1. Petey Scalzo was an American boxer from Hell's Kitchen, New York.
28 Facts About Petey Scalzo
1. 2.
Petey Scalzo was declared the National Boxing Association Featherweight Championship of the World on May 1,1940, two weeks prior to winning a sixth-round technical knockout over Frankie Covelli on May 15,1940.
3.
Petey Scalzo's manager was the hard working Pete Reilly who found monthly bouts for Petey Scalzo as he began to rise in the boxing ranks.
4.
On December 5,1938, Petey Scalzo defeated the reigning New York State Athletic Commission's world featherweight champion Joey Archibald in a second-round knockout at Royal Windsor Arena in New York.
5.
On December 1,1939, Petey Scalzo defeated Allie Stoltz in a fourth-round knockout at New York's Madison Square Garden.
6.
On May 15,1940, Petey Scalzo defeated Frankie Covelli for the National Boxing Association World featherweight title at Washington DC's Griffith Stadium in a decisive sixth-round TKO.
7.
Petey Scalzo had previously been declared world featherweight champion by the NBA on May 1,1940.
8.
Petey Scalzo first dropped Covelli to the mat in the fifth with a left hook during close infighting that required Covelli to take a count of nine before he could rise to resume the bout.
9.
Petey Scalzo followed his victory over Covelli with a decisive eight round points decision over Mike Belloise before a roaring crowd of 900 at Starlight Park in the Bronx on June 3,1940.
10.
On July 10,1940, in one of his few defenses of the world featherweight title, Petey Scalzo defeated Bobby "Poison" Ivy in a fifteen-round TKO in Hartford, Connecticut.
11.
Petey Scalzo showed superiority in both long range boxing and infighting, though in the twelfth, Ivy staged a comeback which brought the Connecticut crowd of 5,000 to their feet.
12.
On July 15,1940, Petey Scalzo defeated Maxie Fisher before a crowd of around 5600 in a ten-round points decision at Meadowbrook Bowl in Newark, New Jersey.
13.
Petey Scalzo was five years younger and had boxed professionally six fewer years.
14.
Petey Scalzo's youthfulness allowed him to step up the contest in the final five rounds.
15.
Perrin, who fought defensively throughout the bout, was "completely outclassed" by the hard punching Petey Scalzo, and took only the ninth round.
16.
Petey Scalzo was down in both the sixth and seventh rounds.
17.
Petey Scalzo fought Phil Zwick for the National Boxing Association World featherweight title on May 19,1941, in a Milwaukee, Wisconsin bout that was eventually declared a draw after it was discovered referee Barney Ross had changed his initial scoring from a draw to a Petey Scalzo win.
18.
On July 1,1941 Petey Scalzo lost the NBA world featherweight title before a near capacity crowd of 9,500 to Richie Lemos in a fifth-round knockout of a 12-round bout at the Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles.
19.
Petey Scalzo claimed that he had been somewhat weak during practice the weeks before, having trouble making weight.
20.
Petey Scalzo was briefly down in the first for a no count from a left by Lemos, who appeared to take the first two rounds.
21.
The third and fourth appeared to belong to Petey Scalzo who landed effective uppercuts and crossing rights to Lemos, who rarely countered.
22.
When Petey Scalzo tried to retreat, Lemos tagged him with another scorching left that put his crumpled opponent on the mat for a nine count.
23.
Petey Scalzo struggled to rise without success, and the referee called the bout.
24.
Petey Scalzo's last publicized fight was against reigning NYSAC and Pennsylvania lightweight champion Bob Montgomery on October 25,1943 at Convention Hall in Philadelphia.
25.
Fifty-three seconds into the sixth the referee stopped the fight, and though Petey Scalzo was on his feet, he seemed helpless against the blows of Montgomery.
26.
Petey Scalzo gave speaking performances that showcased his unique style of humor, eventually graduating to perform on TV's Ed Sullivan show in a skit he perfected with the great ring announcer Johnnie Addie.
27.
Petey Scalzo appeared in the 1963 film The Doctor and the Playgirl, filmed in New York with boxing champions Rocky Graziano, Jake LaMotta, and Barney Ross, a childhood idol who refereed his 1941 fight with Phil Zwick.
28.
Petey Scalzo spent several years in a Veteran's Hospital, suffering from Alzheimers prior to his death.