Boxing has always been a brutal sport, one where injuries are unfortunately inevitable and careers can be cut short in an instant. In more recent years, steps have been taken to protect fighters from life altering damage, but when your job involves taking repeated blows to the head, safety can only go so far. Now, imagine the sport in the nineteen sixties, an era with fewer regulations, tougher fighters, and
bitter rivalries. Add in personal insults, heated emotions, and two men with everything to prove it wasn't just another fight, it was personal, and in this case, it also turned deadly. This is the story one of the most infamous and tragic boxing matches in history. Benny Perett versus Emil Griffith the Third.
My name's Ben, I'm Nicole and you're listening to Wicked and Grim, a true crime podcast.
The following podcast material intend for a matual audience listener discretion. It's a bit of a different show today. Following up on last week's episode that was quite a brutal case, we are talking about another tragic story, but one where you can argue there may not have even been a crime committed at all.
Okay, I'm intrigued.
Are you?
You got me intrigued?
Color you intrigued? Yeah? What color would intrigued? Because you know they say green with envy? You know orange yellow is cowardly, so orange is envy? No or sorry intrigued?
I was like, where the fuck did envy come from?
I've lost my train anyways, So yeah, orange would be orange with intrigued with orange?
Okay, that doesn't work. I don't know, I don't know.
I think that's an outdated system anyways. But regardless, it's an interesting case. That was my point. But I also wanted to say one more thing before we really get into this case. It's a big old thank you to the people who subscribe and support us over on Patreon. And this week we had Amber Robinson, Jen Franzen, Tracy d Mallory, Kovalevski and Hassan all sign up and they're getting that good good access to Patreon. Steph that good, good,
good good, you know, get all that good good. Oh man, Okay, what would you would you not describe it as good good? What would you describe it as well?
Pretty good? We just did a pre show and we talked about some shit we did. We talked about good I feel spaghetti meat Pauls. We talked about that we did, and how I'm off work right now, which not doing very interestingly. But yeah, they get a little bit more like deep dive into they know us more. I guess you could say, touche. Yeah.
Plus they get that exclusive episode at the end of the month, which we got to figure out because that's coming up too.
That is what date is it today? The seventeenth of March seventeenth. Oh for a minute there, I was like, is that the right month? Holy shit, I need to go back to work. My brain is not functioning.
Yeah, we're almost three months into twenty twenty five. Let that reality sink in.
Yeah.
I had an existential crisis with that thought the other day. So did you really a little bit?
I was like, holy fuck, Well, I feel like the beginning of the month sucks. Sorry, the beginning of the year sucks compared to the middle and end generally.
I mean, summer is on its way, so we'll we'll enjoy twenty twenty five when the sun shining and it's nice and bol But for now, let's talk about this story, shall we. Let's do her so boxing in the nineteen fifties and the early nineteen sixties was one of the most exciting and popular sports in the world. It was known as the Golden Age of boxing, when fighters were seen as larger than life figures, Championship bouts were major national events, and boxing was deeply ingrained in American culture.
The sport was at its peak, both in terms of public interest and the level of competition. The fighters were just outstanding. In the nineteen fifties. In particular, it was dominated by legendary fighters who were still are still celebrated today. The heavyweight division had Rocky Marciano, the undefeated champion who retired in nineteen fifty six with a perfect record of
forty nine wins and zero losses. Not to mention this individual by the name of Rocky Marciano, he inspired the fictional character of Rocky Balboa, including his name and his
fighting style. And just before we hit record in this episode, I said, this is a boxing episode, and Nicole's like, you mean like Rocky bal like Adrian, yeah, and you were referencing Rocky and I'm like, what do you mean Rocky, And You're like, h Balboa, like the only Rocky, And I'm like what about Rocky Marciano and you're like, no, Rocky Balboa. Rocky Marciano is the original Rocky. He inspired Rocky Balboa. So it was kind of funny that that happened,
But I digress. In the lighterweight classes, fighters like Sugar Ray Robinson, considered by many to be the greatest boxer of all time, and Jake Lamota were huge draws. I don't know if I said Jake's last name right. I'm not a huge boxing individual so but regardless, During this era, boxer boxing was structured around the New York State Athletics Commission known as the NYSAC and the National Boxing Association n BA. Not what we know today is the end
okay now. There were few weight divisions and only one world championship per division, making the title fights extremely prestigious. The sport was raw, it was brutal, and while they were rules in place, fights were often allowed to continue longer than they really honestly should have. This was also a time when boxing was deeply connected to organized crime. The mob had strong influence over many fighters. Managers, and
even referees fixed fights. Shady dealings and pressure from promoters were actually fairly common, and fighters often had little control over their careers.
