Gianfranco Rosi

Gianfranco Rosi (* August 5, 1957 in Assisi, Umbria ) is an Italian former professional boxer and former world champion of the WBC and IBF light middleweight.

Boxing career

Gianfranco Rosi played as an amateur 100 fights, including 94 wins and 4 draws. In 1976 he became Italian champion in the light welterweight and 1977 Italian welterweight champion. At the European Championships in 1977 in the German Hall, he left in the quarter- final against Karl -Heinz Krüger.

In 1979, he earned his first professional fight in 1982, he won the Italian Championship in the welterweight division. The title he defended four times, including against the two-time WBC world title challenger Everaldo Costa Azevedo. On July 7, 1984, he won the European EBU welterweight, by a unanimous points victory against the Spaniard Perico Fernández. On January 5, 1985 but he lost the title in his first defense by a knockout loss to the unbeaten British Lloyd Honeyghan.

In 1985 he again won the Italian championship in the welterweight division, and on 28 January 1987, the EBU European Light Middleweight weight against Chris Pyatt. After two early title defenses against Emilio Solé Ruiz and Marc Ruocco, he received on October 2, 1987, a WBC world title chance against the Mexican Lupe Aquino. Rosi won the fight by unanimous decision and defended the title three months later by TKO against American Duane Thomas. On 8 July 1988, he played a title defense against Donald Curry. Rosi had in the duel in rounds 2, 4, 7 and 8 five times to the ground and gave up the fight ravaged after the ninth round on.

For this he won on July 15, 1989, the world championship of the IBF Light Middleweight, by a unanimous points victory against the undefeated American Darrin Van Horn ( 39-0, 24 Ko). He then successfully defended the title eleven times successfully, including against René Jacquot, Gilbert Dele and in a rematch against Van Horn. On September 17, 1994, he lost the world title by a knockout loss in the fourth round to Vincent Pettway.

On 17 May 1995 he won while on points against Verno Phillips and that the world championship of the WBO light middleweight, but fell by the subsequent doping test and was therefore never confirmed as world champion of this association. The fight was later changed into a loose evaluation result and Phillips again declared as the title holder. A rematch against Phillips two years later, Rosi lost on points.

Although he won in October 2004, two regional IBF title (European, Mediterranean Championship ) against Hungarian Peter Zsilak and won two more fights, ended his career, however, in October 2006 after a knockout loss to Robert Roselia.