Probably one of the less talked about greats.. He was one of the earlier Jr. Middleweight champions and later a Middle champ as well. Was 65-0 before picking up his first pro loss. Had an incredible amateur record of 119-1 with numerous amateur titles and took the gold medal home to Italy in the 1960 Olympics. Beat fighters like Emile Griffith, Don Fullmer, Sandro Mazzinghi, and Luis Rodriguez. Fought in plenty of of 15 rounders and is in both the world boxing hall of fame and international boxing hall of fame. Apparently did a bit of acting too either after or during his boxing career.
Always loved Nino. Great fighter and a great man also. Word is he would go to Argentina and visit Monzon in jail after everybody else had abandon him. Stayed close friends with Emile Griffith also. Great fighter in his day who brought a lot of glamour to boxing with his Hollywood looks and elegant style. Could also crush you with one punch too. As far as I know he is still doing well calling fights in Italy where he is, of course, a god.
He certainly has lived an interesting and fulfilling life from what I've both read and heard. Thanks for sharing.
I always liked the quote from a young Cassius Clay at the Rome Olympics (as an 18 yr. old) in 1960. He approached Nino in the Olympic Village and said: "You're the BEST white fighter in the world!"
I think today Benvenuti would have been making fans go gaga. Very good fighter with unbelievable record. Too bad he had to share an era with Monzon.
I was a huge fan of Nino's back when he first won the middleweight title back in '67 from Griffith...what is often forgotten is that he restored clamor to boxing after Ali began his exile. I remember getting my mom to buy that SI issue with Nino on the cover eating a plate of spaghetti. He was, IMO, just rediscovering his power when he ko'ed LMR, got revenge on Doyle Baird and Tom Bethea...after a draw and a loss respectively to those two. I agree that it's a shame that he had to run into Monzon. I thought Nino was a cool, elegant and classy guy as well as an excellent fighter.
Nino was a terrific jmw. Way better when he was fighting in Italy than he was later on. Some of his early performances were terrific.
