Shapiro, Maxie

Shapiro was a top lightweight contender, but never got a title shot. Over his professional career, he fought, and defeated, titleholders Jack Callura, Sol Bartolo, and world champ Bob Montgomery. In 1941, he faced Sugar Ray Robinson, losing in the third round when the referee stopped the fight. Shapiro admitted later that he never should have stepped in the ring against Sugar Ray, considered by many to be the greatest pound-for-pound fighter ever. He observed, �With Ray Robinson, it was no contest because he was too tall and he was a great puncher, a great boxer, and he was too much for me. I didn�t know his record. If I saw his record, I would have told my manager �I don�t want him.� But�I was told it was an opportunity. If I beat him, I could go and fight for the championship. It was an opportunity to get murdered. Because he was too much�Well, my manager had said, �He�s a green kid, he�s only nineteen years old. And he hasn�t been around too much. He�s inexperienced.� I found out why. Why he don�t know too much. I found out. Before he fought me he had twenty first-round knockouts. How was he going to learn anything going one round at a time?�

Shapiro began boxing in his early twenties, quite late for a fighter, and he remembered: �I started on the fours (rounds). I went to the sixes and then eight rounds and ten rounds. And before you knew it, I had thirty seven consecutive wins�I had quite a few knockouts. I was not a puncher, but at times I had some knockouts.� When he began to fight, Shapiro did not want his parents to know that he was fighting, so when he left the house with his satchel and his mother asked where he was going, he would respond: �I�m a tie salesman. I�m going to sell ties.�

A colorful figure, Shapiro was a favorite topic of many boxers. Julie Bort said: �Maxie was a good fighter. He was a little wacky-he�s still a little wacky. But he gets along. I don�t think it was from the punches. I think he was that way before he went in (the ring). Harry Markson, former president of boxing at Madison Square Garden, said, 'I was very fond of Maxie Shapiro. Rocky Graziano, who had a very troubled background, wrote a book and I walked out of Lindy�s with a couple of guys one day, and Maxie Shapiro was standing out in front with Rocky Graziano. And I said, �Hi, Rocky. How you doin�.� He said, �Oh, everything is great. The book has sold a million copies. They�re going to make a movie. I�m doing great.� Then I turned to Maxie and I said to Maxie, �What�s with you?� He said, �What should be with me? I was never a juvenile delinquent.��He was a funny guy."

Birth and Death Dates:
b. 1914 (?)

Career Highlights:
Shapiro began his professional career in 1938 and was very successful early on as a lightweight. Fighting out of New York, he went undefeated in his first 40 fights before losing to Al Reid in December 1939. Shapiro was successful enough to step into the ring with a 21-year old Sugar Ray Robinson in September 1941. Robinson was undefeated and continued his streak by knocking Shapiro out in the third-round. In February 1942, they had a rematch and this time Maxie was knocked out in the second-round.

In between his two fights with Robinson, Shapiro had some success and defeated future featherweight champion Sol Bartolo twice. He also fought Bob Montgomery twice in 1942 and the two boxers split the decisions. In 1943, Shapiro fought another all-time great when he faced Henry Armstrong on May 24; he was knocked out in the seventh round. He continued to fight in the 1940s, although he never got a title shot. Shapiro retired in 1952 after 14 years of professional boxing; he won 87 of 123 career decisions.

Origin:
New York City

Career Statistics:
Professional record:
Wins: 87 (26 by knockout)
Losses: 30
Draws: 6

< Previous |  Next >