Nino Benvenuti

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Giovanni "Nino" Benvenuti (26 April 1938 – 20 May 2025) was an Italian professional boxer and actor. He held world titles in two weight classes, having held the undisputed super-welterweight championship from June 1965 to June 1966 and the undisputed middleweight championship twice, from April to September 1967, and from March 1968 to November 1970. As an amateur welterweight boxer he won the Italian title in 1956–60, the European title in 1957 and 1959, and an Olympic gold medal in 1960, receiving the Val Barker trophy for boxing style. In 1961, having an amateur record of 120-0, he turned professional and won world titles in the light-middleweight division and twice in the middleweight division.<ref name=sr>Template:Cite Sports-Reference</ref> Near the end of his boxing career he appeared in two Italian films, Sundance and the Kid (1969) and then in Mark Shoots First (1975).<ref name="imdb">Template:Citation</ref>

Inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1992, Benvenuti is ranked No. 32 in BoxRec's ranking of the greatest pound for pound boxers of all time.<ref name=boxrec-ratings-world>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In 1968, he was voted Fighter of the Year by The Ring magazine. In 2011, The Ring magazine ranked him as seventh on their list of the "10 best middleweight title holders of the last 50 years."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Professional boxing career

Benvenuti talks to his father Fernando at the 1960 Olympics

On 20 January 1961, Benvenuti made his professional boxing debut, beating Ben Ali Allala by decision in six rounds. He then won 29 fights in a row before challenging for the Italian middleweight title, on 1 March 1963, in Rome against Tommaso Truppi. His winning streak extended to 30 when he knocked out Truppi in round eleven. His winning streak reached 46 wins in a row when he met former world junior middleweight champion Denny Moyer on 18 September 1964, beating Moyer on points in ten rounds.<ref name="conversation">Template:Cite news</ref>

After reaching 55 wins in a row, including a five-round knockout of Truppi in a rematch, he met world jr. middleweight champion Sandro Mazzinghi in Milan, on 18 June 1965. This was a fight the Italian public clamoured for: both men were Italian, both men claimed to be the best in their division, and they had expressed the desire to fight each other. Benvenuti became the world junior middleweight champion with a sixth-round knockout win.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It was common, in that era, for world champions to fight for regional belts after winning the world title, so on 15 October 1965, he added the European belt at the middleweight division, with a sixth-round knockout of Luis Folledo.<ref name="onthisday">Template:Cite news</ref>

A rematch with Mazzinghi took place on 17 December 1965, and Benvenuti retained the world junior middleweight crown after winning a fifteen-round decision. After three non-title wins, including a twelve-round decision over Don Fullmer and a fourteen-round knockout in West Germany of Jupp Elze (Benvenuti's first professional fight abroad), he travelled to South Korea, where he lost his world junior middleweight title to Ki-Soo Kim, who won by decision in fifteen rounds on 25 June 1966, breaking Benvenuti's record of 65 consecutive wins. Frustrated by what he perceived as an unjust decision to favour the local boxer, Benvenuti decided to drop the junior middleweight and concentrate on the middleweight division instead.<ref name="conversation"/>

Benvenuti beat Emile Griffith by decision in fifteen rounds at New York City's Madison Square Garden on 17 April 1967, in what was the beginning of their trilogy of fights, to win the world middleweight title.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> On a rematch at Shea Stadium on 29 September 1967, he lost by a decision in fifteen rounds.<ref name="onthisday"/>

On 4 March 1968, Benvenuti and Griffith completed their trilogy, once again at Madison Square Garden, with Benvenuti knocking Griffith down in round nine and winning a fifteen-round decision to regain the world middleweight title.<ref name="onthisday"/> On 14 December 1968, in San Remo, he and Fullmer met once again, and Benvenuti retained the world middleweight title with a fifteen-round decision. On 26 May 1969, Benvenuti lost a ten-round decision to former world light heavyweight champion Dick Tiger in a light heavyweight, non-title match. Benvenuti broke his right hand while landing a head punch in the first round,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> but chose to continue fighting "like a cripple" rather than quit.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

The most curious defence of Benvenuti's active reign, took place on 4 October 1969, when he retained the world middleweight title with a seven-round disqualification win over American Fraser Scott at the Stadio S. Paolo in Naples. From the first round, Scott was warned repeatedly, and with increasing intensity from the referee, about attempted butting. Scott, a young fighter unschooled in the European insistence on what his trainer referred to as "that...Olympic stand-up style", knowing only the battle plan he went in with and speaking no Italian, did not understand the warnings at first, then was unable to alter his approach; to the American, he was merely "ducking" Benvenuti's shots. The bout was foul-filled even without this added controversy; Scott would later accuse Benvenuti of having tried to thumb him, and during the sixth round, the fighters' legs became entangled as they wrestled, causing both to crash to the canvas. Round seven saw the stoppage, the referee asserting "attempted butting", Fraser Scott and corner forever insisting he had "ducked".<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

