Leonardo Liotta) to turn pro at age 16, a fight he won by knockout at Boston Garden — only a short walk from his front door.
He fought 14 years and 71 times against the best of his generation, including eight world champions. His back-to-back fights with Carmen Basilio are ranked among the best in boxing history.
We spoke in-depth with this 87-year-old legend, who will be inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in June, on this week’s Ringside Boxing Show.
Don’t miss this memorable and historic conversation with an all-time great.
Before our interview with Tony DeMarco, we get a thorough postmortem of an amazing weekend of boxing that saw both Jermell Charlo and Carl Frampton suffer stunning defeats at the hand of opponents who were lopsided underdogs, plus a bruising rematch between Dillian Whyte and Dereck Chisora that ended in dramatic fashion.
Plus, Paul McLaughlin, our British correspondent, returns to give us his weekly take on the vibrant boxing scene in the United Kingdom.
Listen to “RINGSIDE BOXING SHOW Long-awaited Hall of Fame honor for legendary Tony DeMarco, 87, last of his era” on Spreaker.
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