[Crimson]

Friday, July 10th, 1992
Forum di Assago; Milan, Italy
Giovanni Parisi 21-1 (16) Italy
vs. (12 rounds for the vacant WBO title)
Todd Foster 23-1 (20) Montana
- This battle of 1988 Olympians attracted much attention, particularly in Italy, where Parisi is a National hero. Boxing as a feather weight Parisi brought home a gold medal to Italy, while Foster boxed as a light weight and was defeated before reaching the medal round.

- Foster’s slugging style has always been viewed as one that will suit him better in the professional ranks.

- Todd Foster was listed as a 2-1 favorite.

- Foster didn’t make weight on his first attempt and had to spend time in the sauna in order to drop the 1 ½ pounds he was over!

- During training sessions with Jesse Reid, Foster focused on slipping and catching punches with his gloves.

- The fight itself lived up to expectations with each fighter hitting the canvas at least one time, for a grand total of 3 knockdowns.

- Foster shocked Parisi and the 11,200 fans in attendance at the Forum di Assago when he dropped the fast moving Italian with a short hook in round 1. Following the instructions of his trainer Jesse Reid, Foster jumped right on Parisi in round 2 looking to end the night early. Parisi battled back on even terms and the crowd roared in approval as the exchanges took place.

- Early in round 5 Parisi evened up the knockdown total, when he floored Foster for the count of 5, after countering a wild Foster right hand.

- After 4 rounds of slugging Ringside Expert Max A. Davis had Foster ahead by 2 points, 38-36. Calling the fight for “Italia 1”, Nino Benevuti had Parisi ahead by 1 point, 38-37. Punches landed numbers favored Parisi 113-104. Puffines around the left eye (3) of Foster could now be seen. His legs were showing signs of being dead from the time spent losing weight in the sauna.

- Foster was throwing punches with very bad intentions in round 5 and a violent straight right hurt the Italian bad. A follow up barrage of lefts and rights caused Parisi to slip to the canvas. After seeming to weather the storm for most of the round, Foster dug a brutal hook into the midsection of Parisi that folded him like the closing of a book. After Parisi rose, Foster fired a series of punches in rapid fire succession and the referee stopped the fight! Parisi and his corner complained bitterly to the Brazilan referee that he could still continue, while the crowd showered the ring with boos and catcalls. The majority of press row and covering the fight on television expressed that the stoppage was justified.

- Amidst the celebrating after the fight, Foster’s camp expressed concern that this may have been his last fight as a light weight due to his struggle to make the 135 pound limit. He is scheduled to fight again in September in a WBO/WBC unification fight against whomever wins Saturday nights Miguel Angel Gonzalez/Tony Lopez match.
Todd Foster TKO5 Giovanni Parisi (wins WBO title)

Giovanni Parisi Dedication and Tribute
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-BSgr-WHIo&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s1nMAFxzXTw&feature=related


Giovanni Parisi vs. Daniel Santos
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpKFNPbUhjY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wUD7izqDoi4&feature=related


Giovanni Parisi vs. Sammy Fuentes
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yo42ssp-b5A
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PwmqS32sqgA&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHHRqBdlevU&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DcBUxmTUdA&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZ2TgtZsbXU&feature=related


Giovanni Parisi vs. Julio Cesar Chavez
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWp9loKwSME&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xTTCqijTJAY&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZ71MykEHXw&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OupnsnSWqYg&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jLAVyjSjCNU&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vw1PQ-MY7_Q&feature=related