Blogs > New Haven 200 at 200

The New Haven Register sports department is celebrating our 200th birthday by sharing 200 of the most interesting stories relating to sports in Greater New Haven over the past 200 years. Check back daily for historical updates.

Monday, July 2, 2012

Nathan Mann: Boxer fought Joe Louis for title in 1938





Associated Press photos

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Natalino Menchetti was 15 years old and working a heavy bag in the garage of his parents’ home in Hamden during the spring of 1930 when his life changed.

A truck driver named Bill Reynolds, a former boxer turned part-time trainer, was making a delivery from the local bakery. He pulled into the driveway, watched the kid for a few minutes and saw a power puncher with a world of potential.

Eight years later, Menchetti, who boxed as Nate Mann, was fighting Joe Louis for the world heavyweight championship before a sellout crowd of 20,000 at Madison Square Garden. It was Feb. 23, 1938. Mann, 22, and Louis, 24, became two of the youngest to fight for a heavyweight title.

Read Chip Malafronte's complete story

Boxrec.com fight by fight for Nate Mann

Connecticut Boxing Hall of Fame

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YouTube video of the fight

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