Billy Arnold (boxer)
![]() | This article is written like a personal reflection, personal essay, or argumentative essay that states a Wikipedia editor's personal feelings or presents an original argument about a topic. (December 2011) |
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/7/71/Billy_Arnold.jpg/250px-Billy_Arnold.jpg)
Billy Arnold (William Marshall Arnold) (September 21, 1926 – May 18, 1995) was a highly touted welterweight/middleweight prospect of the 1940s.
Born in Slab Fork, West Virginia, Arnold turned pro November 1, 1943, while still in high school. He became an overnight sensation by racking up an impressive string of 16 straight knockout victories.[1]
Arnold's style was similar to Sugar Ray Robinson; he was a slick boxer with lightning-fast combinations, and a knockout punch. The Ring Magazine and various newspapers across the United States touted Arnold as the next Joe Louis or Sugar Ray Robinson. Arnold was a heavy favorite to defeat Rocky Graziano, and then to go on to fight for the world title. In a brutal battle staged in March 1945, Arnold battered the rough and tough Graziano for the first few rounds. It seemed only a matter of moments when the fight would be stopped. However, Graziano absorbed the beating and went on to batter and knockout Arnold in one of the major upsets in boxing.[2]
References
- ^ "Zivic Tests Bill Arnold". Miami Daily News. 1945-01-05.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Graziano Belts Out Bill Arnold in Third". The Palm Beach Post. 1945-03-10.[permanent dead link]
External links
- "Billy Arnold". Philly Boxing History. Archived from the original on 2012-06-05.
- "Billy Arnold". FightsRec.com.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg/38px-Wikisource-logo.svg.png)
- All articles with dead external links
- Articles with dead external links from October 2023
- Articles with permanently dead external links
- Articles with short description
- Short description is different from Wikidata
- Wikipedia articles with style issues from December 2011
- All articles with style issues
- African-American boxers
- 1926 births
- 1995 deaths
- Boxers from West Virginia
- People from Slab Fork, West Virginia
- Welterweight boxers
- Middleweight boxers
- 20th-century African-American sportspeople
- 20th-century American sportsmen
- Sportspeople from Raleigh County, West Virginia
- All stub articles
- American boxing biography stubs