| Babe Risko | |
| Realname: | Henry L. Pylkowski |
| Nickname: | Babe Risko, Eddie Risko, Sailor Puleski |
| Weight: | Middleweight Light Heavyweight |
| Height: | 5feet |
| Reach: | NaN0NaN0 |
| Nationality: | American |
| Birth Date: | July 14, 1911 |
| Birth Place: | Syracuse, New York |
| Death Place: | Syracuse, New York |
| Style: | Orthodox |
| Total: | 103 |
| Wins: | 65 |
| Ko: | 12 |
| Losses: | 26 |
| Draws: | 12 |
Henry Pylkowski, known in his boxing career as Babe Risko, and Eddie Risko, (July 14, 1911 - March 8, 1957) was a Lithuanian-Polish-American boxer who became Middleweight boxing champion of the world in portions of 1935–36. While boxing in his early career with the US Navy, he was known as Sailor Puleski. He was managed by Gabe Genovese of Syracuse, New York. After winning the World Middleweight Title, his professional career declined rapidly, perhaps because of his lengthy amateur career with the Navy.[1] [2]
Risko was born Henry Pylkowski on July 14, 1911 in Syracuse, New York, the son of a struggling Lithuanian family of five. He attended school in Syracuse. He had a long and impressive amateur boxing career in the United States Navy, which he joined at only 16 in 1927, and fought around 125 matches as Sailor Puleski.[1] [3] Risko won the Navy Middleweight Title in a Panama Bullring in 1931, and was undefeated in his fights with the Navy.[4]
On New Years Day 1935, bursting on the world scene in a stunning upset, Risko defeated defending World Middleweight Champion Teddy Yarosz in a technical knockout, though the bout was not for the title. Yarosz was down five times before his manager ended the bout early in the seventh round. A crowd of only 2300 witnessed the bout that demonstrated Risko's mastery of the reigning champion.[5]
On January 25, 1935, Risko met the great Vince Dundee, losing in a fifteen round split decision at New York's Madison Square Garden. Due to an error by one of the two judges, Risko was first announced as the winner, but the mistake was soon corrected by boxing commissioners present at the fight. Though Risko's closing rounds were strong and demonstrated his youthful endurance, Dundee's consistent aggressiveness and body punching convinced judges to vote in his favor. The Associated Press gave six rounds to Dundee and four to Risko.[6]
Risko won the NYSAC World Middleweight Title and National Boxing Association World Middleweight Title with a win over Teddy Yarosz on September 19, 1935. Risko knocked Yarosz to the mat twice for counts of nine in the sixth and seventh rounds, and several judges gave Yarosz only the first round.[7] On December 21, 1935 Risko was knocked out in the first round by Jock McAvoy after being floored six times. The match was a non-title bout, with both men weighing in over the 160 pound middleweight limit.[8]
On February 10, 1936, Risko successfully defended his World Middleweight championship for the only time against Tony Fisher in ten rounds in Newark, New Jersey.[1] Risko was awarded eight of the ten rounds in a title bout considered "drab" by some reporters. Only one round was awarded to Fisher, a 21 year old Newark native.[9]
