Punchers from the Past: Nino La Rocca (Cheid Tidjani Sidebe)

Nino La Rocca(Cheid Tidjani Sidebe)

Born: 8 April, 1959 Nouadhibou, Mauritania.

Record: 80 fights, 74 wins (54 by KO/TKO), 6 losses (3 by KO/TKO).

Division: Welterweight

Stance: Orthodox

Titles: European Welterweight champion, WBC International Welterweight champion

Major Contests

Scored wins over: Pat Thomas, Jimmy Heair, Steve Gregory, Bobby Joe Young*, Pete Ranzany*, Manning Galloway**, Harold Volbrecht*, Kirkland Laing

Lost to: Gillers Elbilia*, Donal Curry**, Jerome Kinney, Rene Jacquot**, Antonie Fernandez, Luis Garcia*

**Past/ future holder of a version of a world title

* Unsuccessful challenger for a version of a world title

La Rocca’s story

La Rocca was born Cheid Tidjani Sidebe in what was then French Werst Africa. His father was a Malian serving as a paratrooper in the French Colonial Army and his mother was Nunzia La Rocca a Sicilian. His father abandoned La Rocca and his 17-year-old mother and his two brothers and La Rocca was brought up in Morocco with an uncle who had been an amateur boxer. As a teenager he travelled to Paris and although he probably fought as an amateur there is no record of him doing so before he had his professional fight there in September 1978 at the age of 19. After four wins he moved to Italy in 1979. Under the guidance of promoter Rocco Agostino and mentored by Bruno Arcari he quickly became successful scoring 15 wins in 1980, 14 in 1981 and 9 in 1982. With his speedy footwork, great reflexes, fast hands and punching power he became a huge favourite  as he beat experienced fighters such as Pat Thomas and 124-fight veteran Jimmy Heair. In 1983 he extended his winning run with ten more wins beating Bobby Joe Young, Pete Ranzany, Manning Galloway and Harold Volbrecht rising to No 2 in the WBC ratings. La Rocca had difficulty in obtaining Italian citizenship but he finally succeeded in 1983 which allowed him to fight for the European title against the champion Gilles Elbilia. La Rocca was briefly down in the first and both boxers were cut with La Rocca’s the worst and the fight was stopped in the sixth round with La Rocca suffering his first loss after 56 consecutive wins. Despite that set back after two more wins he challenged Don Curry for the IBF and WBA welterweight titles in September 1984. For five rounds La Rocca frustrated Curry boxing cleverly on the back foot countering and stepping in to score with bursts of quick, accurate punches. After five rounds one judge had the bout even, one had Curry two points ahead and another Curry one point in front. In the sixth La Rocca was carrying a cut over his right eye and was badly shaken by a burst of punches and sent down heavily. He beat the count but was knocked down again and the fight was stopped. Back-to-back losses against Jerome Kinney and Rene Jacquot derailed La Rocca but he rebounded with 16 wins collecting the vacant European title with a decision over Kirkland Laing but that was the end of the good times. He was floored and outpointed by 34-1-1 Frenchman Antoine Fernandez in December 1989 losing his European title and lost on a disqualification against unbeaten Venezuelan Luis Garcia. La Rocca admitted the hard-punching Garcia had nailed him with a heavy punch in the first and from then on he was only looking to survive by constantly holding which led to his disqualification. That contest was held on La Rocca’s 31^st birthday and was his last fight.

Five years later, at the age of 36, he tried to return to the ring. Italian law then prohibited a boxer over 35 from competing as a professional so La Rocca changed to the French Federation who allowed professionals to box up to the age of 40. A fight was set with former French champion Pascal Lustenberg for 8 April 1995 but at the last minute permission for La Rocca to fight was withdrawn. That was not the end of the story. It had taken along time for La Rocca to be granted Italian citizenship until the then Italian president Sandro Pertini stepped in and helped La Rocca get citizenship in 1983. In 1998 La Rocca chained himself to the railing of the Palazzo Chigi, the official residence of the Italian Prime Minister, in protest against again not being allowed to box. That protest was unsuccessful but he once again chained himself to the Palazzo Chigi railing after having failed the exam to become a boxing trainer and appealed for a post in boxing.

Between his purses and sponsorship La Rocca earned a lot but spent a lot. He loved partying and women. He has been married three times, the first to a porn actress, and has one child by each of the three women. All three marriages ended badly.

Once nicknamed “The Italian Ali”  he lives mainly from a pension that the Italian government awards to outstanding artists and athletes.