This Day in History (October 27, 1949)
By Aaron Tallent October 27th, 2006Today in Boxing History: Marcel Cerdan Dies in Azores
Born in Algeria in 1916, Cerdan began his career when he was 18 years old. He lost only twice in his first 107 bouts, and both of those losses were by disqualification. Cerdan also won both the European Welterweight and Middleweight Titles during that time.
In September of 1948, Cerdan received a shot at Tony Zale and the world middleweight title. The French fighter used his speed to wear down the aging Zale, finally putting him away for good at the end of the 11th round.
His first and only title defense was against LaMotta in Detroit in June of 1949. In the first round, the two fell to the canvas in a scuffle and Cerdan and tore a muscle in his left shoulder. He bravely fought the next nine rounds using only his right hand. At the end of the tenth, Cerdan finally retired, relinquishing his belt to LaMotta.
Their rematch was originally scheduled for September 28, 1949, but LaMotta injured himself in training and the fight was postponed until December 2, 1949.
Tragically, Cerdan would never get the chance to reclaim the title. His airline flight crashed in the Azores, killing everyone on board.
October 29th, 2006 at 2:13 pm
I was born long after this tragedy, but from what I’ve read, Cerdan would have won back his title had he survived his plane flight. Lamotta lost to the substitute, for cripes sake! He was in no condition to turn back the Frenchman’s challenge.