Sport: Boxing
Born: February 10, 1962
Town: Wanaque, New Jersey
Robert Edward Czyz was born February 10, 1962 in Orange, NJ and moved the Passaic County town of Wanaque when he was 10. Bobby and his younger brothers, Vince and Tony, were driven by an overbearing father who was obsessed with reading and knowledge. Legend has it that Bobby’s IQ was tested at 135 and that he later became a member of MENSA. Bobby’s dad also demanded physical perfection and pushed his sons into boxing at an early age. He later described his father as “a violent disciplinarian.”
All three Czyz brothers went on to have success at the amateur level, but Bobby had the talent and toughness to keep moving forward. As a teenager he was invited to joint the U.S. Boxing team. Bobby claimed he later turned down an opportunity to attend West Point.
In March 1980, Bobby was involved in a car accident. He was unable to accompany Team USA on a trip to Poland. During that trip, the Polish Airlines plane on which the team was traveling crashed and killed all aboard, including 14 rising ring stars.
Bobby began his pro career as a middleweight six weeks after the tragedy. ESPN televised the fight, partly because of Bobby’s interesting back story, but also because of Bobby’s good looks. He demolished Hank Whitmore is the opening round. Over the next 2 ½ years, Bobby was undefeated in 20 bouts, including victories over veterans Bruce “The Mouse” Strauss and Reggie Jones, for the New Jersey Middleweight crown. He also beat Robbie Sims, the half-brother of Marvin Hagler. The majority of his fights took place in Ice World in Totowa, his “home” arena. Bobby seemed destined for a title shot against Hagler, but a loss to Mustafa Hamsho derailed this plan and Bobby decided to move up into the light heavyweight class.
In 1983, after an argument with Bobby, his father killed himself. That triggered a pattern of self-destructive behavior fueled by alcohol and violence. He pulled out of televised matches, which drove network execs crazy. It took several years to get his career back on track.
In 1986, Bobby scored a technical knockout against IBF title holder and Olympic gold medalist Slobodan Kacar in Las Vegas. As the new Light Heavy champion, Bobby survived three title defenses before falling to Charles Williams late in 1987. In 1989, Bobby was given shots at the IBF and WBC Light Heavyweight crowns, but lost both times. A move up to the Cruiserweight classification yielded better results, as Bobby won a split decision over Preacherman Daniels in 1991. Four years later, Bobby won the WBU Super Cruiserweight title.
In October 1996, Bobby met former Heavyweight champ Evander Holyfield in Madison Square Garden. Holyfield hadn’t fought in over a year after losing to Riddick Bowe. Both fighters were 34 years old. Holyfield was about to get a a second wind in his career—he would reclaim his Heavyweight crown against Mike Tyson in his next fight. Unfortunately, Bobby’s career was headed in the opposite direction. He could not answer the bell for the sixth round, and later claimed that someone had applied hot sauce to his opponent’s gloves.
Bobby fought just once more before retiring with a career record of 44–8 with 28 knockouts and three championship belts. Afterwards, Holyfield said Bobby was the toughest fighter he ever faced.
Bobby landed an announcing gig with Showtime during his boxing career and, in an interesting twist, called the Holyfield–Tyson bout during which Tyson bit off a chunk of his opponent’s ear. Bobby worked with legendary cornerman Ferdie Pacheco and Steve Albert on many broadcasts and received high marks for his bluntness and analytical contributions. Unfortunately, his gig ended when he was charged with a fourth DUI in a span of six years.
Bobby struggled financially after his announcing days. He got into some bad business deals and was in a near-fatal automobile accident that left him with seven-figure medical bills and short-term memory issues. He was inducted into the New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame in 1998.