Oscar Natalio "Ringo" Bonavena (September 25, 1942 – May 22, 1976) was an Argentine

heavyweight Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling. Boxing Professional Boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 3 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation, the Wo ...

professional boxer Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional bouts are supervised by a regulatory autho ...

with a career record of 58 wins, 9 losses and 1 draw. A rugged, wild-swinging puncher, he was nicknamed "Ringo" because of his

Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developme ...

haircut, and enjoyed professional success in both Argentina and the United States. He is remembered for giving Joe Frazier and

Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and activist. Nicknamed "The Greatest", he is regarded as one of the most significant sports figures of the 20th century, a ...

hard fought bouts.

Life and pro career

Oscar Natalio Bonavena was born in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

to two Italian immigrants. He was a professional boxer, Argentinian and South American champion. He also participated in several Argentinian TV programs such as the

Pepe Biondi José "Pepe" Biondi (born Buenos Aires, September 4, 1909 - died Buenos Aires, October 4, 1975) was an Argentine comedian, acrobat and variety artist who worked in the circus, theater, film and television. For both critics and the public, Biondi wa ...

Show.

Early career

Bonavena began his early career in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

under the management of World War II hero and dentist Marvin Goldberg. His pro debut was on February 1, 1964. He soon racked up a quick string of early knockouts, but was overmatched early, sometimes fighting twice a month, and lost by a decision in February 1965 to then-highly rated

Zora Folley Zora "Bell" Folley (May 27, 1931 – July 7, 1972) was a mid-20th century American heavyweight boxer, known for his defensive game and punching ability. Early life Born in Dallas, Texas on 27 May 1931, Folley moved with his family to Chandler ...

. Bonavena was in only his 15th contest, and was far too inexperienced to then really tackle a top veteran like Folley. It was a one-sided contest, with Bonavena getting up off the deck from a wicked right hand. Even courageous Oscar looked discouraged and shaken at times in the later rounds. However, three years later -- with far more experience and training -- he won their rematch by decision. After that, he returned to Argentina, where his winning and knockout streak continued. But in mid-1966 he was enticed back to New York, and the free-swinging Bonavena soon ran into trouble outside the ring. He called Muhammad Ali a black

kangaroo Kangaroos are four marsupials from the family Macropodidae (macropods, meaning "large foot"). In common use the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, the red kangaroo, as well as the antilopine kangaroo, eastern ...

and even a

chicken The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated junglefowl species, with attributes of wild species such as the grey and the Ceylon junglefowl that are originally from Southeastern Asia. Rooster or cock is a term for an adult m ...

for

draft dodging Draft evasion is any successful attempt to elude a government-imposed obligation to serve in the military forces of one's nation. Sometimes draft evasion involves refusing to comply with the military draft laws of one's nation. Illegal draft ev ...

. Ali was furious. Oscar was one of the few people to upstage Ali in pre-fight press conferences. When, much later, he saw Ali seated ringside at the

George Foreman George Edward Foreman (born January 10, 1949) is an American former professional boxer, entrepreneur, minister and author. In boxing, he was nicknamed "Big George" and competed between 1967 and 1997. He is a two-time world heavyweight champio ...

– Ken Norton fight, he went over and started a big slanging match. In his pre-fight press conference with Frazier, Bonavena needled effectively by implying that Frazier had a personal hygiene problem. He would start sniffing and grimace. Lawsuits were brought about by reporters with broken cameras; and other such "colorful" behavior. He was always volatile, as trainers soon discovered.

Big name contests, Chuvalo and Frazier

Bonavena first came to wide public attention after a fine performance: defeating rated contender and Canadian champion

George Chuvalo George Louis Chuvalo, CM (born September 12, 1937 as Jure Čuvalo) is a Canadian former professional boxer who was a five-time Canadian heavyweight champion and two-time world heavyweight title challenger. He is known for having never been kno ...

, boxing technically better than expected, and later going the distance against the young hard-hitting great Joe Frazier. In this, their first fight, Bonavena had the future champion down twice in the second round.

WBA elimination contests

In 1967, after the

World Boxing Association The World Boxing Association (WBA), formerly known as the National Boxing Association (NBA), is the oldest and one of four major organizations which sanction professional boxing bouts, alongside the World Boxing Council (WBC), International Boxi ...

stripped

of the title for refusing to be inducted into the U.S. military, Bonavena participated in that sanctioning body's 1967 tournament to crown a new heavyweight champion. In a strong performance he decked favoured European champion

Karl Mildenberger Karl Mildenberger (23 November 1937 – 4 October 2018) was a German heavyweight boxer. He was the European Heavyweight Champion from 1964 to 1968, during which he retained the title six times. He unsuccessfully challenged Muhammad Ali for the ...

four times, winning by a decision in

Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

. But he was himself knocked down twice and clearly outboxed by eventual tournament winner

Jimmy Ellis Jimmy Ellis may refer to: * Jimmy Ellis (boxer) (1940–2014), American boxer * Jimmy "Orion" Ellis (1945–1998), American singer * Jimmy "Preacher" Ellis (born 1935), American musician * Jimmy Ellis (1938–2012), lead singer of The Trammps * Ji ...

in the semi-finals in

Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...

