L'articolo descrive la vita del pugile Rocky Marciano. Italo-americano, Marciano ha avuto una carriera da pugile di grande successo. Era uno dei pugili più famosi nello sport. L'articolo descrive un incontro in cui ha combattuto contro Ezzard Charles e ha vinto per KO, nonostante abbia perso in molte partite, ha vinto molte volte. Era il pugile negli anni 1952, 1954 e 1955. È nell'albo d'oro della boxe. Nel 2012, la Brockton High School gli ha eretto una statua in suo onore. Una fedele riproduzione della  statua si trova nel borgo di Ripa Teatina in Abruzzo dedicata a Marciano perché da lì proveniva il padre. 

Rocky Marciano’s greatest attribute was his incredible determination to succeed and that hallmark characteristic was based in his core beliefs of his abilities in the ring. He knew he could not be defeated, and this insatiable will-to-win distinguishes him as the great champion he is. 

Marciano’s mother, Pasqualina, imparted the Catholic faith to Marciano, his two brothers and three sisters early in their lives. Pasqualina repeatedly reinforced the importance of regularly attending mass, praying the rosary, and trusting in God in tough times. His family still believes that his Catholic faith strengthened his determination. 

Mike Silver, eminent boxing historian, wrote: “The key to Marciano’s success is that he never gave up. Rocky never threw in the towel. He had the physical and mental attributes of a great fighter: tremendous heart, tremendous durability, knockout power and the belief that he could not be defeated…” “His volume of punches per round is among the highest of any heavyweight champion. No heavyweight could keep up with the incessant pressure and was either knocked down or worn out by this almost superhuman specimen. A fighter who has the one-punch knockout power to end the fight at any time is very, very dangerous.” 

Boxing historian Bert Sugar described Marciano’s right hand punch, his “Suzie Q,” as “The most devastating weapon ever brought into the ring.” New York Times columnist Arthur Daley exalted Marciano’s power as a “perpetual motion punching machine.”

Dan Cuoco of the International Boxing Research Organization said, “What Rocky Marciano gave up in height and reach he more than made up with one-punch knockout power, extraordinary strength and stamina, an insatiable will-to-win, mental toughness and plenty of guts…”

Steve Corbo, a well-known boxing announcer, added this about Marciano, “Watching old films, it seems he didn’t care how rough things got. He just seemed to know he was going to win. Knock down, cut-off nose, split open eye. It didn’t matter because he’d get up and keep coming like a freight train until he rolled over his opponent.”

When asked his opinion of Marciano after being knocked out in the ninth round by him, opponent Archie Moore said, “I was impressed by his determination to win.”

Floyd Patterson, Marciano’s successor as heavyweight champion, emphasized: “He was the most determined heavyweight I have ever seen in my life. That man got in the ring, and there was no way he was going to lose. Determination is based in the mind. How far can you go? What is your limit? With Marciano, there was no limit.”

Marciano’s incredible determination-in-action was best showcased against Joe Wolcott. Behind on the judges’ scoring cards, he dramatically delivered the greatest knockout of all-time and won the heavyweight title.

Later, in his second match against Ezzard Charles, Marciano’s determination was on display again as he was in serious danger of losing the heavyweight championship, suffering from a badly split and bleeding nose that almost stopped the contest. Marciano responded with another clutch performance and win for the ages.

“Once his nose was cut, the ring doctor was going to stop the fight, but my father and his corner convinced him to give my father another round – he knocked out Ezzard Charles in the eighth round,” explained Rocky Marciano, Jr. 

A spectacular finish was not an uncommon thing for Marciano. It was almost magical as he summoned up his hallmark determination, which manifested itself into one of the most memorable, one-round clutch performances in the annals of boxing history, prevailing Maricano as the heavyweight champion again.

Marciano somehow acquired a reputation of being an underdog. However, his contemporaries expected him to win, and he always won with class, never boasting. 

Marciano was voted three times the Ring Magazine Fighter of the Year (1952, 1954 and 1955). In 1952, the same journal awarded his involvement in the Fight of the Year for three consecutive years. Most boxing experts place Marciano in their top 10, some even higher. In the Ring Magazine 2000 poll, Marciano was voted the ninth greatest fighter of the 20th century among all weight classes. Bert Sugar rated Marciano as the sixth best heavyweight boxer to ever fight.

Marciano is an inducted member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame, World Boxing Hall of Fame, and Italian American Sports Hall of Fame. Marciano won the Sugar Ray Robinson Award in 1952. In 2006, an ESPN poll voted Marciano’s 1952 championship match against Joe Walcott as the greatest knockout ever. Marciano also received the Ray Hickok Belt for the top professional athlete of the year in 1952.

A Boxing News author assessed the great, transcontinental effect of the Marciano boxing legacy saying, “Marciano’s brutal slugfests are still replayed to a savvy social media generation. Sports stadia and commemorative statues across the United States and in Italy are named after him. Annual boxing shows and sporting festivals are held in tribute to Marciano. Let’s not forget his toughness, persistence, and never-say-die combative spirit and triumph over adversity inspired Sylvester Stallone to pay homage to him in iconic Rocky films. His legend continues.”

In fact, the unveiling of a bronze statue of Rocky Marciano was held on September 23, 2012 on the grounds of Brockton High School, the 60th anniversary of Marciano’s winning of the world heavyweight title. Across the Atlantic Ocean, a bronze statue of Marciano was also erected in Ripa Teatina, Italy to celebrate the birthplace of Marciano’s father, Peirino Marciano.

Sullivan, a Marciano biographer, assessed Marciano’s boxing legacy saying: “In the final analysis, his contemporaries didn’t give Marciano his proper due as a great fighter. Their opinion of him as a fighter was the flip side of their opinion of him as a man. If they overrated him as a man by giving him a larger-than-life, too-good-to-be-true image, they underrated him as a fighter by constantly harping upon his flaws and failing to recognize his many great attributes in the ring. Rocky Marciano was, warts and all, a great heavyweight champion.”

Yes, contemporary boxing writers continue to undercut and shortchange Marciano, refusing to give him his rightful due as a top tier, great fighter. However, they constantly clamor about Marciano’s quiet class and humility.

In any sport, how do the experts determine the “greatest of all-time?” The straightforward answer is by the number of championships and official win-and-loss records in professional games and matches.

Given this logic, shouldn’t Marciano be named as boxing’s “GOAT?” Or, at the very least, the top three, of heavyweight boxers of all-time with an undefeated record of 49 and 0? It is time to set the record straight and give Marciano his proper due as one the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time. 

Marciano never lost, never disappointed, and his courageous legend as a mighty and great champion will live on forever. Bravo, Rocco, Italy’s favorite American son, beloved by all.