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Chuck Wepner
United States Marine and professional boxer

Chuck Wepner

The basics

Quick Facts

Intro
United States Marine and professional boxer
Work field
Gender
Male
Place of birth
New York City, New York, U.S.A.
Age
85 years
The details (from wikipedia)

Biography

Charles "Chuck" Wepner (born February 26, 1939) is an American former professional boxer who fought at heavyweight. As a world ranked contender he fell just seconds short of a full fifteen rounds with world heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali in a 1975 title fight. Wepner also scored notable wins over Randy Neumann and Ernie Terrell.

Early life

Charles Wepner was born February 26, 1939 in New York City, New York, the son of Dolores (Hrynko) and Charles William Wepner. He is of German, Ukrainian, and Belorussian descent.

Wepner learned to fight on the streets of Bayonne, New Jersey, saying, "This was a tough town with a lot of people from the docks and the naval base and you had to fight to survive". Wepner was about a year old when he moved in with his grandmother on 28th Street near Hudson Avenue (now Kennedy Boulevard). He was raised by his mother and grandparents, living in a room that was a converted coal shed until he was 13. He was always an avid player of sports in his youth, playing basketball for the Police Athletic League when he was very young. With limited options for his future that included working as a longshoreman on the waterfront or joining the military, Wepner opted for the latter, joining the U.S. Marines, where he became a member of the boxing team, developing a reputation for being able to withstand other boxers' punches, and becoming a military champion at one of the airbases.

Career

Wepner turned professional in 1964 and became a popular fighter on the Northeast's Club Boxing circuit, fighting throughout the county, including arenas close to his boyhood home such as North Bergen and Secaucus. Nicknamed "The Bayonne Bleeder," he began posting many wins and some losses. He had formerly boxed while a member of the United States Marine Corps, and had worked as a bouncer before turning pro. He was the New Jersey State Heavyweight Boxing Champion and popular fighter in the Northeast's Club Boxing circuit. But after losing fights to George Foreman (by knockout in three) and Sonny Liston (by knockout in ten) many boxing fans thought that his days as a contender were numbered. After the fight with Liston, Wepner needed 72 stitches in his face.

However, after losing to Joe Bugner by a knockout in three in England, Wepner won nine of his next eleven fights, including victories over Charlie Polite and former WBA Heavyweight champion Ernie Terrell.

Muhammad Ali fight

In 1975, it was announced Wepner would challenge Muhammad Ali for the world's Heavyweight title.

According to the Cleveland Plain Dealer (February 9, 1975, Page 4-C), Carl Lombardo put up $1.3 million for the Wepner-Ali heavyweight title bout. According to a Time magazine article, "In Stitches", Ali was guaranteed $1.5 million and Wepner signed for $100,000. This was considerably more than Wepner had ever earned and he therefore did not need any coaxing. Wepner spent eight weeks near the Catskill Mountains under the guidance of Al Braverman (trainer and noted cutman) and Bill Prezant (manager). Prezant prophesied that the fight would be a big surprise. This bout was the first time Wepner had been able to train full-time. The fight was held on March 24 at the Richfield Coliseum in Richfield, Ohio south of Cleveland. Before the fight, a reporter asked Wepner if he thought he could survive in the ring with the champion, to which Wepner allegedly answered, "I've been a survivor my whole life...if I survived the Marines, I can survive Ali."

In the ninth round Wepner scored a knockdown, which Ali claimed had occurred because Wepner was stepping on his foot. Wepner went to his corner and said to his manager, "Al, start the car. We're going to the bank. We are millionaires." To which Wepner's manager replied, "You better turn around. He's getting up and he looks pissed off."

In the remaining rounds, Ali decisively outboxed Wepner and opened up cuts above both Wepner's eyes and broke his nose. Wepner was far behind on the scorecards when Ali knocked him down with 19 seconds left in the 15th round. The referee counted to seven before calling a technical knockout.

Late career

In 1976, Wepner fought professional wrestler André the Giant and lost by countout after Andre threw him out of the ring.

Wepner's last fight was on May 2, 1978 for the New Jersey State Heavyweight Championship against a new rising prospect, Scott Frank, noted for a useful heavy left hook. Wepner lost the fight in a 12-round decision, but again proved durable, Ring magazine noted. He announced his retirement after the fight.

Later life

Wepner works today with his second wife Linda in the liquor store management field for Majestic Wines and Spirits in Carlstadt, New Jersey, and is an expert in consumer liquors, wines and spirits.