On 22 November 1969, Benvenuti beat former world welterweight champion Luis Rodriguez by knockout in 11 rounds and once again retained his world middleweight title.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

On 13 March 1970, in a non-title bout, Benvenuti was knocked out in the eighth round by unknown American Tom Bethea in Australia. The upset defeat caused Bethea to earn a world title shot at Benvenuti's title. Benvenuti avenged the defeat when the two met again in Umag with an eighth-round knockout.Template:Fact

On 7 November 1970, Benvenuti lost his title in Rome after being knocked out in round twelve by rising star Carlos Monzón.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In 1971, after losing a ten-round decision to José Chirino, a fighter he had picked due to his fighting style's similarities with Monzón, Benvenuti got a rematch with Monzón for the world middleweight title in Monte Carlo on 8 May 1971. Monzón won again in round three when Benvenuti's corner threw in the towel. Realizing that he no longer had the stamina to compete with champions of a new generation like Monzón, Benvenuti announced his retirement.

Benvenuti had a record of 82 wins, 7 losses and 1 draw (tie) in 90 professional boxing bouts, with 35 wins by knockout. In 1992, he was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.<ref name=sr/><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Post-boxing

After retiring from boxing Benvenuti became a successful businessman, TV pundit, and city counsellor for sport in Trieste. He opened a high-class restaurant<ref name="Grasso2013">Template:Cite book</ref> and maintained a strong friendship with his former rivals Monzón and Griffith. In 1980, Benvenuti asked Griffith to be the godfather of one of his sons and later helped him financially when Griffith was in trouble.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Monzón was a guest at Benvenuti's television show several times, and, when he was accused of murdering his wife in 1988, Benvenuti became one of his most loyal supporters, visiting him in jail in Argentina. Benvenuti was a pallbearer at Monzón's funeral in 1995.<ref name="conversation"/>

Retirement, personal life and death

Benvenuti with wife Giuliana Fonzari and two sons in the 1960s

Benvenuti was born in Isola d'Istria, at that time in Italy (now in Slovenia). After the war, his family fled to Italy due to the consequences of the war treaty and the hostilities created by the Yugoslav government.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In 1961, Benvenuti married Giuliana Fonzari; they had four sons and adopted a Tunisian girl. They later divorced, and Benvenuti married Nadia Bertorello, with whom he had one daughter.<ref name=gazzetta>Benvenuti a questo mondo. gazzetta.it (8 September 1999)</ref>

Benvenuti died on 20 May 2025, at the age of 87.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Professional boxing record

