Nino LaRocca is another overlooked fighter who doesn’t seem to get enough attention or discussion on this board. He’s mostly known for his losing performance against Donald Curry but on film he looks like a capable fighter. Probably not world class level since he fought mostly scrubs in Italy but he definitely had athletic talents. Back then he was a hyped up fighter because of his flashy Ali fighting style but had a very padded record before facing Curry and losing badly. What are your guys’ thoughts on LaRocca? How good of a fighter was he and do you think he was capable of competing against top level WWs in any given era? Could he have achieved more had he fought outside Italy?
His fights against Pete Ranzany and Bobby Joe Young are really good showings of LaRocca’s talents, although he does ham up the showboat a bit too often for my liking. He was more flash than substance all together, as shown in his fight against Donald Curry. This content is protected This content is protected This content is protected
I saw that fight live on ABC's Wide World Of Sports on Sept 22 1984 from Monte Carlo, Monaco. I thought he put up a decent fight as well.
He was very good, a legitimate contender. Ran into an absolutely prime Curry. He was undefeated except for a loss on cuts while well ahead against Gilles Elbea when he took on Curry.
