

He lost the title in 1957 to Gene Fullmer, who knocked him down for the first time since LaMotta sent him to the floor six years earlier. He returned to the ring in 1955, out of shape and sluggish, but still good enough to regain the middleweight title. Robinson retired in 1952, and went on to try his hand as a dancer and bandleader in his adopted hometown of Harlem. The 1951 fight was portrayed in Martin Scorsese's 1980 LaMotta biopic Raging Bull. Valentine’s Day Massacre, during his famed 91-fight winning streak. Robinson, however, would defeat LaMotta in each of their next five fights, including a 1951 drubbing dubbed the St. In their first of six fights, he knocked Robinson down and out-pointed him on the judges’ scorecards. LaMotta was a feared puncher with an iron jaw, and he outweighed Robinson by 16 pounds. Robinson did not lose a professional fight until 1950, when he faced Jake LaMotta as a middleweight. After being convinced to enter the ring, Robinson defeated Doyle, who sustained injuries in the match that led to his death. The next year, at the height of his boxing career, Robinson had a premonition before a fight with Jimmy Doyle that he might kill his opponent. Robinson won his first championship in 1946 when he defeated Tommy Bell for the welterweight title, which he held for five years. He won that tournament and, still using the assumed name, turned professional in 1940, winning his debut bout–the first of 40 consecutive victories. Smith got his boxing name when he borrowed his friend Ray Robinson’s Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) card to enter a boxing tournament at the age of 16. Sugar Ray Robinson was born Walker Smith, Jr. No less an authority than heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali has said, “My idol will always be Sugar Ray Robinson, who was, and remains, one of the best pound-for-pound fighters to have ever lived in this century.” Robinson is considered by many to be the greatest prizefighter in history. It was the fifth and final title of his career. On March 25, 1958, Sugar Ray Robinson defeats Carmen Basilio to regain the middleweight championship.