Risko lost the belt on July 11,1936 to Freddie Steele via a fifteen round unanimous decision in Seattle, Washington before an impressive crowd of 25,000.[1] Steele scored the only knockdown in the bout when he put Risko to the mat with a right to the jaw for a count of six in the first round. Steele damaged both of Risko's eyes during the bout which hampered the reigning champions ability to defend himself. The Associated Press gave Risko only three rounds of the well attended bout.[10]
On February 19, 1937 Risko attempted another shot at the title against Steele at Madison Square Garden but lost in a fifteen around unanimous decision. The Associated Press gave Steele nine rounds, with five to Risko, and one even. The bout, fought before a crowd of 11,600, was described as tedious by many reporters.[11]
Risko married Sally Ciborowski of Syracuse in 1936 and eventually had a daughter.[4]
After losing five straight fights by knockout, Risko retired from boxing in 1939, only three years after holding the crown. He recruited for the Navy during WWII and served as Deputy Sheriff in Onondaga County. He later worked as a sales manager for the U. S. Hoffman Machinery Corp. of New York. On March 7, 1957, he died unexpectedly in his sleep in his home in Syracuse at age 46. He was still working for the machinery firm at the time of his death.[12]
| Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 103 | Loss | 65–26–12 | Lloyd Marshall | KO | 5 (10) | May 17, 1939 | ||
| 102 | Loss | 65–25–12 | Walter Franklin | KO | 6 (8), | Feb 7, 1939 | ||
| 101 | Loss | 65–24–12 | Billy Soose | KO | 3 (10), | Oct 5, 1938 | ||
| 100 | Loss | 65–23–12 | Ben Brown | KO | 9 (12) | Sep 26, 1938 | ||
| 99 | Loss | 65–22–12 | Larry Lane | KO | 2 (10), | Sep 19, 1938 | ||
| 98 | Draw | 65–21–12 | Ben Brown | PTS | 10 | Jul 18, 1938 | ||
| 97 | Loss | 65–21–11 | Ralph DeJohn | KO | 7 (8) | Jun 27, 1938 | ||
| 96 | Draw | 65–20–11 | Al Quaill | PTS | 10 | Jun 6, 1938 | ||
| 95 | Win | 65–20–10 | Gorilla Jones | PTS | 10 | May 10, 1938 | ||
| 94 | Loss | 64–20–10 | George Black | KO | 5 (10), | Aug 17, 1937 | ||
| 93 | Loss | 64–19–10 | Al Hostak | KO | 7 (10) | Jul 13, 1937 | ||
| 92 | Loss | 64–18–10 | Billy Conn | UD | 10 | Mar 11, 1937 | ||
| 91 | Loss | 64–17–10 | Freddie Steele | UD | 15 | Feb 19, 1937 | ||
| 90 | Win | 64–16–10 | Butch Lynch | KO | 8 (10) | Dec 18, 1936 | ||
| 89 | Win | 63–16–10 | Tony Tozzo | UD | 10 | Nov 27, 1936 | ||
| 88 | Win | 62–16–10 | Harry Balsamo | UD | 10 | Oct 28, 1936 | ||
| 87 | Loss | 61–16–10 | Teddy Yarosz | SD | 10 | Sep 21, 1936 | ||
| 86 | Loss | 61–15–10 | Freddie Steele | UD | 15 | Jul 11, 1936 | ||
| 85 | Loss | 61–14–10 | Fred Apostoli | PTS | 10 | May 8, 1936 | ||
| 84 | Win | 61–13–10 | Mike Payan | PTS | 10 | Apr 9, 1936 | ||
| 83 | Loss | 60–13–10 | Freddie Steele | UD | 10 | Mar 24, 1936 | ||
| 82 | Win | 60–12–10 | Tony Fisher | PTS | 10 | Feb 10, 1936 | ||
| 81 | Loss | 59–12–10 | Jock McAvoy | KO | 1 (10), | Dec 20, 1935 | ||