Holy shit, just listening to that, I'm like, wow, things have changed. But then I'm also have they yeah, you know, you think they have. But then I think maybe people are just better at hiding it now.
Probably now. By the nineteen fifties, television brought boxing into homes across America. Gillette's Friday Night Fights became a household event, showcasing some of the best boxers of all time. The exposure made boxing more lucrative, with more fighters getting the chance to compete for titles and earn national recognition. However, the increased number of televised fights also oversaturated the sport
and led to more brutal matchups. Boxers were sometimes pushed to fight too, often taking more punishment than they should have, not even fully recovering before entering the ring.
Once again, yikes.
Now, back then, you know, it was like you good to go, sport, I got this, just let me add them right. Nowadays it's like doctor analyzes you. You get a cat scan, you get an MRI, and.
It's like you cleared.
Yeah, you're concussed and you've got to be cleared. And it's like you're out for the next like two years like that sort of thing. They didn't really know back then the extent of these injuries like we do today.
Oh yikes, that's not good.
Yeah, and not to mention whether then you were not fighter. Safety wasn't much of a priority, so it was common for boxers to suffer long term health effects in their careers as a result.
Well, the crowd probably went wild, like the more brutal you know, the matches got and stuff, right, So.
Yeah, it gets exciting, right yeah. Now, one of these boxers in his golden era was a man by the name of Benny Peret. His nickname was Kid so Benny Kid Peret now Benny was born on March fourteenth, nineteen thirty seven in Santa Clara, Cuba. He grew up in a tough environment where money was scarce an opportunity was rather limited. Like many young men in his situation, he saw boxing as a way out. His journey into boxing
was was shaped by more necessity rather than choice, let's say. Now, growing up in Santa Clara, he lived in poverty like many young men of his time, and life was tough. He had to work from an early age to help support his family. He didn't have the luxury school or former training any sort of profession, so we needed a way to make a living, and that's you know. Of course, when boxing came in, boxing was common. It was a common escape for Cubans who wanted to rise above their circumstances,
and Benny was no exception. He first got into fight simply as a way to prove himself in rough neighborhoods, you know, and defending himself around where he grew up. But over time he realized he had a natural ability to take his hits and keep going. He was tougher than most, with an iron chin and relentless endurance. He started training at local gyms, learning the fundamental fundamentals, but he was never the most technical of fighters. What set
him apart was his heart and his determination. Before long, he entered amateur competitions, fighting amongst other young Cuban boxers trying to make a name for themselves. His scrappy, aggressive
style caught the attention of trainers and promoters alike. He had a natural toughness, toughness as I mentioned, and it made him really stand out amongst everyone He fought, and eventually he made the decision to turn professional now to truly make it into boxing, he knew he had to leave Cuba, so he relocated to New York City, where boxing was thriving, and quickly became or certain quickly began building his new career.
Go Benny go eh.
His work ethic and willingness to fight anyone that they put in front of him put him on a fast track to the top, and within a few years he was world champion.
Oh wow.
Yeah. It was on May twenty seventh, nineteen sixty that he achieved that dream, defeating Don Jordan to become the world welterweight champion. But in boxing's success is never guaranteed for long, and in April of nineteen sixty one, he would defend his title for the first time and fight a man named Emil Griffith, a talented and powerful fighter for the first time now. Emil Griffith was born on February third, nineteen thirty eight, in Saint Thomas, Us, Virgin Islands,
one of eight children. His early life was marked by hardship, and, like many large families in the Caribbean at the time, there wasn't much money to go around. His mother, Emilda eventually left the Virgin Islands to find work within the country on the mainland of the United States, settling in the Big Apple itself, New York City. She planned to send for her children when she could, and eventually she did. She sent for a Meal when he was just twelve years old, to join her over in New York to
start his new life. Now, when he arrived, he had no real direction. At first, he had no plans of becoming a boxer. In fact, he was more interested in fashion and design. He found work in a hat factory, shaping and steaming women's hats. However, fate would step in one day when his boss, Howie Albert, noticed Emial's athletic build amongst the workers. Albert, you see, was a boxing trainer on the side and thought the young man might
have potential as a fighter given his frame. So one day he took a meal to a local gym, handed him a pair of gloves, and told him to try out boxing. A meal, always up for a challenge, went along with it, even though he wasn't sure if it was for him. He wasn't much of a fighter, but as soon as he got in the ring, it was clear he had something special. He was naturally fast, strong, and coordinated, with a powerful punch and a smooth, graceful
movement that made him the fighter he would become. With no previous experience, he impressed trainers and quickly fell in love with the sport. Once he started training seriously, a Meal's raw talent turned into skill. He fought as an amateur boxer, learning the fundamentals and honing his technique. He
even won the nineteen fifty eight New York's Golden Gloves Championship. Now, later that year he turned professional under the management of Howie and would become both his trainer and his mentor. In just three years, he went from a hat factory worker to a top contender in the world welterweight division.
