On This Day

In Boxing History!

1922: Willie Pep Was Born!

Willie Pep    

Born: September 19th, 1922

Birth Name: Gugliermo Papaleo

Birth Place: Middletown, Connecticut

Residence: Rocky Hill, Connecticut

Pro-Debut: July 25th, 1940

Division: Featherweight

Alias: Will O' the Wisp

Stance: Orthodox

Height: 5′ 5″  

Reach: 68″

Record: 229-11-1, 65Ko’s 

Bouts: 241

Rounds: 1955

Ko’s: 27%  

Died: Age 84, November 23rd, 2006

January 8th, 1947: Pep was seriously injured in a plane crash where the co-pilot and two passengers were killed.

Career

World Featherweight Champion

1942 Nov 20 – 1948 Oct 29          

World Featherweight Champion

1949 Feb 11 – 1950 Sept 8         

International Boxing Hall of Fame – Class of 1990

Willie Pep, born Guiglermo Papaleo on September 19, 1922 in Middletown, Connecticut, was an Italian American boxer celebrated for his unmatched defensive skills, speed, and ring finesse. As an amateur in 1938, Pep faced Sugar Ray Robinson, then using the alias “Ray Roberts,” in the attic of a Norwich, Connecticut feed store. He was outweighed by more than 20 pounds and suffered his only recorded amateur defeat. Two years later, on July 10, 1940, Pep turned professional in Hartford, Connecticut, defeating James McGovern by four-round decision. He stayed active in New England, racking up 25 straight wins split between Connecticut and Massachusetts. By his 26th fight, he ventured west, scoring a first-round knockout of Eddie Flores in Michigan, and soon after made his California debut with a decision over Billy Spencer.

Pep’s rise accelerated in 1942, when, holding a 41-0 record, he defeated world title challenger Joey Archibald by decision. He soon won the New England featherweight title from Abe Denner and, after extending his unbeaten streak to 52-0—including another win over Archibald—he captured the world featherweight crown in October 1942 by outpointing reigning champion Chalky Wright over 15 rounds. He closed the year with two knockouts. By mid-1943, Pep had reached 61-0 before suffering his first loss against world lightweight champion Sammy Angott in a ten-round decision. Just ten days later, he rebounded with a win over Bobby McIntyre, then secured five more victories to close out the year, including two wins over future champion Sal Bartolo and one over Jackie Wilson, with one of the Bartolo victories serving as a successful title defense.

In 1944, Pep enjoyed one of his finest years, compiling 16 wins that included victories over champions Willie Joyce, Manuel Ortiz, and Chalky Wright, plus his first bout abroad against Jackie Lemus in Canada. In 1945, he won seven of eight fights and retained the title against Phil Terranova, with his only blemish a draw against Jimmy McAllister. He remained dominant in 1946, going 18-0 with a notable 12-round knockout of Bartolo and a third-round stoppage of Wright, part of a six-fight knockout streak. On July 25, 1946, he fought Jackie Graves and is alleged to have won the third round without throwing a punch, a claim disputed but widely circulated. In 1947, Pep went 10-0 and retained his title against Jock Leslie. However, that same year he was badly injured in a January 5 plane crash and, though many observers felt he lost something physically, he persevered through difficult bouts with Archie Wilmer and Pedro Biesca, winning both.

In 1948, Pep won 15 consecutive bouts, including a title-defense knockout of Humberto Sierra and a decision over former champion Paddy DeMarco, before suffering a major career setback on October 29 when Sandy Saddler stopped him in four rounds, costing him the featherweight championship. After two rebound wins, Pep regained the title in February 1949 with a 15-round decision over Saddler, defended the crown against Eddie Campo by a seventh-round knockout, and closed the year with a decision over Harold Dade. In 1950, he reeled off nine straight wins, including defenses against Charlie Riley and Ray Famechon, before again succumbing to Saddler, this time by eighth-round knockout, losing the title for the second time. Pep and Saddler fought for a fourth and final time in 1951, with Saddler winning by ninth-round knockout in what became a defining rivalry of the featherweight division.

