Editing Rocky Marciano (section)

==Legacy==
[[File:EisenhowerRockyJoe.jpg|thumb|Marciano and [[Joe DiMaggio]] visiting President [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]] at the White House in 1953]]
Marciano holds the record with heavyweight [[Brian Nielsen (boxer)|Brian Nielsen]] for the longest undefeated streak by a heavyweight.<ref name="nbcsports">{{cite web |date=September 18, 2009 |title=The fans' top 5 greatest boxers of all time |url=https://www.nbcsports.com/fans-top-5-greatest-boxers-all-time#slide-3 |url-status=dead |access-date=August 26, 2021 |work=NBC Sports |archive-date=June 11, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210611101454/https://www.nbcsports.com/fans-top-5-greatest-boxers-all-time#slide-3 }}</ref> He is also the only world heavyweight champion to go [[List of undefeated world boxing champions|undefeated throughout his professional career]]. Although heavyweight champion [[Gene Tunney]] never suffered a defeat at heavyweight and retired as champion, he lost one career fight at light heavyweight, and his longest win streak was 32, with his overall record being 82-1-4(D)-1(NC). Marciano also has the highest knockout percentage of any heavyweight champion in history (over the period of a career) with 87.76%. In his professional career, he was only knocked down twice. The first occurred in his first title fight against Jersey Joe Walcott, and the second occurred against Archie Moore.

Despite his perfect record and retiring as champion, Marciano has sometimes been criticized for the allegedly low quality of opposition he faced during his career.<ref>Durant, John. 1971. ''The Heavyweight Champions''. Hastings House.</ref> At the time of his first fight with Roland La Starza, some experts believed it was La Starza and not Marciano who deserved the decision.<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VcKGH5Oju1gC&dq=la+starza+marciano&pg=PA49 | isbn=9780313379734 | title=Boxing in America: An Autopsy | date=June 21, 2012 | publisher=Abc-Clio }}</ref>

These criticisms notwithstanding, over the decades Marciano has been ranked highly in several all-time boxing lists. In December 1962, a ''Ring'' poll of 40 boxing experts placed Marciano as the seventh-best heavyweight of all time. Boxing historian Charlie Rose rated Marciano as the eight-best heavyweight of all time in 1968,<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.boxingforum24.com/threads/charley-rose-top-10-in-the-8-traditional-divisions.200910/ | title=Charley Rose top 10 in the 8 Traditional divisions }}</ref> while John McCallum's survey of boxing historians and writers listed him as the ninth-best all-timer in the division.<ref>[https://archive.today/20120707091001/http://boxinguniverse.yuku.com/topic/87 Heavyweight lists from 3 historical heavyweights. in Boxing History Forum]. Boxinguniverse.yuku.com. Retrieved on August 9, 2012.</ref> In 1971, [[Nat Fleischer]], a boxing historian and founder of [[The Ring (magazine)|''The Ring'']], named Marciano as the 10th all-time greatest [[heavyweight]] champion.<ref>{{cite web
 |work = The Ring Online
 |title = Clay An All-Time Top 10? Definitely No!|author=Nat Fleischer
 |url = http://www.thering-online.com/ringpages/boxinghistory.html#clayalltime
 |date = September 1971
 |access-date = January 18, 2007 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070113104323/http://www.thering-online.com/ringpages/boxinghistory.html#clayalltime |archive-date = January 13, 2007}}</ref>

In 1998, ''The Ring'' named Marciano as the sixth greatest heavyweight champion ever. In 2002, ''The Ring'' placed him at number 12 on the list of the 80 Best Fighters of the Last 80 Years. In 2003, ''The Ring'' rated Marciano number 14 on the list of 100 greatest punchers of all time. In 2005, he was named the fifth greatest heavyweight of all time by the International Boxing Research Organization.<ref>{{cite web
 |work         = International Boxing Research Organization
 |title        = All Time Rankings
 |url          = http://www.ibroresearch.com/All%20Time%20Rankings.htm
 |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20051221042505/http://www.ibroresearch.com/All%20Time%20Rankings.htm
 |url-status     = dead
 |archive-date = December 21, 2005
 |date         = March 2005
 |access-date   = January 18, 2007
}}</ref> In 2007, on ESPN.com's list of the 50 Greatest Boxers of All Time, Marciano was ranked number 14, and was the 5th highest ranked heavyweight, behind (in order) [[Muhammad Ali]], [[Joe Louis]], [[Jack Johnson (boxer)|Jack Johnson]], and [[Jack Dempsey]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.espn.com/sports/boxing/greatest/featureVideo?page=greatest1120 |title=Who's the Greatest? |work=ESPN |last=Mulvaney |first=Kieran |access-date=August 26, 2021 }}</ref>

