The Most Famous

BOXERS from Italy

This page contains a list of the greatest Italian Boxers. The pantheon dataset contains 496 Boxers, 17 of which were born in Italy. This makes Italy the birth place of the 5th most number of Boxers behind Cuba, and Russia.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Italian Boxers of all time. This list of famous Italian Boxers is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Italian Boxers.

1. Primo Carnera (1906 - 1967)

With an HPI of 59.50, Primo Carnera is the most famous Italian Boxer. His biography has been translated into 23 different languages on wikipedia.

Primo Carnera (Italian pronunciation: [ˈpriːmo karˈnɛːra]; 26 October 1906 – 29 June 1967), nicknamed the Ambling Alp, was an Italian professional boxer and wrestler who reigned as the boxing World Heavyweight Champion from 29 June 1933 to 14 June 1934. He won more fights by knockout than any other heavyweight champion (IBU, NBA, NYSAC) in boxing history.

2. Piero Toscani (1904 - 1940)

With an HPI of 48.67, Piero Toscani is the 2nd most famous Italian Boxer. His biography has been translated into 21 different languages.

Piero Toscani (28 July 1904 in Milan – 23 May 1940) was an Italian boxer who won the gold medal in the middleweight class at the 1928 Olympics, after defeating Jan Heřmánek in the final.

3. Fernando Atzori (1942 - 2020)

With an HPI of 48.01, Fernando Atzori is the 3rd most famous Italian Boxer. His biography has been translated into 19 different languages.

Fernando Atzori (1 June 1942 – 9 November 2020) was an Italian flyweight boxer who won a gold medal at the 1964 Olympics. In the final, he defeated Artur Olech of Poland, despite suffering an eye injury. After the Olympics, he turned professional and won the European title in 1967. Atzori defended it nine times before losing it in 1972. He then regained it and lost again in 1973. Atzori retired from the ring in 1975.

4. Aureliano Bolognesi (1930 - 2018)

With an HPI of 47.95, Aureliano Bolognesi is the 4th most famous Italian Boxer. His biography has been translated into 18 different languages.

Aureliano Bolognesi (15 November 1930 in Sestri Ponente, Italy – 30 March 2018 in Genoa) was an Italian boxer.

5. Carmelo Bossi (1939 - 2014)

With an HPI of 47.89, Carmelo Bossi is the 5th most famous Italian Boxer. His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Carmelo Bossi (15 October 1939 – 23 March 2014) was an Italian boxer who was the undisputed super welterweight champion of the world. Bossi boxed from 1961 to 1971 and his overall record was 40 wins (10 KOs), 8 defeats and 3 draws.

6. Sandro Lopopolo (1939 - 2014)

With an HPI of 46.95, Sandro Lopopolo is the 6th most famous Italian Boxer. His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

Alessandro "Sandro" Lopopolo (18 December 1939 – 26 April 2014) was an Italian 1959 amateur featherweight and 1960 amateur lightweight boxing champion, and also world boxing champion in the light welterweight division afterwards, when he turned professional, between 1961 and 1973. Sandro Lopopolo started his career in 1957, losing his first against amateur boxer Nino Benvenuti, in the 12th round, in Madison Square Garden, New York City.

7. Carlo Orlandi (1910 - 1983)

With an HPI of 46.26, Carlo Orlandi is the 7th most famous Italian Boxer. His biography has been translated into 21 different languages.

Carlo Orlandi (23 April 1910 – 29 July 1983) was an Italian boxer who won a gold medal at the 1928 Olympics. In 1929 Orlandi turned professional. During the 1930s Orlandi held both the Italian and European lightweight titles. He then won the Italian welterweight title in 1941 and retired in 1944. Orlandi was deaf.

8. Francesco Damiani (b. 1958)

With an HPI of 45.20, Francesco Damiani is the 8th most famous Italian Boxer. His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

Francesco Damiani (born 4 October 1958) is an Italian former professional boxer who competed from 1985 to 1993. He was the first WBO heavyweight champion, having held the title from 1989 to 1991, as well as the European heavyweight title from 1987 to 1989. As an amateur he won silver medals in the super-heavyweight division at the 1982 World Championships and 1984 Summer Olympics.

9. Cosimo Pinto (b. 1943)

With an HPI of 44.01, Cosimo Pinto is the 9th most famous Italian Boxer. His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

Cosimo Pinto (born 14 March 1943) is an Italian retired Amateur boxer who won a gold medal at the 1964 Summer Olympics. Contrary to most of his teammates he remained an amateur and won a bronze medal at the 1967 European championships.

10. Spartaco Bandinelli (1921 - 1997)

With an HPI of 43.79, Spartaco Bandinelli is the 10th most famous Italian Boxer. His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

Spartaco Bandinelli (27 March 1921 – 17 February 1997) was an Italian boxer. He was born and died in Velletri. He started boxing at the amateur level at the age of 16. World War II would interrupt his boxing career, he was drafted into the Italian army. At the end of the war he joined AS Audace, a Roman sports club. On the occasion of the national championships in Vigevano he was noticed by the coach of the Italian national boxing team, Steve Klaus. He competed for Italy in the 1948 Summer Olympics held in London, United Kingdom in the flyweight event where he finished in second place, losing to Pascual Pérez of Argentina.

People

Pantheon has 18 people classified as Italian boxers born between 1904 and 1998. Of these 18, 10 (55.56%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Italian boxers include Francesco Damiani, Cosimo Pinto, and Franco De Piccoli. The most famous deceased Italian boxers include Primo Carnera, Piero Toscani, and Fernando Atzori. As of April 2024, 2 new Italian boxers have been added to Pantheon including Angela Carini, and Aziz Abbes Mouhiidine.