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Template:Abbr Result Record Opponent Type Round, time Date Location Notes
90 Template:No2Loss Template:Nowrap Carlos Monzón TKO 3 (15), Template:Small 8 May 1971 Template:Small Template:Small
89 Template:No2Loss 82–6–1 José Chirino MD 10 17 Mar 1971 Template:Small
88 Template:No2Loss 82–5–1 Carlos Monzón TKO 12 (15), Template:Small 7 Nov 1970 Template:Small Template:Small
87 Template:Yes2Win 82–4–1 Doyle Baird TKO 10 (10), Template:Small 12 Sep 1970 Template:Small
86 Template:Yes2Win 81–4–1 Tom Bethea KO 8 (15), Template:Small 23 May 1970 Template:Small Template:Small
85 Template:No2Loss 80–4–1 Tom Bethea TKO 8 (10) 13 Mar 1970 Template:Small
84 Template:Yes2Win 80–3–1 Luis Manuel Rodríguez KO 11 (15), Template:Small 22 Nov 1969 Template:Small Template:Small
83 Template:Yes2Win 79–3–1 Fraser Scott DQ 7 (15), Template:Small 4 Oct 1969 Template:Small Template:Small
82 Template:No2Loss 78–3–1 Dick Tiger UD 10 26 May 1969 Template:Small
81 Template:Yes2Win 78–2–1 Don Fullmer UD 15 14 Dec 1968 Template:Small Template:Small
80 Template:DrawDraw 77–2–1 Doyle Baird PTS 10 14 Oct 1968 Template:Small
79 Template:Yes2Win 77–2 Art Hernandez UD 10 17 Sep 1968 Template:Small
78 Template:Yes2Win 76–2 Jimmy Ramos RTD 4 (10), Template:Small 5 Jul 1968 Template:Small
77 Template:Yes2Win 75–2 Yoshiaki Akasaka KO 2 (10) 7 Jun 1968 Template:Small
76 Template:Yes2Win 74–2 Emile Griffith UD 15 4 Mar 1968 Template:Small Template:Small
75 Template:Yes2Win 73–2 Charley Austin PTS 10 19 Jan 1968 Template:Small
74 Template:No2Loss 72–2 Emile Griffith MD 15 29 Sep 1967 Template:Small Template:Small
73 Template:Yes2Win 72–1 Emile Griffith UD 15 17 Apr 1967 Template:Small Template:Small
72 Template:Yes2Win 71–1 Milo Calhoun PTS 10 3 Mar 1967 Template:Small
71 Template:Yes2Win 70–1 Manfred Graus KO 2 (10), Template:Small 19 Jan 1967 Template:Small
70 Template:Yes2Win 69–1 Renato Moraes KO 9 (10) 23 Dec 1966 Template:Small
69 Template:Yes2Win 68–1 Ferd Hernandez PTS 10 2 Dec 1966 Template:Small
68 Template:Yes2Win 67–1 Pascal Di Benedetto RTD 11 (15) 21 Oct 1966 Template:Small Template:Small
67 Template:Yes2Win 66–1 Harry Scott PTS 10 23 Sep 1966 Template:Small
66 Template:No2Loss 65–1 Kim Ki-Soo SD 15 25 Jun 1966 Template:Small Template:Small
65 Template:Yes2Win 65–0 Jupp Elze TKO 14 (15), Template:Small 14 May 1966 Template:Small Template:Small
64 Template:Yes2Win 64–0 Clarence James PTS 10 11 Mar 1966 Template:Small
63 Template:Yes2Win 63–0 Don Fullmer UD 12 4 Feb 1966 Template:Small
62 Template:Yes2Win 62–0 Sandro Mazzinghi UD 15 17 Dec 1965 Template:Small Template:Small
61 Template:Yes2Win 61–0 James Shelton PTS 10 15 Nov 1965 Template:Small
60 Template:Yes2Win 60–0 Johnny Torres DQ 7 (10) 5 Nov 1965 Template:Small
59 Template:Yes2Win 59–0 Luis Folledo KO 6 (15) 15 Oct 1965 Template:Small Template:Small
58 Template:Yes2Win 58–0 Daniel Leullier TKO 7 (10) 16 Aug 1965 Template:Small
57 Template:Yes2Win 57–0 Sandro Mazzinghi KO 6 (15), Template:Small 18 Jun 1965 Template:Small Template:Small
56 Template:Yes2Win 56–0 Milo Calhoun PTS 10 30 Apr 1965 Template:Small
55 Template:Yes2Win 55–0 Rip Randall PTS 10 2 Apr 1965 Template:Small
54 Template:Yes2Win 54–0 Dick Knight KO 6 (10) 19 Mar 1965 Template:Small
53 Template:Yes2Win 53–0 Mick Leahy PTS 10 27 Feb 1965 Template:Small
52 Template:Yes2Win 52–0 Tommaso Truppi RTD 5 (12) 12 Feb 1965 Template:Small Template:Small
51 Template:Yes2Win 51–0 Art Hernandez TKO 3 (10), Template:Small 22 Jan 1965 Template:Small
50 Template:Yes2Win 50–0 Juan Carlos Durán PTS 10 19 Dec 1964 Template:Small
49 Template:Yes2Win 49–0 Aristeo Chavarin KO 4 (10) 27 Nov 1964 Template:Small
48 Template:Yes2Win 48–0 Abrao De Souza DQ 7 (10) 9 Oct 1964 Template:Small
47 Template:Yes2Win 47–0 Denny Moyer PTS 10 18 Sep 1964 Template:Small
46 Template:Yes2Win 46–0 Fabio Bettini PTS 12 30 Jul 1964 Template:Small Template:Small
45 Template:Yes2Win 45–0 Jimmy Beecham TKO 2 (10) 28 May 1964 Template:Small
44 Template:Yes2Win 44–0 Sugar Boy Nando PTS 10 10 Apr 1964 Template:Small
