1968 Difusora de Cultura - Juegos Olimpicos - Rocky Marciano. It's frustrating that I can't find the photo that matches up with this card, it's one of my favorite Marciano cards.
1999 JF Sporting Collectibles - Boxing Champions - Rocky Marciano. I don't know where they got the image for this card from, it looks to be from a magazine, this is all I could find that matches up with it.
1997 AT&T Phone Card - Rocky Marciano. It's really cool that PSA actually grades and slabs these. We'll go with the up close shot of Marciano vs. Walcott this time.
1955 Fantomen Comic - Masters of the Ring - Rocky Marciano. I haven't seen a photo of Marciano that matches up with this card, and believe me, I've seen just about every available photo of him.
Wicked cool postcard that was issued before the first fight between Larry Holmes and Michael Spinks. Holmes was 48-0 at the time and was trying to make history and tie Rocky Marciano's 49-0 unbeaten mark. I love the image of Rocky Marciano's face looming over them in the background.
2002 JF Sporting Collectibles - Boxing - America's Greatest - Rocky Marciano. These cards can be difficult to find because only 30 copies were made of each.
This is a custom 1948 Leaf Gum - Rocky Marciano card that someone made a while ago, can't find a back scan for it but man it's sweet. Rocky Marciano is not in the famous 1948 Leaf boxing set because he was still an unknown early-career fighter when the cards were being made, his path of destruction hadn't yet began to take shape.
I love that 1993 Kitchen Sink card, it shows the cover of the September 1953 issue of The National Police Gazette, in which there was an article about whether or not Rocky Marciano is a dirty fighter. A few of his opponents were asked what they thought about it and they were split on the question. Here is an original copy of the magazine.
Personally, I don't think Rocky Marciano was an intentionally dirty fighter, I just think his style was wild and brutal. Relentless pressure, he was always in your face, chopping away at you with devastating power shots. His punches came from every angle imaginable. Archie Moore was quoted as saying about Marciano, "It's like fighting an airplane propeller. The blades keep whirling past your ear and over your head."
Man, watching that gif, Marciano's style is a thing of absolutely beauty. Just sheer overwhelming brutality. And his stamina was legendary, he jogged eight miles a day, when he sensed his opponent was getting tired, he would start to pick up the pace and really go after them.
You also have to remember that boxing is a rough sport, as Mike Tyson once said, "you're not in there to dance." Besides, Rocky Marciano took his fair share of heads and elbows as well. Let's not forget about his nose being split open like the Grand canyon, courtesy of a bit of an elbow from Ezzard Charles. Just look at this cut, you could park a car in it.
During the sixth round of the 1954 Rematch, Charles caught Marciano during an exchange. Accounts of the exact blow vary slightly, with some suggesting it came from a hard punch, a grazing uppercut, or an accidental elbow during a close-quarters collision. Watching the footage, it looks to be a little of both the uppercut and elbow, Charles follows though all the way, hitting Rocky's face with his whole arm on the way up. The impact resulted in a severe laceration to Marciano's nose, causing significant bleeding that cornermen struggled to control. The severity of the injury and the resulting blood loss prompted the referee and ring doctor to closely consider stopping the fight. Despite the serious injury and heavy bleeding, Marciano refused to let the situation stop him. He famously stated, "I love the world title too much to lose it over a little blood." Rallying in the later rounds, Marciano came back to knock Ezzard Charles out in the eighth round to retain his heavyweight crown. You can see the cut on his nose during the fight here.
Rocky Marciano was always in phenomenal shape. He stayed in elite physical condition through a relentless, monk-like training regimen, a background of heavy manual labor, and year-round discipline. He ran 5 to 10 miles every morning, rain or shine, often covering steep hills and rough terrain to build superhuman stamina. He used distance running not just for fitness, but to forge an unstoppable engine that let him outlast and break down opponents in later rounds. He performed unique exercises like underwater punching in a pool to build shoulder endurance and resistance. He hit a custom 300-pound heavy bag and famously claimed that he swung a 25-pound sledgehammer 200 times a day to help build his legendary punching power. He built his foundational strength through brutal physical labor during the Great Depression, such as shoveling coal and moving heavy freight and developed a tough, disciplined work ethic while serving in the U.S. Army during World War II. His body was like solid granite, the great Joe Louis once said, "it hurt to bump into him."