Marciano's punch was tested and it was featured in the December 1963 issue of ''Boxing Illustrated'': "Marciano's knockout blow packs more explosive energy than an armor-piercing bullet and represents as much energy as would be required to spot lift 1000 pounds one foot off the ground."<ref>[http://www.kolumbus.fi/Luodes/Rocky1.JPG A picture of Marciano's punch test at Kolumbus.fi] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080228150256/http://www.kolumbus.fi/Luodes/Rocky1.JPG |date=February 28, 2008 }}. Retrieved on August 9, 2012.</ref><ref>[http://www.kolumbus.fi/Luodes/Rocky2.JPG A further picture of Marciano's punch test at Kolumbus.fi] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080228150306/http://www.kolumbus.fi/Luodes/Rocky2.JPG |date=February 28, 2008 }}. Retrieved on August 9, 2012.</ref>

Marciano was named fighter of the year by ''The Ring'' three times. His three championship fights between 1952 and 1954 were named fights of the year by the magazine. Marciano won the [[Boxing Writers Association of America|BWAA]] [[Sugar Ray Robinson Award]] (then known as the Edward J. Neil Trophy) in 1952. In 2006, an ESPN poll voted Marciano's 1952 championship bout against Walcott as the greatest knockout ever. Marciano also received the [[Hickok Belt]] for top professional athlete of the year in 1952. [[Murray Goodman]] later recalled that Ray Hickok, founder of the award, also presented Rocky with a hundred miniature boxing gloves, which Rocky was selling a week later for $1 a pair.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AA1XPF4ZM2o&t=1665 In this Corner – Boxing's Legendary Heavyweights (Documentary)], HBO.</ref> In 1955, he was voted the second most important American athlete of the year.

Marciano is a member of the [[International Boxing Hall of Fame]] and the World Boxing Hall of Fame.

A bronze statue of Marciano was planned for a 2009 completion date in his hometown of [[Brockton, Massachusetts]], as a gift to the city by the [[World Boxing Council]]. The artist, Mario Rendon, head of the Instituto Universitario de las Bellas Artes in [[Colima]], Mexico, was selected to sculpt the statue.<ref>Papadopoulos, Maria. (July 10, 2008) [http://www.enterprisenews.com/homepage/x875597641/Where-to-put-Rocky Where to put Rocky? – Brockton, MA – The Enterprise]. Enterprisenews.com. Retrieved on 2012-08-09.</ref> After years of delays in the planning stages,<ref>Papadopoulos, Maria. (November 18, 2010) [http://www.tauntongazette.com/archive/x2105639313/Brockton-s-Rocky-Marciano-Statue-Committee-wants-meeting-with-World-Boxing-Council Brockton's Rocky Marciano Statue Committee wants meeting with World Boxing Council – Taunton, MA – ''Taunton Daily Gazette''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110929182020/http://www.tauntongazette.com/archive/x2105639313/Brockton-s-Rocky-Marciano-Statue-Committee-wants-meeting-with-World-Boxing-Council |date=September 29, 2011 }}. Tauntongazette.com. Retrieved on 2012-08-09.</ref> the groundbreaking for the statue was held on April 1, 2012, on the grounds of Brockton High School.<ref>[https://archive.today/20130122081601/http://www.enterprisenews.com/rocky/x760613880/Brockton-breaks-ground-for-Rocky-Marciano-statue Brockton breaks ground for Rocky Marciano statue – Brockton, MA – The Enterprise]. Enterprisenews.com (April 1, 2012). Retrieved on 2012-08-09.</ref> The statue was officially unveiled on September 23, 2012, which was the 60th anniversary of Marciano winning the world heavyweight title.<ref>{{cite web | title=Rocky Marciano Statue | url=http://www.brockton.ma.us/Visitors/rocky-marciano-statue | access-date=November 18, 2014 | archive-date=November 4, 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181104214037/http://www.brockton.ma.us/Visitors/rocky-marciano-statue | url-status=dead }}</ref> A bronze statue of Marciano was also erected in [[Ripa Teatina]], Italy,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.italyheritage.com/great-italians/sport/marciano-rocky.htm|title=Rocky Marciano|website=www.italyheritage.com}}</ref> to celebrate the birthplace of Marciano's father.