Holy in three years that seems like fast.
Yeah, it was a quick rise through the ranks, and yeah it would lead to a title shot. So this is by early nineteen sixty one, Benny Perett was at the top of the welterweight division. At this time, he had just won that title. Okay, he's now the welterweight champion. And he was tough, aggressive, and he never backed down from a challenge. And his next opponent was Emil Griffith as we talked about being a rising star, so he had a completely different style, faster and more technical impact,
real knockout power. But both of them were real, real threats to each other. The fight began, but sorry. The fight between the two men was scheduled for April first, nineteen sixty one, at Miami Beach Conventional Hall. As a defending champion, Benny was confident, but many experts believed Meal had the tools to take him down. It seemed like a big match, and both men had their own skills
and reasons why fans thought that they would be the victor. Now, the day finally came and the tension in the air was high as fans yelled from the stands and people turned on TVs and radios across the nation tuning in. Both men entered the ring and the match began with the ring of a bell. From the opening moments, it was clear that Emil had the edge on speed and skill. He moved around the ring smoothly, landing clean punches while
staying out of Benny's reach. Now, Benny, true to his style, kept coming forward, trying to turn the fight into a slugfest, but Emil refused to let it happen. He stuck to his game plan, using sharp combinations and footwork to stay in control. As the rounds went on, Emil's punches started taking the toll on Benny, and by the thirteenth round, Benny was visibly slowing down and Emil saw his moment.
The thirteenth round, Hey, that is just crazy. How many rounds are in boxing?
Yes, it's wild.
Oh the damage that you can do in that time.
Now, he landed a massive right upper cup, snapping Benny's head back and sending him crashing to the canvas. The referee started the count. It was over. Benny couldn't get up. Emil Griffith had just won the fight by knockout and claimed his first world title. He was the welterweight champion now. Despite the loss, Benny wasn't one to back down. A rematch was immediately offered. On the night of the first match,
or at least discussed. Emil's corner commended Benny as a fighter and his skill and said that they would welcome another bout between the two of them. Just six months later, on September thirtieth, nineteen sixty one, he officially challenged Emil again in a rematch at Madison Square Garden. This time, though, he fought a different fight, staying more composed and outworking a Meal out in the later rounds and after fifteen
grueling rounds. This time, Benny would be the victor as he won the fight by split decision, reclaiming his title in a controversial decision that many believe a meal should have resulted in victory.
Okay, So, but split decision means that some judges felt the other way, right.
Yeah, I'm pretty sure. Again, I'm not a huge boxing individual, but I know, like mixed martial arts, there's usually three judges, so each judge scores about and then you know there's it's like best of three. Basically, two judges voted.
For Benny and one exactly.
That's split decision unanimous is all judges vote for the same person? Okay, Okay, Now, this is exactly what everyone in the boxing industry dreamed of, hyped up fighters on both like, you know, each side of the spectrum, different fighters they're both winning about and going into obviously what would be a third fight, right.
Yeah, well yeah, you have to talk like it's a tie right now.
Really exactly and some people are saying, this guy should have won, and other people are like, well, this guy did win. You know, it's a line in the sand. It's a promoter's dream.
A lot of money is being made.
One hundred percent. So it's no surprise that since there was, you know, of course, this whole tension building up, that there would be a third match where everything would come to a head.
Oh boy.
They would meet again in March nineteen sixty two for the match, a fight that would go down in history. However, this time it would go down in history for all the wrong reasons. Now, we can't talk about the fight, that third fight between the two of them, without first identifying a few more events leading up to it. See, Benny entered the fight already worn down from an unusually
ruling schedule. Just three months earlier, in December of nineteen sixty one, he had challenged Gene Fomer for the middleweight championship, which means he moved up a weight class, so he had to put on weight to fight this guy who was naturally bigger than him.
Okay, I'm surprised that he would do that.
This is something that fighters do. They changed weight classes and try for that other championship.
Like I get that, but when you're kind of focusing on this other match, and I'm surprised they would have a fight in between. Yeah, is what I'm saying.
Well, back in this day, you know what, that's what they did. Yeah, true, Now, Fuller sorry, Fulmer brutalized him. This is where he sits naturally. This is his weight class, his weight division, and he's the champion. So I mean he's bumping up to try and fight him and challenge him, and he got destroyed. He was stopped in the tenth round in a one sided beating. Yead of taking time off to recover from that, though, Benny immediately signed on
to defend the welterweight title against a Meal. This meant he was still recovering from the damage that he'd taken against Fulmer in that middleweight fight, making him far more vulnerable than he'd been in previous fights.