43 Template:Yes2Win 43–0 Michel Diouf PTS 10 18 Mar 1964 Template:Small
42 Template:Yes2Win 42–0 Memo Ayon KO 5 (10), Template:Small 28 Feb 1964 Template:Small
41 Template:Yes2Win 41–0 Ted Wright PTS 10 13 Dec 1963 Template:Small
40 Template:Yes2Win 40–0 Luis Gutierrez TKO 7 (10) 15 Nov 1963 Template:Small
39 Template:Yes2Win 39–0 Jackie Cailleau PTS 10 7 Nov 1963 Template:Small
38 Template:Yes2Win 38–0 Gaspar Ortega PTS 10 18 Oct 1963 Template:Small
37 Template:Yes2Win 37–0 Víctor Zalazar TKO 2 (10) 27 Sep 1963 Template:Small
36 Template:Yes2Win 36–0 Wilhelm Niederau TKO 6 (10) 16 Sep 1963 Template:Small
35 Template:Yes2Win 35–0 Francesco Fiori TKO 3 (12) 31 Aug 1963 Template:Small Template:Small
34 Template:Yes2Win 34–0 Tony Montano PTS 10 7 Jun 1963 Template:Small
33 Template:Yes2Win 33–0 Jimmy Beecham PTS 10 23 May 1963 Template:Small
32 Template:Yes2Win 32–0 Jean Ruellet PTS 10 24 Apr 1963 Template:Small
31 Template:Yes2Win 31–0 Georges Estatoff KO 6 (10), Template:Small 5 Apr 1963 Template:Small
30 Template:Yes2Win 30–0 Tommaso Truppi KO 11 (12) 1 Mar 1963 Template:Small Template:Small
29 Template:Yes2Win 29–0 Giampaolo Melis KO 2 (10) 26 Dec 1962 Template:Small
28 Template:Yes2Win 28–0 Isaac Logart PTS 10 30 Nov 1962 Template:Small
27 Template:Yes2Win 27–0 Daniel Leullier PTS 10 18 Oct 1962 Template:Small
26 Template:Yes2Win 26–0 Diego Infantes PTS 8 28 Sep 1962 Template:Small
25 Template:Yes2Win 25–0 Giuseppe Gentiletti KO 2 (10) 30 Aug 1962 Template:Small
24 Template:Yes2Win 24–0 Mahmout le Noir PTS 8 2 Aug 1962 Template:Small
23 Template:Yes2Win 23–0 Gino Rossi PTS 10 12 Jul 1962 Template:Small
22 Template:Yes2Win 22–0 Heinz Freytag PTS 8 22 Jun 1962 Template:Small
21 Template:Yes2Win 21–0 Jean Ruellet PTS 8 2 Jun 1962 Template:Small
20 Template:Yes2Win 20–0 Hector Constance PTS 10 1 May 1962 Template:Small
19 Template:Yes2Win 19–0 Jim Hegerle KO 4 (11) 13 Apr 1962 Template:Small
18 Template:Yes2Win 18–0 Gianni Lommi KO 5 (10) 17 Mar 1962 Template:Small
17 Template:Yes2Win 17–0 Manfred Haas PTS 8 8 Mar 1962 Template:Small
16 Template:Yes2Win 16–0 José Riquelme PTS 8 19 Feb 1962 Template:Small
15 Template:Yes2Win 15–0 George Aldridge KO 6 (10) 19 Jan 1962 Template:Small
14 Template:Yes2Win 14–0 Giuseppe Catalano PTS 8 20 Dec 1961 Template:Small
13 Template:Yes2Win 13–0 Jesse Jones DQ 6 (8) 9 Nov 1961 Template:Small
12 Template:Yes2Win 12–0 Angelo Brisci KO 1 (8) 1 Nov 1961 Template:Small
11 Template:Yes2Win 11–0 Retmia Mahrez TKO 3 (8) 2 Oct 1961 Template:Small
10 Template:Yes2Win 10–0 Marc Desforneaux PTS 6 17 Jun 1961 Template:Small
9 Template:Yes2Win 9–0 Henri Cabelduc PTS 6 7 Jun 1961 Template:Small
8 Template:Yes2Win 8–0 Michel Francois KO 4 (8) 16 May 1961 Template:Small
7 Template:Yes2Win 7–0 Daniel Brunet DQ 3 (8) 3 May 1961 Template:Small
6 Template:Yes2Win 6–0 Pierre Mondino PTS 6 21 Apr 1961 Template:Small
5 Template:Yes2Win 5–0 Nic Maric PTS 6 7 Apr 1961 Template:Small
4 Template:Yes2Win 4–0 Sahib Mosri KO 3 (6) 14 Mar 1961 Template:Small
3 Template:Yes2Win 3–0 Ben Ali Allala KO 1 (6) 27 Feb 1961 Template:Small
2 Template:Yes2Win 2–0 Nicola Sammartino KO 3 (6) 10 Feb 1961 Template:Small
1 Template:Yes2Win 1–0 Ben Ali Allala PTS 6 20 Jan 1961 Template:Small

Titles in boxing

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Major world titles

The Ring magazine titles

Regional/International titles

Undisputed titles

Awards

On 7 May 2015, in the presence of the President of Italian National Olympic Committee (CONI), Giovanni Malagò, he was inaugurated in the Olympic Park of the Foro Italico in Rome, along Viale delle Olimpiadi, the Walk of Fame of Italian sport, consisting of 100 tiles that chronologically report names of the most representative athletes in the history of Italian sport. On each tile is the name of the sportsman, the sport in which he distinguished himself and the symbol of CONI. One of the tiles is dedicated to Nino Benvenuti.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

See also

References

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Bibliography

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