Charley Riley (April 22, 1922 - May 22, 1994) is an inductee of the
Boxing Hall of Fame. He was born in
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the Greater St. Louis, ...
and was sometimes known as ''Chillin' Charley''.
Career
Charley Riley was a top
featherweight
Featherweight is a weight class in the combat sports of boxing, kickboxing, mixed martial arts, and Greco-Roman wrestling.
Boxing
Professional boxing
History
A featherweight boxer weighs in at a limit of . In the early days of the division, this ...
boxing
Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermined ...
contender in the 1940s and 1950s. He achieved nationwide recognition in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
with a trio of exciting fights with ex-NBA featherweight champ
Phil Terranova
Phil Terranova (September 4, 1919 – March 16, 2000) was an American boxer who took the NBA World Featherweight Boxing Championship in 1943 in a bout against Jackie Callura. His manager was Bobby Gleason.
Early life and career
Phil Terranov ...
. He lost via a one-punch body-shot knockout on February 22, 1946, but on April 30, 1947, evened the score with a 7th-round
TKO of Terranova. On September 3, 1947, he scored a first-round TKO of Terranova. Reports were that the referee stopped this fight on the advice of the ring doctor because Terranova was bleeding profusely.
Riley fought
Willie Pep
Willy or Willie is a masculine, male given name, often a diminutive form of William or Wilhelm, and occasionally a nickname. It may refer to:
People Given name or nickname
* Willie Aames (born 1960), American actor, television director, and scree ...
for the featherweight championship in St Louis January 16, 1950 and was knocked out by Pep by a body punch in the fifth round. He accepted a non-title bout with reigning featherweight champion
Sandy Saddler
Joseph "Sandy" Saddler (June 23, 1926 – September 18, 2001) was an American professional boxer. He was a two-time featherweight world champion, having also held the super featherweight title. Over his twelve-year career (1944–56), Saddler s ...
November 1, 1950 and lost a decision. He put pressure on Saddler in the first part of the fight but faded in the later rounds. During his career Riley also faced
Glen Flanagan
Glen Flanagan (November 16, 1926 – January 28, 1979) was a featherweight professional boxer from Minnesota.
Personal life
Glen Flanagan was born and raised in St Paul, Minnesota. He and his wife Betty had six children, and Glen went on to ha ...
,
Jackie Graves
Jackie Graves (September 12, 1922 – November 15, 2005), alias "The Austin Atom", was a featherweight boxer from Minnesota.
Personal life
Graves was a native of Austin, Minnesota.
Boxing career
From 1944 to 1956 Graves compiled a career record ...
,
Corky Gonzalez
Rodolfo "Corky" Gonzales (June 18, 1928 – April 12, 2005) was a Mexican-American boxer, poet, political organizer, and activist. He was one of many leaders for the Crusade for Justice in Denver, Colorado. The Crusade for Justice was an urb ...
,
George Araujo
George Araujo (May 26, 1931 – November 21, 1997) was a lightweight professional boxer from Rhode Island.
Personal life and professional career
Araujo was born in the Fox Point neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island. He was of Cape Verde ...
and
Redtop Davis.
Riley retired in 1954 with a record of 69 wins (39 by knockout), 29 losses, and 2 draws.
Although he was never a world champion, Charley Riley was inducted to ''
The Ring'' magazine's
Boxing Hall of Fame (disbanded in 1987).
He was also known as the "Finney Avenue Fashion Plate" (an avenue in
St. Louis
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
) for his attention to dress.
References
Boxers from Missouri
1922 births
1994 deaths
American male boxers
Featherweight boxers
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