Shit, he needed more time in between.
Yeah. Now. The tension between Benny and Emal also exploded on the night before their fight. So this is the weigh ins. They weigh in and sure they make their weight class. And this is what you know, Like the press, you don't take the photos they stamp face to face sort of thing, and when they stood face to face for that stare down, things reached a boiling point in
tension that you could cut, probably with a spoon. Like seriously, Benny mocked Emial's masculinity, and in front of everyone called him quote marri con, probably butchering that it's a Spanish word, which is a homophobic Spanish slur. And though I do know condone the use of this word, I do feel it as imperative to this story to say it in its exact translation, to get the full understanding of what sort of slurry's being called and the state of mind
when he was being called this. So for that reason I will be saying it marri Con means faggot.
Oh okay, So Benny, Benny was the one that called a meal this a meal?
This, yes, okay, and in front of press, in front of everybody, now.
Like unnecessary, there's no reason for it. Really.
Well, see, Emil had long been rumored to be bisexual and like a hyper masculine world of boxing. Not only that, but we are in the early nineteen sixties as well, when it's extremely frowned upon. This was seriously insulting. It was a pure demeaning act to say in front of everyone, and it enraged a Meal so so much so that he actually had to be held back from attacking Benny on the spot.
But honestly just going to fire him up.
Really well, it really did, because he wanted to fight him then and there, and he was looking forward to stepping in the ring. And Emial had every intention to punish Benny for what he said. And that is a quote directly from a Meal himself.
Yeah, well, I mean like he insulted him. It kind of makes sense. I don't think that would have been in Benny's benefit whatsoever.
I agree now. Promoters, of course took advantage and played up the bad blood between the two fighters, and Madison Square Garden was packed with thousands of fans eager to see the third match, the ultimate grudge match, take place between the two The fight was also broadcast live on national television, making it one of the most highly anticipated bouts of the year. When the bell rang for the first round between the two fighters, Benny was immediately exhausted.
He had already been overworked, having fought five times in the past year alone, including the punishing loss to Folmer dang he was nowhere near the top of his game and in his mind, sorry, his mind and his body were just drained. But he was still determined to prove himself. He was still going to go out, and he was still determined to fight to his full extent and keep that belt under his name. A Meal, on the other hand,
was focused and angry. He was still bitter about the split decision lost with their second fight, and now had a personal vendetta after the way in slurs being slung his way. A Meal came out sharp, landing quick punches while moving around the ring. Benny, however, was aggressive from the start, pushing forward and trying to rough a Meal up in the middle. Unlike their first two fights, where a Meal had dictated the pace early, this time, Benny seemed determined to set that tone and let Emil know
he wasn't going to be backing down. By the third round, Benny managed to land a hard punch that stunned a Meal, forcing him to take a step back. The moment sent a surge of excitement through Madison Square Garden and the crowd as Benny appeared beginning the upper hand in what looked like a huge moment for the champion. A Meal fell against the ropes and Benny raised his hand as if celebrating a knockdown. However, the ref ruled it a slip and the fight continued. In the next few rounds,
a Meal recovered quickly and started to take control. By round four, he was landing the cleaner and harder punches, using his footwork to avoid Benny's pressure. A Meal's strategy was clear, work the body, slow Benny down and look for opening to land powerful shots to the head. Benny, though still pressing forward, was beginning to slow and show signs of his fatigue his movements. His movements not as
sharp as they were earlier in the fight. In round five, e Meal shots started snapping Benny's head back more frequently. Champion still had his signature toughness absorbing the blows, continuing to move forward and soak him up, but Emil's punches were having a clear effect. The challenger was landing a bigger, more effective amount of shots, and the tide of the
fight was beginning to shift in his favor. By the sixth round, a Meal was firmly in control, His confidence was growing, and Benny was struggling to mount any real offense. The early fire Benny had shown seemed to be fading as Emil's precise, powerful punches were wearing him down. The referee, Ruby Goldstein, was already keeping a close eye in Benny, but at this stage he was still fighting back enough
to keep the match going. As the fight entered the later rounds, Emil's trainer, Gil Clancy had a simple but ruthless instruction for him, keep throwing punches until Benny either grabbed hold of him or the referee forced him to break took that advice. In the twelfth round, Don Dumfy, calling the fight for ABC, noted how the slowing pace of the match had begun, quoting, this is probably the
tamest round of the entire fight. But within seconds, that calm, that slow pace, that breath within the fight, it was shattered. Emil cornered Benny and unloaded a relentless storm of punches directly to his head. At first, Benny tried to defend himself, his gloves coming up in an attempt to block the incoming blows, but the force of Emal's punches left him reeling, his body sagging sideways against the ropes on his left hand side and his head and upper body slipping out
of the ring. Emil, showing no sign of hesitation, kept Benny pinned in place with his left arm while his free hand continuously hammered his opponent with uppercuts directly to the head. Benny's arms still moved a case, but his
head remained limp over the ropes. Referee Ruby Goldstein later explained that he had seen fighters lean out of the ring like this before to try and avoid clean shots being hit to them, almost like, you know, getting their head out of the way right right, So he has assumed Benny was doing the same, attempting to roll back into position, you know, escape these blows. And to quote him quote, I saw him get his head back into the ring twice, he recalled, convinced Benny was still aware
enough to defend himself. That's what he believed now. Also, in Goldstein's defense, he was behind Emil as well, which means it's harder for him to get a clear view of exactly what's going on. I don't see many people talk about that when I was researching his case, but I do think watching the footage that that is a portion of this that we need to discuss.