A film about Wepner's career was released in 2012, and ESPN aired a documentary titled The Real Rocky on October 25, 2011. The ESPN film features a clip of Wepner's ninth round knockdown of Muhammad Ali in their 1975 world heavyweight title bout.

Ring appearances

Wepner occasionally makes ringside appearances at boxing cards in his home state of New Jersey, signing autographs and posing for photos with boxing fans. On October 12, 2012, Wepner appeared ringside with former World Light Heavyweight champion Mike Rossman in Atlantic City, New Jersey at a Tropicana Casino & Resort Atlantic City fight card featuring a WBA NABA Lightweight title bout in the main event. Wepner held the WBA NABA heavyweight title during his boxing career.

In media and popular culture

  • Sylvester Stallone watched Wepner's fight against Ali and shortly afterwards wrote the script for Rocky, but Stallone subsequently denied that Wepner provided any inspiration for the movie. Wepner filed a lawsuit which was eventually settled with Stallone for an undisclosed amount. It is speculated that the 1982 film Rocky III was influenced by his fight against Andre the Giant, as the movie features a match versus wrestler Hulk Hogan as "Thunderlips", who throws Rocky out of the ring.
  • Liev Schreiber played the role of Wepner in a sports film, Chuck.
  • Zach McGowan is playing the role of Wepner is another sports film, American Brawler.

