For Whom the Bell Tolled: 2025 Obituaries PART TWO (July-Dec.)

Here is the concluding segment of our annual two-part, end of year necrology where we pay homage to boxing notables who left us this year.

July

1 – MIHAI LEU

– A famous sporting personality in Romania, Leu (aka Michael Lowe) became the first boxer from that country to capture a world title when he won the vacant WBO welterweight title in 1997. After one defense, he retired undefeated (28-0), his leave-taking dictated by a chronic shoulder injury, and transitioned into a champion in motor sports as a rally racer. At age 56 in Bucharest after a long battle with colon cancer.

12 – JOE GAGLIARDI

– A San Jose insurance broker specializing in sports promotions, Gagliardi’s first love was baseball. He was president of the California Leaguw while still in his 20s and went on to own AAA franchises in San Jose and Salt Lake City. In boxing he was a gym operator, closed-circuit exhibitor and owned a piece of short-lived heavyweight champion Andy Ruiz. At age 85 in Gilbert, Arizona.

25 – DWIGHT MUHAMMAD QAWI

– Born Dwight Braxton, the Camden Buzzsaw turned pro at age 25 after serving five and-a-half years in prison and went on to have a Hall of Fame career, entering the Canastota shrine in 2004. At five-foot-seven, he was the shortest light heavyweight champion in history. His 15-round cruiserweight fight with Evander Holyfield in 1986 was an instant classic. At age 72 in Baltimore, his birthplace, where he was battling dementia.

27 – DON ELBAUM

– One of boxing’s most colorful characters, “The Bum,” as his friends fondly called him, got involved in boxing as a teenager and spent more than six decades in the sport as a matchmaker, booking agent, and promoter, earning him a spot in the International Boxing Hall of Fame (class of 2019). At a nursing home in Erie, Pennsylvania, his hometown at age 94.

28 – ELEJANDRA OLIVERAS

– Born into poverty and a mother at the age of 14, “La Locomotera” went on to become Argentina’s most prominent female boxer, winning titles in four weight classes. In retirement, she opened a gym, advocated for gender equality, and ran unsuccessfully for a seat in Congress. At age 47 in Santa Fe, Argentina, two weeks after suffering a stroke that left her in a coma.

29 – TOMMY BROOKS

– A U.S. Air Force veteran and a decorated amateur, he transitioned, after a brief pro career, into a successful and much-admired trainer. Often seen assisting his late father-in-law Lou Duva, he worked with a spate of world title-holders during the 1990s, notably Evander Holyfield who he handled for Evander’s two fights with Mike Tyson. At age 71 from colon cancer in Fayetteville, Georgia.

August

8, 9 — SHIGATOSHI KOTARI and HIROMASA URAKAWA

– Although their deaths came one day apart, both resulted from traumatic brain injuries suffered on the same card, an Aug. 2 event at Tokyo’s iconic Korakuen Hall that would come to be remembered as one of boxing’s darkest days. Kotari collapsed after losing a split decision in a 12-round fight for a regional 130-pound title. Urakawa, a lightweight, was stopped in the final round of an 8-round fight that he was winning. Both were 28 years old.

September

1– JOE BUGNER

– Born in Hungary, raised in England, and a resident of Australia for the last half of his life, Bugner won a slew of domestic and regional heavyweight titles in a career that rambled across 32 years. He traveled a total of 27 rounds with Muhammad Ali without getting knocked off his feet and went the full 12 in a humdinger with Joe Frazier. At age 75 in a nursing home in Brisbane, Australia, where he was suffering from dementia

14 – THOMAS GERBASI

– A versatile and award-winning combat sports journalist, Gerbasi was widely admired for his scholarship and friendly demeanor. He was in the vanguard in covering women’s boxing and authored or co-authored several books including “The 100 Greatest Fighters” released a few months before his death at age 57 from a sudden heart attack at his home in Staten Island, NY.

14 – RICKY HATTON

– The Mancunian developed a passionate following in the UK even before his massive upset of Kostya Tszyu in 2005 and his partisans followed him across the pond to Las Vegas where he suffered his only defeats in his first 47 fights, losing to all-time greats Floyd Mayweather Jr and Manny Pacquiao. A two-division title-holder inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame with the class of 2024, he passed away in his home in Hyde, Greater Manchester, a suicide by hanging at age 46.

October

10 – ALEX WALLAU

– He rose up the ranks at ABC, eventually becoming the president of the network. Along the way, he became an award-winning TV boxing analyst. Wallau faced death threats after blowing the whistle on Don King’s nefarious “United States Boxing” tournament, compelling ABC to abort it. In June, he will be inducted posthumously into the Hall of Fame. A long-term throat cancer survivor but ultimately a throat cancer victim, he was 80 when he passed away at his home in Palm Beach, Florida.

15 – EDDIE GREGG

– An outstanding football player at Winston-Salem State University (a six-foot-five cornerback), Gregg turned pro at the advanced age of 29 after winning two New York Golden Gloves titles. He was 22-3-1 before his career ended in a thud, knocked out in the opening round by Gerry Cooney and Francesco Damiani. At age 76 in Greensboro, North Carolina.

 November  

3 – VICTOR CONTE

– The “mad scientist” at the center of America’s steroid era in sports (think Barry Bonds’ 73 home runs), Conte did a complete U-turn after serving four months in a federal prison, becoming a fierce opponent of PEDs. As a consultant to more than a dozen prominent boxers (e.g. Terence Crawford), he taught advanced training methods while promoting his line of natural supplements. At age 75 in San Carlos, CA, from pancreatic cancer,

13 – STEVE MORROW

– When Morrow retired in 2008 after 31 years with the Gilroy, CA police department, he was already deep into his new career as a boxing judge. He eventually worked more than 500 bouts including a spate of world title fights in Japan. At age 70 in Sheridan, Wyoming from an aggressive form of cancer.

16—MARK KAYLOR

– A 1980 Olympian from London’s gritty East End, Kaylor went on to win the British middleweight title, finishing 40-7-1. A big puncher with a fan-friendly style, he is best remembered in the UK for his feud with countryman Errol Christie. At age 64 in Chino Hills, California where he was battling dementia.

23 – VANES MARTIROSYAN

– Born in Armenia and raised in Glendale, California, he turned pro in 2005 after representing the U.S. in the Athens Olympics and finished 36-4-1. All four of his setbacks came in world title fights and he was stopped only once, that coming in his farewell fight with Gennady Golovkin, a match he took on short notice. In Los Angeles at age 39 after a two-year battle with skin cancer.

December

14 — TONY GRAZIANO

— A World War II veteran and Purple Heart recipient, the ex-paratrooper was the original manager of Carmen Basilio and the only manager of Basilio’s nephew Billy Backus, briefly a lineal welterweight champion. His iconic restaurant in the little town of Canastota, NY, Graziano’s Casa Mia, predated the International Boxing Hall of Fame and became the informal gathering ppace for visitors to the Hall during Induction Weekends. At age 103 at his home in Canastota.

Feature Photo: Thousands lined the streets of Manchester for Ricky Hatton’s funeral cortege after Hatton’s memorial service at Manchester Cathedral.