Yeah, so, not.
Being able to get a clear look at his face, how fast this all happened, and assuming what he was trying to do culminated in this all occurring in slow motion, the brutal reality of the moment was clear. Emil landed twenty nine unanswered punches, each one slamming into Benny with increasing force. At ringside, Benny's manager, Manuel Alfarzo Alfaro was screaming for the fight to be stopped, but Goldstein never
hurt him. It wasn't until Emil had unleashed nearly thirty consecutive punches that Goldstein, the referee, finally stepped in, pulling Emial away and stopping the fight.
Holy shit, that's too much.
In that moment, Emil was awarded a technical knockout victory. Benny was leaning against the ropes and didn't collapse immediately. He stood there for a brief moment, still kind of on his feet, head hanging over the ropes, and slowly slid back down to the floor, his body crumpling in exhaustion, or as so the announcers kept saying, in exhaustion, in exhaustion,
as doctors and Benny's team rushed to his side. Emil celebrated his victory, raising his arms straight in the air, but within moments, Emil walked back over to check on Benny before announcers could even come over to talk to him. Emil was checking to see if he was okay, but he was quickly pushed away by those surrounding the fighter,
urging him to give him space. Right the crowd, unaware of the full extent of Benny's injuries, cheered the new champion, and Benny was placed on a stretcher and carried out of the ring. Speaking with Don Dumfy in a post fight interview, Emil still had no idea what had happened to his fighter, his opponent to quote him, I'm proud to be the welterweight champion again, and he also said quote, I hope Perett is feeling good, but they won't tell
me how he's doing. In that interview, they're asking him. They kind of showed like a slow motion replay and like asking him, you know, what's going on in your head? What are you doing? But you can see he's looking over at least at the very beginning before he kind of really gets into the interview, he's looking over at a meal or sort Benny laying on the ground in the corner, and he's genuinely concerned. You can see it in his face.
Well, he's probably second guessing that maybe he went too far in like the heat of the moment.
That's most likely what it was. Yeah, now, as the reality of the situation said in Emil tried to visit Benny at the hospital, but he wasn't allowed inside. Distraught, he ran through the streets, chased by insult from people blaming him from what happened, being you know, chased away from the hospital and everything. Benny Perett never regained consciousness. He slipped into a coma that night and died ten
ten days later at Roosevelt Hospital in Manhattan. He was the victim of massive brain hemorrhaging caused by the relentless punishment he endured in the ring. Basically, he was beaten to death.
Yeap, Because hitting in the head is fine hey in boxing.
Oh yeah, that's that's your target. It's what you're trying to do.
Oh that it just seems so brutal, Like of course, shit's like I don't know, of course, shit can go wrong. It just seems so easy to think that it can, you know, but well.
It definitely can, and you have to look at it objectively. And there is one argument that I've seen pointed out for boxing before in this topic, when compared to something like mixed martial arts like the UFC. For example, in the UFC, they knock someone out, it's done. If the guy's knocked down to the men and the referee sees him stumbling, it's done. The fights over, you have a winner, and this guy unfortunately you got knocked out in.
Boxing, but you're not technically unconscious, correct, Okay.
In boxing, same thing. You can be technically not unconscious, but you have ten seconds to get your shit back together and you can get back in there and keep fighting, which means you can be concussed yep, and they're sending you back in to fight again.
Yeah, and then it can happen again like that. Just the damage, like your body can only take so much. And these these fighters, just listening to the story, they probably already have suffered so much like concussions through their career, right, and you can only have so many of them before you need to just be done with that sort of stuff.
Right, exactly. So it's don't get me wrong. I understand the sport, and I understand the steps that they've taken to, you know, try and circumvent these sort of incidents in more modern times. But it's still dangerous because that's still present. You can still get knocked down, you can still get up, you can still have those compounding concussions over time and affecting you. It's just a reality of the sport. Unfortunately.
