1. Ray Mancini held the WBA lightweight title from 1982 to 1984.
27 Facts About Ray Mancini
1. 2.
In 2015, Ray Mancini was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.
3.
Ray Mancini's father, Lenny Ray Mancini, was a top-ranked contender during the 1940s.
4.
Lenny Ray Mancini's dream was dashed when he was wounded during World War II.
5.
Ray Mancini was a childhood friend and neighbor to future Oklahoma Sooners football head coach Bob Stoops.
6.
Lenny inspired Ray Mancini to develop his boxing skills and encouraged him to train at a gym when he was quite young.
7.
On October 18,1979, Ray Mancini made his professional debut and defeated Phil Bowen with a first-round knockout.
8.
Ray Mancini's whirlwind punching style caught the attention of network executives at several American television networks, and he became a regular on their sports programming.
9.
Over a year later on May 16,1981, Ray Mancini won his first major title by defeating Jorge Morales for the WBC-affiliated NABF Lightweight championship when the referee determined that Morales could not continue after the 9th round.
10.
Ray Mancini gave Arguello trouble early and built a lead on the scorecards, but Arguello used his experience to his advantage in the later rounds and stopped Ray Mancini in the 14th round.
11.
Ray Mancini recovered and dropped Frias right in the center of the ring with a combination.
12.
Dazed, Frias got backed up, and Ray Mancini immediately went on the offensive and trapped Frias against the ropes.
13.
On November 13,1982, a 21-year-old Ray Mancini met 27-year-old South Korean challenger Duk Koo Kim.
14.
Ray Mancini went to the funeral in South Korea and fell into a deep depression afterwards.
15.
Ray Mancini has said that the hardest moments came when people approached him and asked if he was the boxer who "killed" Duk Koo Kim.
16.
Ray Mancini went through a period of reflection and blamed himself for Kim's death.
17.
Ray Mancini began the process of getting his life back together by putting on boxing gloves.
18.
Ray Mancini went to Italy to face British champion George Feeney, where he won a 10-round decision.
19.
In June 1984, Ray Mancini, still recovering from the emotional trauma of Kim's death, fought Livingstone Bramble to defend his title in Buffalo, New York.
20.
Ray Mancini lost the title, but not before a fierce effort that resulted in an overnight stay at Millard Fillmore Hospital and 71 stitches around one eye.
21.
Ray Mancini returned to the ring twice to attempt to regain his world title.
22.
Ray Mancini lost when referee Mills Lane stopped the fight in the seventh round.
23.
Ray Mancini appeared in the quirky 1994 comedy The Search for One-eye Jimmy, in David Mamet's MMA film Redbelt, and in the 2000 remake Body and Soul.
24.
Ray Mancini played Charlie, Frank's retired father, in Bad Frank.
25.
Ray Mancini produced Youngstown: Still Standing in 2010, which premiered at the 34th Cleveland International Film Festival on March 24.
26.
Mancini has a son named Ray who appeared in the YouTube reality series SummerBreak, in which Manicini had a guest role.
27.
Ray Mancini became a fight analyst for the Fox reality series Celebrity Boxing.