Chuck Wepner

Chuck Wepner, famously known as "The Bayonne Bleeder," had an illustrious professional boxing career that spanned over 14 years. Wepner's record includes 52 fights with 36 wins, 14 losses, 2 draws, and 0 no contests. Out of his 36 wins, 17 were knockout wins. Despite having no total title wins or title defenses, Wepner was best known for his notable victories over Tommy Sheehan, Johnny Dolan, Johnny Evans, Tom Healy, Johnny Blaine, Randy Neumann, and Charley Polite.

Wepner made his professional boxing debut against George Cooper on August 5th, 1964. The fight ended in a 3rd round knockout victory for Wepner, making a statement in his first professional fight.

It was not until his 42nd professional fight that Wepner had his first world title fight against the legendary Muhammad Ali on March 24th, 1975, at the age of 36. The fight was for the WBA and WBC titles, making it a monumental milestone for Wepner. However, Wepner lost to Ali via 15th round TKO, marking the end to his dreams of capturing the world title.

One of the most significant aspects of Wepner's career was his ability to keep pushing despite suffering losses. Wepner had a total of 14 losses in his professional boxing career, with 13 being non-title bouts and one in a title bout. He suffered his first loss against Bob Stallings via 6 round split-decision on October 19th, 1965. He has been stopped nine times and lost five times via decision.

Wepner retired from professional boxing with a record of 36-14-2, which included 17 knockout wins and nine losses via knockout. Despite not winning any world titles, Wepner's remarkable ability to bounce back from losses and his notable victories in the ring mark him as one of the greatest boxers of his time and contributed to his legend status.

Outside of the ring, Wepner's life story provided great inspiration for the 1976 film Rocky. Wepner's fight against Muhammad Ali inspired Sylvester Stallone to write the movie Rocky, featuring a similar storyline. Although the movie was not a direct account of Wepner's life, it was widely believed to be based on Wepner's fight against Ali.

Ultimately, Chuck Wepner's professional boxing career may have been characterized by losses, but his resilient nature and remarkable victories are what make him a legend to this day. His contributions to the world of professional boxing will not be forgotten, as his legacy lives on through his impact on the iconic film franchise Rocky and his enduring reputation as one of boxing's greats.

Chuck Wepner Fight Record