Well yeah, I'm just the ten seconds to get up. That's just it almost gives you shivers, it does.
Now. The third fight between Benny Perett and Emil Griffith remains one of the most controversial moments in boxing history to date. Many believe that Benny's tragic fate was sealed before he even stepped into the ring that night. As I mentioned, in the twelve months leading up to the fight, he had endured a brutal schedule, taking severe punishment in three fights, including his December nineteen sixty one loss to Gene Foehmer, where he was battered and stopped in the
tenth round. Right, Some questioned whether he should have even been allowed to fight again so soon. The New York State Athletics Commission came under fire for giving his medical clearance despite the damage he had already taken. Now Referee Ruby Goldstein also was under fire. One of the you know, he was once one of the more respectable officials in
the sport. He was also heavily criticized. Many believed he waited too long to stop that fight, allowing a Meal to land an uninterrupted barrage of punches before finally stepping in. And they say it was just too much. He should have done something sooner. In a nineteen sixty four interview, Goldstein defended his decision, saying quote, I've never blamed myself, but some people blame me for not stopping it sooner sooner. If the fight were happening right now, I wouldn't have
stopped it sooner. Perett was a good, durable fighter. He'd look in trouble in the early rounds, but he'd come back to fire punches and win the round. He was the champion. You give the champion a chance to fight back.
I wondered if he would be like kind of blaming himself for feel guilty in any way.
I mean, I'm sure he felt guilty. He actually even was under fire for not visiting him in the hospital. However, it came out later that he was told he shouldn't go visit him in the hospital. He wanted to, like, you know, I want to go pay my respects, you know, see if he's okay to sit by his bedside whatever, and they're like no, you know, like people are already criticizing you. You should probably stay away from the situation sort of thing.
Okay, but what you said something about he didn't have the best vantage point, right.
That's what the that's my perspective of saying that. Most people don't talk about it, but I believe he may not have had the best vantage point.
Could he have gotten a better one or not?
Really? Because not really? Yeah, Okay, See it was like they're both in the corner, right, So he's got him in the corner and these barrages of punches are in the corner with his head laying outside the ring a bit, so he's behind, you know, the action going on, seeing a fighter's back and seeing the punches going in another fighter's face. He's trying to get a good look.
Yeah, because you'd have to be outside to really see it full extent.
And that's why being over the ropes yourself.
That's why Benny's team was kind of like yelling at him, right.
Yeah. Now. Some argued that Goldstein hesitated because of Benny's reputation for faking injury. He had been known to lure opponents and by acting hurt only to strike back, which is another thing that people do in boxing and martial arts sports alike.
Shit, that's like, what is that the wolf thing?
Cry wolf? Yeah, you're the boy who cried wolf.
Yeah.
Now. Others believe Goldstein was concerned that Benny's supporters in the crowd would actually riot if he stopped the fight too soon. This was actually a large concern at the time. Now, regardless of the reason, the delayed stoppage haunted Goldstein for the rest of his life. He suffered nightmares, severe insomnia, flashbacks, struggling with the weight of what had happened in the
ring that night. Though the New York States Athletic Commission cleared him of any wrongdoing, Goldstein let his referee license expire and would never work another major fight. Now. He did attempt to come back in nineteen sixty four, officiating one last bout, but after that he retired for good.
Okay, Well then you almost have to think it did affect him quite a bit then, more than I think he's letting on. It did to the press.
What he stands by his decision, But he's also could I have done more? I think? Could I have seen more? Did I know exactly? Hindsight is twenty twenty, as they say now, The impact of the fight went beyond the individuals involved. The New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller launch an official investigation into boxing, forming a seven member commission to examine safety regulations in the sport. Over time, incidents like this contributed to the decline of boxing's popularity on network television.
The sport, once a national spectacle, slowly faded from mainstream broadcast, and this fight became a symbol of boxing's darker side. Meanwhile, Emil faced intense backlash from Benny's fans. As you can imagine, many refused to believe that it was just an accident, convinced that Emil had intentionally beaten Benny to death. In the weeks and months that followed that fight, Emil endured verbal abuse, threats, and public shaming. Despite the overwhelming grief
he himself carried over what had happened. The controversy surrounding the fight never truly faded, and even decades later, remains one of the most talked about sporting events in boxing now. While Emil continued to fight and even won more world titles, he carried this guilt with him and was haunted by Benny's death. He later admitted that he had nightmares about it and wishes that the referee would have stopped the
fight sooner. Outside the ring, Amil lived a complicated life in an era where homosexuality was dangerous to be open and about. He struggled with his bisexuality. He was known to frequent gay bars in New York, but he had to be careful. In later years, he spoke about challenges living in two worlds, saying, quote, I kill a man and most people forgive me. I love a man and many still won't forgive me.