    Professional boxing record

    35 Wins (17 knockouts), 14 Losses, 2 Draws
    ResultRecordOpponentTypeRoundDateLocationNotes
    Loss35-14-2United States Scott FrankPTS1226/09/1978United States Ice World, Totowa, New Jersey, United StatesReferee: Jersey Joe Walcott. Lost USA New Jersey State Heavyweight title.
    Win35-13-2United States Tom HealyKO502/06/1978United States Old Armory, Jersey City, New Jersey, United States
    Win34-13-2United States Johnny BlaineKO307/04/1978United States Embassy Hall, North Bergen, New Jersey, United States
    Loss33-13-2Canada Horst GeislerTKO1020/05/1977United States Broome County Arena, Binghamton, New York, United StatesWepner down in the 10th round.
    Loss33-12-2South Africa Mike SchuttePTS1019/02/1977South Africa Wembley Stadium, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa
    Loss33-11-2United States Duane BobickTKO602/10/1976United States Utica College Sports Complex, Utica, New York, United StatesBout was stopped on cuts.
    Win33-10-2United States Tommy SheehanTKO206/05/1976United States Kearny, New Jersey, United States
    Win32-10-2United States Johnny DolanKO319/11/1975United States Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States
    Win31-10-2United States Johnny EvansTKO419/11/1975United States Portland, Maine, United States
    Loss30-10-2United States Muhammad AliTKO1524/03/1975United States Richfield Coliseum, Richfield, Ohio, United StatesFor WBC & WBA Heavyweight titles. Ali down in the 9th round after Wepner "knocked him down" by stepping on Ali's foot, Wepner almost went the distance and was TKOed with 19 sec. left in the 15th and final round. This fight was allegedly the inspiration for Rocky.
    Win30-9-2United States Terry HinkeTKO1103/09/1974United States Salt Palace, Salt Lake City, Utah, United StatesPromoter Dick Sadler billed this for the American Heavyweight title. Wepner was penalized 4 points for assorted fouls. Hinke ruled down 3 times in 11th.
    Win29-9-2United States Charley PoliteKO423/05/1974United States Embassy Hall, North Bergen, New Jersey, United States
    Win28-9-2United States Randy NeumannTKO608/03/1974United States Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United StatesRetained USA New Jersey State Heavyweight title. Neumann suffered a severe gash from a clash of heads.
    Win27-9-2United States Billy WilliamsPTS1017/01/1974United States Embassy Hall, North Bergen, New Jersey, United States
    Win26-9-2United States Ernie TerrellPTS1223/06/1973United States Convention Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United StatesWon vacant National Americas heavyweight title.
    Win25-9-2United States Billy MarquartPTS1215/03/1973United States Embassy Hall, North Bergen, New Jersey, United StatesRetained USA New Jersey State Heavyweight title.
    Win24-9-2United States John ClohessyPTS1007/12/1972United States Bayonne, New Jersey, United States
    Win23-9-2United States Randy NeumannPTS1215/04/1972United States Jersey City, New Jersey, United StatesWon USA New Jersey State Heavyweight title.
    Loss22-9-2United States Randy NeumannPTS1209/12/1971United States Embassy Hall, North Bergen, New Jersey, United StatesLost USA New Jersey State Heavyweight title.
    Win22-8-2United States Mike BoswellTKO1014/10/1971United States Embassy Hall, North Bergen, New Jersey, United States
    Win21-8-2United States Jesse CrownKO416/09/1971United States Embassy Hall, North Bergen, New Jersey, United States
    Loss20-8-2United States Jerry JudgeTKO506/01/1971United States Catholic Youth Center, Scranton, Pennsylvania, United States
    Loss20-7-2United Kingdom Joe BugnerRTD308/09/1970United Kingdom Empire Pool, Wembley, London, England, United KingdomCut eye stoppage.
    Loss20-6-2United States Sonny ListonRTD929/06/1970United States Armory, Jersey City, New Jersey, United StatesWepner down by body blow in the 5th round. Fight stopped by ring doctor after round 9 because of multiple cuts on Wepner's face.
    Win20-5-2Mexico Manuel RamosUD1026/01/1970United States Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States
    Win19-5-2Puerto Rico Pedro AgostoPTS1019/12/1969United States Felt Forum, New York, New York, United States
    Loss18-5-2United States George ForemanTKO318/08/1969United States Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United StatesWepner's eye opened up slightly in the 1st round, and was bad enough by the beginning of the 3rd to give Foreman a TKO.
    Loss18-4-2United States Jose RomanPTS1022/06/1969Puerto Rico Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, Puerto Rico
    Win18-3-2United States Mike BrucePTS828/04/1969United States Secaucus, New Jersey, United States
    Win17-3-2Peru Roberto DavilaMD1014/03/1969United States Felt Forum, New York, New York, United StatesScoring: 5–4, 5–5, 6–4
    Win16-3-2United States Jerry TomasettiTKO113/12/1968United States Felt Forum, New York, New York, United States
    Win15-3-2United States Mert BrownfieldPTS1009/11/1968United States Scranton, Pennsylvania, United States
    Win14-3-2United States Forest WardTKO728/09/1968United States Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United StatesWard was down three times in the 7th round, triggering an automatic stoppage.
    Win13-3-2United States Mike BrucePTS820/05/1968United States Plaza Arena, Secaucus, New Jersey, United States
    Win12-3-2United States Eddie VickSD1030/04/1968United States Walpole, Massachusetts, United States
    Win11-3-2United States Clay ThomasTKO322/01/1968United States Secaucus, New Jersey, United States
    Win10-3-2United States Charlie HarrisTKO627/11/1967United States Secaucus, New Jersey, United States
    Loss9-3-2United States Jerry TomasettiTKO519/07/1967United States Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States
    Win9-2-2United States Don McAteerTKO528/04/1967United States Armory, Jersey City, New Jersey, United StatesWon vacant USA New Jersey State heavyweight title. McAteer was a last minute sub.
    Win8-2-2United States Dave CentiPTS621/10/1966United States Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States
    Win7-2-2United States Johnny DeutschKO603/08/1966United States Scranton, Pennsylvania, United States
    Win6-2-2United States Cleo DanielsPTS606/04/1966United States Westchester County Center, White Plains, New York, United States
    Win5-2-2United States Jerry TomasettiPTS622/02/1966United States Sunnyside Gardens, Sunnyside, Queens, New York, United States
    Loss4-2-2United States Buster MathisTKO317/01/1966United States Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United StatesWepner was knocked down in the 1st.
    Loss4-1-2United States Bob StallingsPTS619/10/1965United States Sunnyside Gardens, Sunnyside, Queens, New York, United States
    Draw4-0-2United States Everett CopelandPTS623/03/1965United States Sunnyside Gardens, Sunnyside, Queens, New York, United States
    Win4-0-1United States Ray PattersonSD619/01/1965United States Sunnyside Gardens, Sunnyside, Queens, New York, United StatesPatterson was knocked down in the 2nd.
    Win3-0-1United States Jerry TomasettiPTS418/12/1964United States Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States
    Draw2-0-1United States Everett CopelandPTS627/10/1964United States Sunnyside Gardens, Sunnyside, Queens, New York, United States
    Win2–0United States Rudy PavesiPTS414/08/1964United States Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States
    Win1–0George CooperKO305/08/1964United States City Stadium, Bayonne, New Jersey, United States
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