Rocky Marciano had a granite chin, you can count how many times he was knocked down with two fingers. The first knockdown occured when Jersey Joe Walcott dropped Marciano with a left hook in the first round of their championship bout on September 23, 1952. Marciano recovered and later knocked Walcott out in the 13th round to win the title. The second knockdown occured when Archie Moore dropped Marciano in the second round of their title fight on September 21, 1955. Marciano got back up and eventually stopped Moore in the ninth round.
Up next, I want to take a minute to talk about Rocky Marciano's style.
Rocky Marciano's offense was built on relentless forward pressure, smothering opponents in close quarters, and landing his devastating power shots. There was nothing cute about it, just pure brutality. Marciano was undersized for a heavyweight, he stood 5-foot-10 and had the shortest reach in heavyweight history at 68 inches. He rarely used a traditional jab to keep distance. Instead, he used his sheer toughness to walk through punches and crowded his taller opponents to smother their power. His tireless stamina and high work rate wore down opponents over 15 rounds. He once summarized his mindset essentially as - “Keep coming. Eventually they break.” When he threw punches they came from everywhere, the side, underneath, over the top, his main weapon was a powerful, looping overhand right, boxers and fans called it the "Suzie Q". He used exaggerated head movement and an unusual shuffle step to add momentum to the blow. Nearly every punch he threw carried knockout power. His aggressive, up-close style often crossed into rough fighting. As a relentless swarmer, Marciano did not just aim for the head or classic knockout spots. He hit whatever part of his opponent he could reach. He intentionally smashed his opponents' biceps, shoulders, and arms with heavy blows. This tactic made their arms too heavy and tired to lift, destroying their guard and defense. His non-stop body punching drained his opponents' physical and mental stamina. After fighting Rocky Marciano, Archie Moore said that you felt like someone had been beating you all over the upper body with a blackjack or hitting you with rocks. His offense was devastatingly effective, it was the most brutal kind of up-close fighting imaginable, boxing's version of the Western Front, 49 men tried to overcome it and 49 men failed. Here is an original poster which was put out by the Coal Operators Casualty Company, which depicts Marciano and his trail of destruction.
Hmm, speaking of chins, it's a crying shame that no trading cards exist of Antonio Margarito. Say what you want about him, but this man's ability to take a punch was super human. He ate Miguel Cotto's left hook flush over and over and just smiled at him. In the Mosely fight he was ko'd, but it wasn't until Mosley landed about 100 clean powerful right hands on his jaw. You hear that Leaf trading cards, Allen and Ginter? Instead of printing the same cards of the same athletes year after year, make some cards of this guy.
For that matter, make some more cards of Juan Laporte, one of the best chins in boxing history. He fought Julio Cesar Chavez, Rocky Lockridge, Azumah Nelson, Kostya Tszyu, Barry McGuigan, Salvador Sanchez, Wilfredo Gomez, some real bangers and was never off his feet.
Back to Rocky Marciano. Next I want to mention his punching power. It was absolutely brutal. All you need to do is look at the photos of his punches landing, the faces of his opponents are bloody, distorted, twisted, and bent all to hell.
Comments
I love that 2010 Monarch Corona set, the design reminds me of the windows during Medieval times, a fascinating period in history.
1959 Hokus Pokus - Rocky Marciano.
2020 Gummy Arts - Rocky Marciano. Love this card.
Helmar Brewing Company - All Our Heroes - Rocky Marciano. Wicked cool card.
1952-54 Fick Journalens - Samlarserie - Rocky Marciano.
2023 Thomas Maxwell Art Cards - Rocky Marciano.
Can't pin down the photo that was used for this card, the 1956 Adventure Gum - Brockton Blockbuster - - - Rocky Marciano.
1953 FHER - Escenaa Deportivas Del Mundo - #82 - Rocky Marciano. Going with his face, wicked photo of Rocky.
1953 FHER - Escenaa Deportivas Del Mundo - #97 - Rocky Marciano.
1960s Mini-Luchador - Rocky Marciano. Can't find the photo that matches up with this card either.
1968 Difusora de Cultura - Juegos Olimpicos - Rocky Marciano. It's frustrating that I can't find the photo that matches up with this card, it's one of my favorite Marciano cards.
1999 JF Sporting Collectibles - Boxing Champions - Rocky Marciano. I don't know where they got the image for this card from, it looks to be from a magazine, this is all I could find that matches up with it.