Oh, that's like a quote from him.
That's the quote from him. Yes, dang that hurts.
Hey, Yeah, that hits for sure.
Emil retired from boxing in nineteen seventy seven, leaving behind a record of eighty five wins, twenty four losses, and two draws, but the years of fighting took a toll. He suffered from dementia and long term effects from head trauma. In nineteen ninety two, decades after the fight, Emil and Benny Perett Junior would meet in person. Yes, Benny Perett had a son.
Oh okay, I was like, what the shit I thought Benny died Junior? Yeah, Junior, I missed that part. Okay.
During this emotional meeting, Perett Junior hugged a Meal and told him that he held no hatred towards him. He understood that it was never a Meal's intention to kill his father, and he recognized that boxing is a dangerous sport where tragedies like this can happen.
Oh wow, okay, that's kind of nice. Say yeah.
A Meal broke down in tears, relieved to have been given forgiveness after carrying that weight from that fight for so long.
Oh my gosh. Yeah.
Meal would pass away inly twenty July twenty third of twenty thirteen, at the age of seventy five. His story remains one of the most complex in boxing history. He was a world champion, a tragic figure, and a man who lived a double life in the time when being different was not exactly accepted, and that is the tragic story of the fight between Benny Perett and Emil Griffith.
Jeez, I don't even know what to think in that one.
Now, I didn't get into one one thing that occurred and one thing many people talk about. There's some controversy over it because some people deny the claims a coach in a corner telling him to kill him, to like go kill him, like get him, destroy him, kill him.
Like when he was resting in between rounds, you mean, yeah, which I feel like is kind of something that he was probably just trying to pump them up.
I'm assuming I agree if that was something said, I do not think the coach meant literally literally kill him. Yeah, like they do that in fights today. I'm gonna kill him, gonna I'm gonna get you, like they do that, hyping shit up all the time. It's not uncommon. In fact, there's people who are like having disputes between friends like I'm gonna fucking kill that asshole, you know. Yeah, there's people who are listening to this right now who are probably like I said that about my boss this week.
I mean, even when you're like hyping yourself like I'm gonna kill it. I'm gonna go kill it kind a thing, like you're just exactly, it's like a saying kind of.
So for argument's sake, if this was said in the corner to a meal, say fucking kill Benny, go get him, like destroy him, and Benny was.
Like, yeah, I'm gonna do it, be this was said to Benny or sorry a meal Okay, okay.
Sorry, I'm getting them back and forth.
Yeah that's okay.
He was said to a meal in his corner. If this was one hundred percent factual this conversation happened, I say, there is no way that there was ever any true intent to take a life with those statements or actions that followed afterwards.
No, you know, I kind of Oh, I sit here and I'm like, how could the ref I mean, like that is that's a lot that Benny was like taking, and how could it not be? How could you miss that? You know? It was like that's too much, Like it's too much that he's But then it's also then you have to put yourself in that situation and with like the history and the heat of the moment and the crowd and like that probably went on. It probably felt like less time than it actually was. I'm thinking, do
you know what I'm trying to say? Here?
It goes by quick though too.
Yeah, that's what I'm saying. Like those hits, I don't know, I'm thinking, like in slow motion, you're kind of like, holy shit, how could you not stop that? How could you not think that he can get through that? But it's just probably like a blink of an eye, and it's you know, it really is.
It didn't take long for this to happen. And when I say it was like twenty nine unanswered punches, I mean it was twenty nine unanswered punches. It's not that he quick, yes, but it's not that he was unconscious and sloped on the rope for twenty nine unanswered punches. He was like slumped on the ropes for probably just a few seconds. He is up and standing there for majority of us. Oh, he's probably slumped on the ropes for six seconds maybe.
But still, yeah, it's it's still too much. But I do I don't know it is. I don't know all the rules and everything, and it's so much easier just to say sit back and be like, wow, he should have called that.
You know, here, take a look at the fight.
This.
You can watch the entire fight on YouTube, and there's a documentary called The Ring of Fire. I highly recommend it.
Is it on Netflix or what.
It's on YouTube? You can go watch the document youre on YouTube. So here's the fight. You can see he's standing. He's taking these punches, but he's standing. He's got his whereabouts with him. He's clearly tired, which is exactly why Emil's pushing. He's conscious, he's conscious, right, yeah, Okay, Now he's slumping one Mississippi two, Mississippi three, Mississippi four Mississippi. Five seconds five seconds of his slump slumped on the rope.
Oh my god, those five seconds. It's the only window where that ref could have made the call of when to stop it.
Okay, that's terrible to watch that. Holy shit, it is terrible. I feel like I almost need to watch that again because I'm watching and I'm like, okay, no, it should have been cold, but I don't know. Holy shit.
