Carmen Basilio
"The Upstate Onion Farmer"
Top 100 · #88 · 54.2 points- Born
- 1927
- Died
- 2012
- Nationality
- USA
- Career
- 1948–1961
A gritty two-division champion who took the middleweight title from Sugar Ray Robinson.
Titles & Honours
- World Welterweight Champion
- World Middleweight Champion (1957–1958)
Career Timeline
1948–1961- Milestone
First recorded professional bout
vs Jimmy Evans · W KO
- Signature fight
vs Lew Jenkins
W MD · State Fair Coliseum, Syracuse, New York, U.S.. Archive selection: one of the first three wins over distinct fighters profiled here, not an expert-selected signature fight.
- Milestone
25th recorded win
vs Shamus McCray · PTS. Newspaper decisions excluded.
- Signature fight
vs Ike Williams
W UD · War Memorial Auditorium, Syracuse, New York, U.S.. Archive selection: one of the first three wins over distinct fighters profiled here, not an expert-selected signature fight.
- Title history
Title reign begins
World Middleweight Champion (1957–1958). Year from profile title history; exact title-winning bout not identified.
- Milestone
50th recorded win
vs Johnny Saxton · TKO. Newspaper decisions excluded.
- Signature fight
vs Sugar Ray Robinson
W SD · Yankee Stadium, New York City, New York, U.S.. Archive selection: one of the first three wins over distinct fighters profiled here, not an expert-selected signature fight.
- Milestone
Latest recorded bout
vs Paul Pender · L UD. Not necessarily the retirement date.
Title wins · dates not yet documented
Derived from the current archive and profile honours. Title-reign years are not exact bout dates; title claims are not independently verified. Signature fights use existing profile selections, or clearly labelled wins over other archived fighters when no selections exist. Year-only dates retain their original precision.
Photo Archive
3 archival photographs under their original licences.
Fight-by-Fight Record
| Date | Result | Opponent | Method | Round | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1948-11-24 | W | Jimmy Evans | KO | 3 | Kalurah Temple, Binghamton, New York, U.S. |
| 1948-11-29 | W | Bruce Walters | KO | 1 | State Fair Coliseum, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1948-12-08 | W | Eddie Thomas | KO | 2 | Kalurah Temple, Binghamton, New York, U.S. |
| 1948-12-15 | W | Rolly Johns | SD | 6 | State Fair Coliseum, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1949-01-05 | D | Johnny Cunningham | PTS | 6 | Kalurah Temple, Binghamton, New York, U.S. |
| 1949-01-19 | D | Jimmy Parlin | PTS | 6 | Kalurah Temple, Binghamton, New York, U.S. |
| 1949-01-25 | W | Ernie Hall | KO | 2 | State Fair Coliseum, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1949-02-17 | W | Luke Jordan | PTS | 6 | Sports Arena, Rochester, New York, U.S. |
| 1949-03-18 | W | Jerry Drain | TKO | 3 | State Fair Coliseum, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1949-04-20 | W | Elliot Throop | KO | 1 | State Fair Coliseum, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1949-05-02 | L | Connie Thies | PTS | 6 | Sports Arena, Rochester, New York, U.S. |
| 1949-05-18 | W | Johnny Clemons | KO | 3 | State Fair Coliseum, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1949-06-07 | W | Johnny Cunningham | KO | 2 | MacArthur Stadium, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1949-07-12 | W | Jesse Bradshaw | TKO | 2 | MacArthur Stadium, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1949-07-21 | W | Sammy Daniels | UD | 8 | Bennett's Field, Utica, New York, U.S. |
| 1949-08-02 | L | Johnny Cunningham | SD | 8 | Bennett's Field, Utica, New York, U.S. |
| 1949-08-17 | W | Johnny Cunningham | PTS | 8 | MacArthur Stadium, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1949-09-07 | W | Tony DiPelino | UD | 8 | Red Wing Stadium, Rochester, New York, U.S. |
| 1949-09-30 | W | Johnny Parker | RTD | 2 | State Fair Coliseum, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1950-01-10 | W | Sonny Jim Hampton | UD | 8 | Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, New York, U.S. |
| 1950-01-24 | W | Cassell Tate | MD | 8 | Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, New York, U.S. |
| 1950-02-07 | W | Adrien Mourguiart | TKO | 7 | Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, New York, U.S. |
| 1950-03-06 | W | Lew Jenkins | MD | 10 | State Fair Coliseum, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1950-03-27 | L | Mike Koballa | UD | 8 | Eastern Parkway Arena, New York City, New York, U.S. |
| 1950-04-12 | D | Gaby Ferland | PTS | 10 | Coliseum Arena, New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. |
| 1950-05-05 | W | Gaby Ferland | KO | 1 | Coliseum Arena, New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. |
| 1950-06-21 | W | Guillermo Gimenez | RTD | 7 | Municipal Auditorium, New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. |
| 1950-07-31 | W | Guillermo Gimenez | RTD | 8 | Coliseum Arena, New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. |
| 1950-08-28 | L | Eddie Giosa | PTS | 10 | Municipal Auditorium, New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. |
| 1950-12-15 | L | Vic Cardell | SD | 10 | Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S. |
| 1951-03-09 | W | Floro Hita | PTS | 8 | State Fair Coliseum, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1951-04-12 | W | Eddie Giosa | UD | 10 | State Fair Coliseum, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1951-05-29 | L | Lester Felton | UD | 10 | State Fair Coliseum, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1951-06-18 | L | Johnny Cesario | UD | 10 | McConnell Field, Utica, New York, U.S. |
