When your father strongly opposes your desire to become a boxer, to the point of threatening to kick you out of the house, and when your first teacher tells you that at twenty you are already too old to hope for significant results, continuing to pursue your dreams becomes truly difficult. Agostino Cardamone, a spectacular southpaw puncher born and raised in Montoro Inferiore, in the province of Avellino, has overcome these and other obstacles, making his father proud of him after making Italy dream with the strength of his fists. This chapter with the section “Great Italian Boxing” is dedicated to him, his battles, and his sensational victories.
Growing with each fight: the road to the Italian title
Still in search of his definitive style, Agostino learned the trade “on the go”: of his first fifteen victories, ten came by decision, a sign that he had not yet found the ideal setup to unleash the superb natural power with which Mother Nature had provided him. However, the first title chance for the Italian Title came after a streak of three victories inside the distance, the right injection of confidence to face with the right determination a challenge that was very difficult on paper. Facing each other on February 1, 1992, in Civitavecchia were two undefeated, promising, and ambitious young men: Silvio Branco could count on the support of the warm audience, ready to erupt in a cheer every time his favorite scored, but Cardamone leveraged his true warrior character, which made him indifferent to fighting at home or away. It was a splendid match, with alternating phases and dramatic moments, but in the end, also thanks to a knockdown in his favor, it was the boxer from Montoro who was awarded the win by the judges. Cardamone had thus become the Italian champion and would defend the title only twice before turning his attention to even more prestigious goals.
Explosive punches: Europe at Cardamone’s feet
In sports as in life, one must strike while the iron is hot. And so Cardamone, after knocking out the challengers for the Italian title Pompilio and De Cicilia, decided to seize the opportunity that presented itself on the European front: our Sumbu Kalambay had vacated the continental title, and two Italians were selected to compete for the crown: Cardamone himself and the talented Francesco Dell’Aquila. The latter had already held the EBU belt before losing it to Kalambay and had also had the honor of crossing gloves in the United States with the superstar James Toney. Agostino was not impressed by the opponent’s better resume: spurred on by the shouts of encouragement from his fellow citizens, he overwhelmed the fast and experienced opponent with his overwhelming attacks, defeating him in three rounds. As European champion, the southpaw from Montoro had the opportunity to fight his first battles abroad, traveling to France and Spain, but the most exciting defense was the one fought in Solofra against the formidable British boxer Neville Brown: shaken in the first round and dazed by continuous guard changes and straight punches from the vigorous opponent, Cardamone threw his heart over the obstacle exerting the usual suffocating pressure and finding a devastating KO in the seventh round.
The eternal regret: a hair’s breadth from miracle against his Majesty Jackson
After four victorious defenses of the European title and with a record of 23 wins in as many fights, our courageous puncher obtained the opportunity to fulfill his greatest dream: the WBC world championship in the middleweight division had been vacated by Gerald McClellan and the Italian would have played it against the terrifying puncher from the Virgin Islands, Julian Jackson. The challenge was one that made the pulse race: Jackson was one of the most powerful boxers in history, so much so that of the 50 opponents he had defeated up to that point, only 4 had heard the final bell. On the other hand, the favorite of the eve had to deal with the aftermath that a very exhausting career had already left on his physique: operated on for retinas in both eyes, the famous puncher was at the end of his sporting journey and his noted fragility left a crack for our standard-bearer. Made even more determined by the mocking statements of his rival, who said in a press conference that the surname “Cardamone” made him laugh, the boxer from Montoro dominated the first round, even shaking the opponent and bringing him to the brink of a knockdown. Unfortunately, however, against a boxer like Jackson, every single lapse can be fatal and Cardamone learned it at his own expense when a lightning strike turned off the lights for him in the second round, shattering his dream.
From bitterness to rebirth: the reconquest of Europe and the trilogy against Branco
Deeply embittered by the narrow defeat suffered in the United States, Cardamone struggled to return to the top, so much so that the first attempt to regain the European title he had vacated to chase the world dream ended with a disastrous KO in ten rounds by the Russian Alexander Zaytsev. The athlete from Montoro, however, still had much to give to boxing, and little by little, he got back on his feet: he got revenge with the Russian, defeating him by decision, and shortly afterward, he found in his path the same opponent against whom he had won the first title of his career, that Silvio Branco who in the meantime had become WBU middleweight champion. This time the two faced each other on neutral ground in Brindisi, and after nine rounds, it seemed that Cardamone was destined for defeat: Branco danced on his legs, struck from a distance, moved gracefully, and dominated the contest. However, a single devastating left hook, exploded in the tenth round, was enough for the puncher from Montoro to make what had happened up to that moment irrelevant: Branco collapsed to the ground unconscious, so much so that Cardamone himself was frightened, refusing to celebrate before he had checked on the opponent’s condition. After the triumph, many, including journalists, spoke of a “lucky punch,” but the winner once again demonstrated his worth by winning even the rematch at the opponent’s home, this time by decision. It was the last victory of Agostino Cardamone’s glittering career, which unfortunately, three months later, drained by excessive sacrifices to make weight, lost the WBU belt to the Dutchman Raymond Joval before retiring from professionalism. A painful but intelligent choice, by a boxer who in the ring has always given his all, exciting and moving fans and supporters with a fighting style typical of champions of yesteryear.