2002-09 Superior Card Co. - Rocky Marciano.
Nexus Mint - 1 oz .999 Fine Silver Card 1/1 - Rocky Marciano.
1979-81 Panarizon - Story of America - Rocky Marciano.
1940-70 Boxing News Photos - Rocky Marciano. I had a surprisingly difficult time finding a copy of this card.
Gypsy Oak - Pet Cigarettes Wood Engraving - Rocky Marciano.
1997 AT&T Phone Card - Rocky Marciano. It's really cool that PSA actually grades and slabs these. We'll go with the up close shot of Marciano vs. Walcott this time.
A PSA slabbed AT&T Phone Card.
Check this out, this is actually a proof sheet for the 1997 AT&T Phone Card.
1955 Fantomen Comic - Masters of the Ring - Rocky Marciano. I haven't seen a photo of Marciano that matches up with this card, and believe me, I've seen just about every available photo of him.
Wicked cool postcard that was issued before the first fight between Larry Holmes and Michael Spinks. Holmes was 48-0 at the time and was trying to make history and tie Rocky Marciano's 49-0 unbeaten mark. I love the image of Rocky Marciano's face looming over them in the background.
1991 All World - Rocky Marciano. I can't pin down the photo that matches up with this card either.
1960 Master Vending - Cardmaster - Rocky Marciano.
1960s Mini-Luchador - Rocky Marciano.
1951 Bread for Energy - Rocky Marciano. It's a shame that I can't find the photo to match with this ridiculously rare card.
1947-66 Exhibits - Rocky Marciano.
2002 JF Sporting Collectibles - Boxing - America's Greatest - Rocky Marciano. These cards can be difficult to find because only 30 copies were made of each.
This is a custom 1948 Leaf Gum - Rocky Marciano card that someone made a while ago, can't find a back scan for it but man it's sweet. Rocky Marciano is not in the famous 1948 Leaf boxing set because he was still an unknown early-career fighter when the cards were being made, his path of destruction hadn't yet began to take shape.
1993 Kitchen Sink - Sports Immortals - Rocky Marciano.
I love that 1993 Kitchen Sink card, it shows the cover of the September 1953 issue of The National Police Gazette, in which there was an article about whether or not Rocky Marciano is a dirty fighter. A few of his opponents were asked what they thought about it and they were split on the question. Here is an original copy of the magazine.
Personally, I don't think Rocky Marciano was an intentionally dirty fighter, I just think his style was wild and brutal. Relentless pressure, he was always in your face, chopping away at you with devastating power shots. His punches came from every angle imaginable. Archie Moore was quoted as saying about Marciano, "It's like fighting an airplane propeller. The blades keep whirling past your ear and over your head."
Man, watching that gif, Marciano's style is a thing of absolutely beauty. Just sheer overwhelming brutality. And his stamina was legendary, he jogged eight miles a day, when he sensed his opponent was getting tired, he would start to pick up the pace and really go after them.
You also have to remember that boxing is a rough sport, as Mike Tyson once said, "you're not in there to dance." Besides, Rocky Marciano took his fair share of heads and elbows as well. Let's not forget about his nose being split open like the Grand canyon, courtesy of a bit of an elbow from Ezzard Charles. Just look at this cut, you could park a car in it.
A front view of the cut to Rocky's nose. It's practically visible from space, one of the worst cuts I've ever seen.
During the sixth round of the 1954 Rematch, Charles caught Marciano during an exchange. Accounts of the exact blow vary slightly, with some suggesting it came from a hard punch, a grazing uppercut, or an accidental elbow during a close-quarters collision. Watching the footage, it looks to be a little of both the uppercut and elbow, Charles follows though all the way, hitting Rocky's face with his whole arm on the way up. The impact resulted in a severe laceration to Marciano's nose, causing significant bleeding that cornermen struggled to control. The severity of the injury and the resulting blood loss prompted the referee and ring doctor to closely consider stopping the fight. Despite the serious injury and heavy bleeding, Marciano refused to let the situation stop him. He famously stated, "I love the world title too much to lose it over a little blood." Rallying in the later rounds, Marciano came back to knock Ezzard Charles out in the eighth round to retain his heavyweight crown. You can see the cut on his nose during the fight here.
Here you can see the cut on his nose gushing blood.