| 1951-09-17 | W | Shamus McCray | PTS | 8 | War Memorial Auditorium, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1951-09-26 | L | Ross Virgo | UD | 10 | Municipal Auditorium, New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. |
| 1952-02-04 | W | Emmett Norris | UD | 10 | South Main Street Armory, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| 1952-02-28 | W | Jimmy Cousins | UD | 8 | Armory, Akron, Ohio, U.S. |
| 1952-03-31 | W | Jackie O'Brien | MD | 10 | South Main Street Armory, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| 1952-05-29 | D | Chuck Davey | PTS | 10 | War Memorial Auditorium, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1952-07-16 | L | Chuck Davey | UD | 10 | Chicago Stadium, Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| 1952-08-20 | L | Billy Graham | UD | 10 | Chicago Stadium, Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| 1952-09-22 | W | Baby Williams | UD | 10 | Auditorium, Miami Beach, Florida, U.S. |
| 1952-10-20 | W | Sammy Giuliani | KO | 3 | War Memorial Auditorium, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1952-11-18 | W | Chuck Foster | TKO | 5 | Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, New York, U.S. |
| 1953-01-12 | W | Ike Williams | UD | 10 | War Memorial Auditorium, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1953-02-28 | W | Vic Cardell | UD | 10 | Sports Arena, Toledo, Ohio, U.S. |
| 1953-04-11 | W | Carmine Fiore | TKO | 9 | War Memorial Auditorium, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1953-06-06 | W | Billy Graham | UD | 12 | Memorial Stadium, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1953-07-25 | D | Billy Graham | PTS | 12 | War Memorial Auditorium, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1953-09-18 | L | Kid Gavilan | SD | 15 | War Memorial Auditorium, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1953-11-28 | W | Johnny Cunningham | KO | 4 | Civic Auditorium, Toledo, Ohio, U.S. |
| 1953-12-19 | D | Pierre Langlois | PTS | 10 | War Memorial Auditorium, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1954-01-16 | D | Italo Scortichini | PTS | 10 | Dinner Key Auditorium, Coconut Grove, Florida, U.S. |
| 1954-04-17 | W | Pierre Langlois | UD | 10 | War Memorial Auditorium, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1954-05-15 | W | Italo Scortichini | UD | 10 | War Memorial Auditorium, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1954-06-26 | W | Al Andrews | UD | 10 | War Memorial Auditorium, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1954-08-17 | W | Ronnie Harper | TKO | 2 | Fort Wayne, Indiana, U.S. |
| 1954-09-10 | W | Carmine Fiore | UD | 10 | Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S. |
| 1954-10-15 | W | Allie Gronik | UD | 10 | War Memorial Auditorium, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1954-12-16 | W | Ronnie Harper | RTD | 3 | Armory, Akron, Ohio, U.S. |
| 1955-01-21 | W | Peter Müller | UD | 10 | War Memorial Auditorium, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1955-06-10 | W | Tony DeMarco | TKO | 12 | War Memorial Auditorium, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1955-08-10 | W | Italo Scortichini | UD | 10 | Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S. |
| 1955-09-07 | W | Gil Turner | MD | 10 | War Memorial Auditorium, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1955-11-30 | W | Tony DeMarco | TKO | 12 | Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| 1956-03-14 | L | Johnny Saxton | UD | 15 | Chicago Stadium, Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| 1956-09-12 | W | Johnny Saxton | TKO | 9 | War Memorial Auditorium, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1957-02-22 | W | Johnny Saxton | TKO | 2 | Arena, Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. |
| 1957-05-16 | W | Harold Jones | TKO | 4 | Auditorium, Portland, Oregon, U.S. |
| 1957-09-23 | W | Sugar Ray Robinson | SD | 15 | Yankee Stadium, New York City, New York, U.S. |
| 1958-03-25 | L | Sugar Ray Robinson | SD | 15 | Chicago Stadium, Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| 1958-09-05 | W | Art Aragon | TKO | 8 | Wrigley Field, Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| 1959-04-01 | W | Arley Seifer | TKO | 3 | Bell Auditorium, Augusta, Georgia, U.S. |
| 1959-08-28 | L | Gene Fullmer | TKO | 14 | Cow Palace, Daly City, California, U.S. |
| 1960-06-29 | L | Gene Fullmer | TKO | 12 | Derks Field, Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S. |
| 1961-01-07 | W | Gaspar Ortega | UD | 10 | Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S. |
| 1961-03-11 | W | Don Jordan | UD | 10 | War Memorial Auditorium, Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| 1961-04-22 | L | Paul Pender | UD | 15 | Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. |
Showing 79 of 79 recorded fights · last updated 2026-10-11. Imported record tables are not independently verified and may be incomplete. Early-era logs include newspaper decisions (NWS), which are not counted in the official totals above.
Record notes
Fight record last retrieved: 2026-10-11. Title histories remain subject to archival review.
Historical-era totals differ between record-keeping conventions (newspaper decisions, exhibitions).
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