, losing by unanimous decision in an upset. Many deemed it the best win of Ellis's career.

World Title shot, the Frazier rematch

The following year, in 1968, after outpointing Leotis Martin, he got a rematch with Frazier for the heavyweight title in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

. After a grueling fifteen rounds Bonavena lost the rematch by decision, fighting more defensively than previous. He left with a seriously battered face, as photographed in the Ring magazine. In 1969, he got a draw in a rematch with talented

Gregorio Peralta Gregorio Manuel Peralta (May 8, 1935 – October 3, 2001), better known as Gregorio "Goyo" Peralta, was a top Argentine boxer. Peralta enjoyed success as both a light heavyweight and a heavyweight, one of a select group Latin American Heavy ...

, who he'd outpointed four years earlier for the Argentine title.

Versus Ali

In December 1970, he fought Ali at Madison Square Garden, in the former champ's second bout after his three-year layoff. Bonavena absorbed punishment throughout but fought well, getting through with various head and body punches. With just under 1:30 left in the 15th and final round, Ali caught Oscar rushing in and decked him with a perfectly placed left hook. Bonavena got up, but was clearly not fully recovered. Ali decked him twice more, and the fight was automatically stopped under the three knockdown rule, giving Ali a TKO (technical knockout). The ending was somewhat controversial, as Ali stood over Bonavena as Bonavena was getting up, never going to a neutral corner as the rules of boxing require, which allowed Ali to quickly knockdown Bonavena twice more and automatically end the fight. After the second knockdown, the referee appears to be attempting to guide Ali to a neutral corner, but Ali brushes the referee's arm away and pursues a wobbly Bonavena.

Other matches

After the loss to Ali in 1970, he had a brutally tough match with underrated Alvin Lewis, being decked multiple times but eventually winning by disqualification. Bonavena fought intermittently for the next few years. A gregarious party man, he enjoyed life fully, at the cost of his professional boxing career. Eventually losses to

Floyd Patterson Floyd Patterson (January 4, 1935 – May 11, 2006) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1952 to 1972, and twice reigned as the world heavyweight champion between 1956 and 1962. At the age of 21, he became the youngest boxer in hi ...

in 1972 and

Ron Lyle Ronald David Lyle (February 12, 1941 – November 26, 2011) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1971 to 1980, and in 1995. He challenged unsuccessfully for the world heavyweight championship, losing to Muhammad Ali in 1975. Kno ...

in 1974 effectively put him to lower ranking contender status, although he did well enough in both these matches. In the Patterson fight he broke his left hand early, possibly after decking Patterson in the fourth, and remained an advancing threat to the final bell. It was around 1973 a possible match with a then on the rise Ken Norton was being planned but, unfortunately for fans, it never materialised. On February 26, 1976, overweight and sluggish Bonavena fought what would be his last fight, winning a ten-round decision over the unranked

Billy Joiner Billy Joiner (10 May 1938 - 2019), was an American professional boxer from Cincinnati, U.S. Early life Joiner was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on 10 May 1938. His father was a former professional boxer, as was his uncle who had once knocked out Fre ...

in Reno.

Death

On 22 May 1976 Bonavena was shot dead at the age of 33 by a security guard at the

Mustang Ranch The Mustang Ranch is a brothel in Storey County, Nevada, about east of Reno. It is currently located at 1011 Wild Horse Canyon Drive, Sparks, Nevada, 89434. Under past owner Joe Conforte, Mustang Ranch Brothel, the precursor to Mustang Ranch, ...

near

Reno, Nevada Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is the ...

, after having become involved in a conflict with its owner.Man who killed Oscar Bonavena dies
''

Las Vegas Review-Journal The ''Las Vegas Review-Journal'' is a daily subscription newspaper published in Las Vegas, Nevada, since 1909. It is the largest circulating daily newspaper in Nevada and one of two daily newspapers in the Las Vegas area. The ''Review-Journal'' ...

'' His body was returned to Argentina to lie in state at the

Luna Park Luna Park is a name shared by dozens of currently operating and defunct amusement parks. They are named after, and partly based on, the first Luna Park, which opened in 1903 during the heyday of large Coney Island parks. Luna parks are small-s ...

sports arena in Buenos Aires, where 150,000 people filed by, afterwards being buried in

La Chacarita Cemetery Cementerio de la Chacarita in Buenos Aires, Argentina, is known as the National Cemetery and is the largest in Argentina. Location The cemetery is in the barrio or district of Chacarita, in the western part of Buenos Aires. Its main entrance i ...

in Buenos Aires.Entry in Findagrave for Bonavena's grave (2019). https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/22433/oscar-natalio-bonavena

Professional boxing record

, style="text-align:center;" colspan="8", 58 Wins (44 Knockouts), 9 Defeats, 1 DrawOscar Bonavena's Professional Boxing Record
BoxRec.com. Retrieved on 2012-03-18. , - style="text-align:center; background:#e3e3e3;" , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Res. , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Record , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Opponent , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Type , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Rd., Time , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Date , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Location , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Notes , - align=center , Win , 58-9-1 , align=left,

, , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 57-9-1 , align=left, Reinaldo Gorosito , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 56-9-1 , align=left, Mani Vaka , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 55-9-1 , align=left, Oliver Wright , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 54-9-1 , align=left, Bob Mashburn , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 53-9-1 , align=left, Larry Renaud , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 52-9-1 , align=left, Larry Middleton , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Loss , 51-9-1 , align=left,

, , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 51-8-1 , align=left, Terry Sorrell , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 50-8-1 , align=left, Lou Bailey , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 49-8-1 , align=left, Roy Wallace , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 48-8-1 , align=left, Leroy Caldwell , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Loss , 47-8-1 , align=left,

, , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 47-7-1 , align=left, Alvin Lewis , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Loss , 46-7-1 , align=left,

, , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 46-6-1 , align=left, Luis Pires , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 45-6-1 , align=left, James J Woody , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 44-6-1 , align=left, Manuel Ramos , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 43-6-1 , align=left, José Menno , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 42-6-1 , align=left,

Santiago Lovell Alberto Santiago Lovell (23 April 1912–17 March 1966), known as Alberto Lovell, was an Argentine heavyweight boxer, who won the gold medal in the Olympic Games in Los Angeles 1932. In his career as a professional boxer he had 88 fights winnin ...

, , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Loss , 41-6-1 , align=left, Miguel Angel Paez , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 41-5-1 , align=left,

, , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , style="background:#abcdef;", Draw , 40-5-1 , align=left,

, , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 40-5 , align=left,

Wilhelm Von Homburg Norbert Grupe (born August 25, 1940 – March 10, 2004), better known outside Germany by his stage name Wilhelm von Homburg, was a German boxer, actor, and professional wrestler known for his villainous supporting roles in various high-profile fi ...

, , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 39-5 , align=left, Luis Pires , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Loss , 38-5 , align=left, Joe Frazier , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 38-4 , align=left, Jim Fletcher , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 37-4 , align=left, Leotis Martin , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 36-4 , align=left,

, , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 35-4 , align=left, Roberto Davila , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 34-4 , align=left, Lee Carr , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 33-4 , align=left, Alberto Benassi , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 32-4 , align=left, Felipe Pedro Marich , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Loss , 31-4 , align=left,

, , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 31-3 , align=left,

, , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 30-3 , align=left, Carlos Vazquez , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 29-3 , align=left, Luis Pires , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 28-3 , align=left, Pablo Sagrispanti , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 27-3 , align=left, Hubert Hilton , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 26-3 , align=left, Jose Giorgetti , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 25-3 , align=left, Roberto Veliz , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 24-3 , align=left, Alberto Benassi , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 23-3 , align=left, Amos Johnson , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 22-3 , align=left, Alberto Benassi , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Loss , 21-3 , align=left, Joe Frazier , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 21-2 , align=left,

, , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 20-2 , align=left, Jose Giorgetti , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Loss , 19-2 , align=left, Jose Giorgetti , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 19-1 , align=left, Bruno Segura , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 18-1 , align=left, Billy Daniels , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 17-1 , align=left, Hector Wilson , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 16-1 , align=left, Pablo Sagrispanti , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 15-1 , align=left,

, , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 14-1 , align=left, Alberto Gonzales , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 13-1 , align=left, Eduardo Cartelli , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 12-1 , align=left, Rodolfo Diaz , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 11-1 , align=left, Rogelio Gregorutti , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 10-1 , align=left, Carlos Vazquez , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 9-1 , align=left, Rene Sosa , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Loss , 8-1 , align=left,

, , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 8-0 , align=left, Billy Stephan , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 7-0 , align=left, Dick Wipperman , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 6-0 , align=left,

Tom McNeeley Thomas William McNeeley Jr. (February 27, 1937 – October 25, 2011) was a heavyweight boxer in the 1950s and 1960s. He hailed from Arlington, Massachusetts, and played football for Michigan State University. His son, Peter McNeeley, and father, ...

, , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 5-0 , align=left, Byron Stoimenides , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 4-0 , align=left, Leslie Borden , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 3-0 , align=left, Wendell Newton , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 2-0 , align=left, Everett Copeland , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 1-0 , align=left, Lou Hicks , , , , align=left, , align=left,

References

Nevada's Most Infamous Brothel, Mustang Ranch, Back In Business
Fox News
Woman Who Operated Mustang Ranch Dies
Spokesman-Review, September 9, 1992

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bonavena, Oscar 1942 births 1976 deaths Heavyweight boxers Boxers from Buenos Aires Argentine expatriate sportspeople in the United States Argentine people of Italian descent Male murder victims Argentine people murdered abroad Argentine murder victims People murdered in Nevada Deaths by firearm in Nevada Burials at La Chacarita Cemetery Argentine male boxers