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Pete Rademacher
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Peter Rademacher | |
| Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Real name | {{{realname}}} |
| Nickname | {{{nickname}}} |
| Weight | Heavyweight |
| Nationality | American |
| Birth date | August 20, 1928 |
| Birth place | Tieton, Washington |
| Style | Orthodox |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 23 |
| Wins | 15 |
| Wins by KO | 8 |
| Losses | 7 |
| Draws | 1 |
| No contests | 0 |
Peter ("Pete") Rademacher (born August 20, 1928) is a former boxer who made boxing history by being the only man to fight for the world heavyweight championship in his first professional fight.
After winning the gold medal at the 1956 Olympics in the heavyweight division, Rademacher started saying that he would be able to become world heavyweight champion in his first professional fight. He made his belief public and was able to lure world Heavyweight champion Floyd Patterson into defending his crown against the debutant Rademacher. It was the first time that a fighter making his professional debut challenged for a world crown, and it remains the first time a debutant fought for the world Heavyweight title.
Rademacher dropped Patterson in round two, but Patterson recovered and defeated him by a knockout in six.
Rademacher later on went on to fight Zora Folley, Brian London, George Chuvalo, Lamar Clark and the former world light heavyweight champion, Archie Moore. He lost to Moore, Folley and London but beat Chuvalo and Clark. His last bout was against former world middleweight champion Carl "Bobo" Olson, whom he beat by decision.
After retirement, he went into business at McNeil Corporation in Akron, Ohio. He retired as President in 1987. In 1996, he and his two daughters helped carry the Olympic torch around the streets of Cleveland, Ohio.
Rademacher is active in local politics in Medina County, Ohio.