Rocky walking back to his corner with the cut on his nose.
One thing about Rocky Marciano, he was as tough as cafeteria meatloaf, he's smiling in just about every photo with the cut nose.
Rocky Marciano was always in phenomenal shape. He stayed in elite physical condition through a relentless, monk-like training regimen, a background of heavy manual labor, and year-round discipline. He ran 5 to 10 miles every morning, rain or shine, often covering steep hills and rough terrain to build superhuman stamina. He used distance running not just for fitness, but to forge an unstoppable engine that let him outlast and break down opponents in later rounds. He performed unique exercises like underwater punching in a pool to build shoulder endurance and resistance. He hit a custom 300-pound heavy bag and famously claimed that he swung a 25-pound sledgehammer 200 times a day to help build his legendary punching power. He built his foundational strength through brutal physical labor during the Great Depression, such as shoveling coal and moving heavy freight and developed a tough, disciplined work ethic while serving in the U.S. Army during World War II. His body was like solid granite, the great Joe Louis once said, "it hurt to bump into him."
Rocky Marciano had a granite chin, you can count how many times he was knocked down with two fingers. The first knockdown occured when Jersey Joe Walcott dropped Marciano with a left hook in the first round of their championship bout on September 23, 1952. Marciano recovered and later knocked Walcott out in the 13th round to win the title. The second knockdown occured when Archie Moore dropped Marciano in the second round of their title fight on September 21, 1955. Marciano got back up and eventually stopped Moore in the ninth round.
This is a really cool photo of a physician examining Rocky's nose to see how well the cut has healed.
Up next, I want to take a minute to talk about Rocky Marciano's style.
Rocky Marciano's offense was built on relentless forward pressure, smothering opponents in close quarters, and landing his devastating power shots. There was nothing cute about it, just pure brutality. Marciano was undersized for a heavyweight, he stood 5-foot-10 and had the shortest reach in heavyweight history at 68 inches. He rarely used a traditional jab to keep distance. Instead, he used his sheer toughness to walk through punches and crowded his taller opponents to smother their power. His tireless stamina and high work rate wore down opponents over 15 rounds. He once summarized his mindset essentially as - “Keep coming. Eventually they break.” When he threw punches they came from everywhere, the side, underneath, over the top, his main weapon was a powerful, looping overhand right, boxers and fans called it the "Suzie Q". He used exaggerated head movement and an unusual shuffle step to add momentum to the blow. Nearly every punch he threw carried knockout power. His aggressive, up-close style often crossed into rough fighting. As a relentless swarmer, Marciano did not just aim for the head or classic knockout spots. He hit whatever part of his opponent he could reach. He intentionally smashed his opponents' biceps, shoulders, and arms with heavy blows. This tactic made their arms too heavy and tired to lift, destroying their guard and defense. His non-stop body punching drained his opponents' physical and mental stamina. After fighting Rocky Marciano, Archie Moore said that you felt like someone had been beating you all over the upper body with a blackjack or hitting you with rocks. His offense was devastatingly effective, it was the most brutal kind of up-close fighting imaginable, boxing's version of the Western Front, 49 men tried to overcome it and 49 men failed. Here is an original poster which was put out by the Coal Operators Casualty Company, which depicts Marciano and his trail of destruction.
Hmm, speaking of chins, it's a crying shame that no trading cards exist of Antonio Margarito. Say what you want about him, but this man's ability to take a punch was super human. He ate Miguel Cotto's left hook flush over and over and just smiled at him. In the Mosely fight he was ko'd, but it wasn't until Mosley landed about 100 clean powerful right hands on his jaw. You hear that Leaf trading cards, Allen and Ginter? Instead of printing the same cards of the same athletes year after year, make some cards of this guy.
For that matter, make some more cards of Juan Laporte, one of the best chins in boxing history. He fought Julio Cesar Chavez, Rocky Lockridge, Azumah Nelson, Kostya Tszyu, Barry McGuigan, Salvador Sanchez, Wilfredo Gomez, some real bangers and was never off his feet.
Back to Rocky Marciano. Next I want to mention his punching power. It was absolutely brutal. All you need to do is look at the photos of his punches landing, the faces of his opponents are bloody, distorted, twisted, and bent all to hell.
Just look at this photo of a Marciano punch connecting to the face of Ezzard Charles, my goodness. Brutal power 101.