Cassius Clay (soon

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 ...

) fought a ten-round boxing match with Tony Esperti in

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

on January 17, 1961. Clay won the bout through a technical knockout when the referee stopped the fight in the third round after Esparti's left eye had been cut by Clay's jabs. Esperti was later convicted of first degree murder for gunning down mafia boss Thomas Altamura, a member of the

Gambino crime family The Gambino crime family (pronounced ) is an Italian-American Mafia crime family and one of the "Five Families" that dominate organized crime activities in New York City, United States, within the nationwide criminal phenomenon known as the Ame ...

References

1961 in boxing January 1961 sports events in the United States Esperti Boxing matches in Florida {{boxing-stub