Pep stayed active in the early 1950s, fighting frequently. In 1952, he went 11-1, his only defeat coming by sixth-round knockout to Tommy Collins. He rebounded with 11 straight wins in 1953, extending his streak into 1954 before losing in a shocking second-round knockout to Lulu Perez on February 26, 1954. The bout stirred controversy with claims Pep took a dive, especially after unusual betting movements in Perez’s favor. Pep closed out the year with three additional wins but never regained a world title shot. He fought intermittently through the remainder of the 1950s, and though he officially retired in 1960, he returned in 1964 and boxed until 1966. During this final stretch, he went 43-5, his most notable opponent being future champion Hogan Kid Bassey, who knocked him out in nine rounds. Pep also competed internationally, losing in Venezuela to Sonny Leon by decision, and dropped his final fight to Calvin Woodland in six rounds on March 20, 1966.

Over his 26-year career, Pep fought an extraordinary 1956 rounds across 241 bouts, finishing with a record of 229 wins, 11 losses, and 1 draw, including 65 wins by knockout. After retiring, he and Saddler appeared in exhibition bouts, and Pep later worked as an inspector and referee. His career was not without controversy: a 1980 Inside Sports article titled “The Fix” alleged that a boxer, identified only as “The Champ,” threw a fight against Perez for $16,000—widely interpreted as Pep. He sued Newsweek Inc. for $75 million over the claim, but a jury deliberated just 15 minutes before ruling against him.

His contributions to the sport remained celebrated. In 1977, Pep was inducted into the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame, and in 1990, he entered the International Boxing Hall of Fame as part of its original class, where he volunteered alongside Carmen Basilio and joyfully signed autographs for fans. In 2002, Ring Magazine ranked him sixth among the 80 best fighters of the last 80 years. By March 2006, Pep was residing in a Connecticut nursing home with Dementia pugilistica. He passed away on November 23, 2006, at age 84, and was laid to rest in Rocky Hill, Connecticut. He was survived by two children, William “Billy” Papaleo and Mary Papaleo, both of Wethersfield.

September 19th

1922: Willie Pep, 229-11-1, 65Ko’s was born Guiglermo Papaleo in Middletown, Connecticut

1932: Panama Al Brown KO1 Spider Pladner

1945: Sammy Angott KO6 Ike Williams

1954: Robert Cohen W15 Chamrem Songkitrat

1958: Azumah Nelson was born Accra, Ghana

1967: Chartchai Chionoi KO7 Walter McGowan

1969: Kostya Tszyu was born in Serov, Russia

1980: Lupe Pintor KO12 Johnny Owen –Owen age 24, dies 45-days later from head injuries suffered in the bout.

1984: 23-year-old, Detroit super lightweight Dujuan “Mr Excitement” Johnson was shot dead during a robbery.

1991: Joichiro Tatsuyoshi KO11 Greg Richardson

1992: Chris Eubank W12 Tony Thorton

Pat Clinton W12 Danny Porter

1998: Evander Holyfield W12 Vaughn Bean

Dariusz Michalczewski KO8 Mark Prince

Jorge Elicer Julio W12 Adonis Cruz

2005: Lorenzo Parra W12 Takefumi Sakata

2009: Floyd Mayweather Jr W12 Juan Manuel Marquez

Chris John W12 Rocky Juarez   

Sebastian Sylvester W12 Giovanni Lorenzo

Michael Katsidis WSD12 Vicente Escobedo

2014: During an brief intermission at Star Boxing’s “Rockin Fights 15” at Long Island’s hottest boxing venue Star Boxing President and CEO Joe Deguardia announced the signing of Shirley, Long Island’s promising light heavyweight Joe “The Irish Bomber” Smith Jr.

Omar Andres Narvaez WMD12 Felipe Orucuta 

2015: Jessica Chavez W10 Arely Mucino

Luis Concepcion RTD10 David Sanchez

Hekkie Budler W12 Simpiwe Konkco

Su Yun Hong TKO4 Kanittha Ninthim

2017: “The Raging Bull” Jake LaMotta Passes - Age:95