Now, like you can see that Goldstein, the referee, he does have a pretty good view, like you can see him here. He's looking, but then Emil steps in front of him and he's trying to regain position for a brief moment. So it might only be a fraction of a section where a second where he didn't have a proper view of it. But I think it's enough to be like, oh well, there's another you know portion where he got another punch.
In, And it might have, honestly even been the same outcome. Really, it might have because the guy his body was just done it. It had gone through way too much. It has like even if say he did stop it like three seconds earlier, four seconds earlier, Like I'm not sure the outcam would have been any different for Benny.
No, I don't think so. And so like, yeah, here's him laying in the ring. The video keeps going and you can see like where is it where Emil, Like they're they're announcing, you know, who the winner is and stuff. The bring announcer is a microphone everything. Yeah, Benny's laying down the ground. People are all around him, checking in on him. Emil gets his hands raised, right, Yeah, he's he's before even like wanting to talk to anyone. He's looking over and he's going to go check on his
opponent in the corner. He's there. He wants to see and he's.
He's worried about it.
Yeah he is. And this is thirty seconds after the knockout is declared.
Yeah, you can tell he's very distracted, for sure. I mean he's also tired as hell, so he is, but.
He's he's concerned about his opponent, so concerned about talking about his victory.
Just doesn't really wake up after that.
Like it's correct, he hits the mat and he never wakes up.
Oh boy, that's I don't know. That's sad. It is you almost think someone has to be held responsible. But also it's you put yourself like in that risk, I guess, right.
So well, that's another thing is he didn't how much of his career did he have control of? Was he told you fucking go in there and you fight again. You're fighting now, you're fighting in a month from now, and two months from now. Get like, you're gonna do all these fights in this year? Who was his manager? Who is the one signing him up for these fights? So who's liable?
Because the one fight was in December right where he like got quite injured, and the next one was in March, I believe. So yeah, you said, which, gosh, that does not seem like near enough time in between.
No, So it is a very much so tragic tale. I do think that there is a crime committed somewhere in there, but the problem is identifying who committed it. Who do you find responsible, who's criminally negligent? Who put this man's life in the line?
Yeah?
Is it somewhere in the uh you know, the association though, Yeah, the State Athletic Commission. Is it his manager? Who?
Yeah? Because I don't feel like it's necessarily a meal or I don't really necessarily think it's it's the ref that's so tough, but it has to be something, has someone has to be held negligence.
I think, well, there's it's a funny thing because we talked about me being you know, a safety background, occupational health and safety, and there's this a theory I guess you can call it or effect. Maybe it's called the Swiss cheese effect. I think so. Basically, if you were to take say a dozen pieces of Swiss cheese, and you lay them all on top of each other, can
you poke a hole directly through it all? Probably not, yeah, But if you do it over and over again, eventually holes will line up where you can see a hole directly through it all. So if the athletics commission has a hole in it, his promoter has a hole in it. You know, the hype about the match has a hole in it. The referee saying, you know what, he's a champion, he can go that extra two seconds. I got to
give him the chance. There's a hole in it. Things lined up perfectly for a man to lose his life. Is any one person responsible or is a whole vast accumulation of things responsible.
Well, I was just looking up because there was all I don't know. I think when you're in sports too, there's just like risks, right.
Oh, there is. It's a natural thing for sports. You put your body on the line, like.
This wasn't that long ago. Is his name Adam Johnson? I think he was playing hockey right, and remember of skating like we skate went to his neck? Is this terrible? Like just terrible? And then he did end up dying, Like is someone held you know, responsible for that or is it just like a shitty occurrence kind of thing, Like I don't know, I don't know. There's a lot of events in sports where people die, Like I'm thinking
back to Olympics. Someone died. I think in Vancouver they were doing the was it the skeleton or yeah, maybe and someone died. Like it's just it's not unheard of that people die in sports, right like.
Yeah, so, but yeah, that's the story of Benny Perett and Emil Griffith the third It.
Seems like he was just like an absolute legend kind of thing, right that got Yeah, yeah, that is life ended too soon, that's for sure.
Just like I say, it's a tragic tale for sure. But whether there is a crime committed that is that is another question. So if you guys have an opinion, we're curious about it, shoot us a message. We'd love to hear what your take is, whether you think you know there's a certain person responsible or something that could have been done to prevent it. Of course, in hindsight, there's many things that could have been done to prevent it, but even still, we're interested in your perspective, So shoot
us a message. If you're looking for links in the description of this podcast, they're all down there, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, website thingies. There. It's there, you can find it. You click on the option big Old list just for.
You, Big Old List.
Okay, Yeah, it's there.
Oh okay, well, good job, well done.
As usual, I appreciate it, and until next time, stay wicked.