| 80 | Win | 59–11–10 | Frank Battaglia | SD | 10 | Dec 9, 1935 | ||
| 79 | Win | 58–11–10 | Chester Palutis | UD | 10 | Oct 21, 1935 | ||
| 78 | Win | 57–11–10 | Jackie Aldare | PTS | 10 | Oct 4, 1935 | ||
| 77 | Win | 56–11–10 | Teddy Yarosz | UD | 15 | Sep 19, 1935 | ||
| 76 | Loss | 55–11–10 | Paul Pirrone | PTS | 10 | Jul 8, 1935 | ||
| 75 | Win | 55–10–10 | Frank Battaglia | UD | 12 | May 22, 1935 | ||
| 74 | Loss | 54–10–10 | Jimmy Belmont | SD | 8 | Mar 25, 1935 | ||
| 73 | Win | 54–9–10 | Sammy Slaughter | PTS | 10 | Mar 18, 1935 | ||
| 72 | Win | 53–9–10 | Benny Levine | TKO | 2 (10) | Mar 11, 1935 | ||
| 71 | Win | 52–9–10 | Paul Pirrone | UD | 10 | Feb 25, 1935 | ||
| 70 | Draw | 51–9–10 | Solly Dukelsky | PTS | 10 | Jan 31, 1935 | ||
| 69 | Loss | 51–9–9 | Vince Dundee | SD | 10 | Jan 25, 1935 | ||
| 68 | Win | 51–8–9 | Teddy Yarosz | TKO | 7 (10) | Jan 1, 1935 | ||
| 67 | Win | 50–8–9 | Pete Susky | UD | 6 | Dec 7, 1934 | ||
| 66 | Win | 49–8–9 | Al Salbano | PTS | 10 | Nov 26, 1934 | ||
| 65 | Win | 48–8–9 | Freddie Sallus | KO | 8 (10) | Nov 5, 1934 | ||
| 64 | Win | 47–8–9 | Weiner Wilch | KO | 2 (6) | Oct 26, 1934 | ||
| 63 | Win | 46–8–9 | Chester Palutis | UD | 6 | Oct 19, 1934 | ||
| 62 | Draw | 45–8–9 | Freddie Sallus | PTS | 8 | Oct 15, 1934 | ||
| 61 | Win | 45–8–8 | Pete Susky | PTS | 8 | Sep 17, 1934 | ||
| 60 | Win | 44–8–8 | Weiner Wilch | TKO | 3 (8) | Sep 10, 1934 | ||
| 59 | Draw | 43–8–8 | Larry Wagner | PTS | 6 | Aug 9, 1934 | ||
| 58 | Win | 43–8–7 | Joe Desmond | PTS | 6 | Aug 6, 1934 | ||
| 57 | Draw | 42–8–7 | Paulie Sykes | SD | 6 | Jul 18, 1934 | ||
| 56 | Win | 42–8–6 | Thomas Lawless | KO | 5 (6) | Jun 8, 1934 | ||
| 55 | Win | 41–8–6 | Thomas Lawless | PTS | 6 | May 14, 1934 | ||
| 54 | Win | 40–8–6 | Jackie Flowers | PTS | 6 | May 7, 1934 | ||
| 53 | Win | 39–8–6 | Jackie Flowers | PTS | 6 | Apr 20, 1934 | ||
| 52 | Win | 38–8–6 | Joe Lyons | KO | 3 (4) | Apr 16, 1934 | ||
| 51 | Win | 37–8–6 | Jackie Flowers | PTS | 6 | Apr 3, 1934 | ||
| 50 | Win | 36–8–6 | Steve Wolanin | PTS | 6 | Mar 27, 1934 | ||
| 49 | Win | 35–8–6 | Frank LaSpina | KO | 2 (4) | Mar 26, 1934 | ||
| 48 | Loss | 34–8–6 | Swede Berglund | KO | 4 (10), | Jan 12, 1934 | ||
| 47 | Win | 34–7–6 | Nick Ures | KO | 3 (6) | Dec 8, 1933 | ||
| 46 | Win | 33–7–6 | Johnny 'Bandit' Romero | PTS | 10 | Oct 20, 1933 | ||
| 45 | Win | 32–7–6 | Deacon Leo Kelly | PTS | 6 | Sep 22, 1933 | ||
| 44 | Loss | 31–7–6 | Dutch Weimer | PTS | 4 | Sep 3, 1933 | ||
| 43 | Win | 31–6–6 | Johnny Cavos | TKO | 3 (6) | Aug 18, 1933 | ||
| 42 | Win | 30–6–6 | Ray Griffiths | TKO | 3 (6), | Aug 4, 1933 | ||
| 41 | Win | 29–6–6 | Miles Murphy | TKO | 6 (6) | Jun 15, 1933 | ||
| 40 | Win | 28–6–6 | Guy McKinney | TKO | 5 (6) | May 19, 1933 | ||
| 39 | Loss | 27–6–6 | Grant Willardson | DQ | 3 (6) | Mar 10, 1933 | ||
| 38 | Win | 27–5–6 | Guy McKinney | PTS | 6 | Mar 3, 1933 | ||
| 37 | Win | 26–5–6 | Jack O'Neill | PTS | 6 | Jan 13, 1933 | ||
| 36 | Win | 25–5–6 | Johnny Reed | PTS | 6 | Dec 23, 1932 | ||
| 35 | Win | 24–5–6 | Tony Pena | PTS | 4 | Nov 4, 1932 | ||
| 34 | Win | 23–5–6 | Billy McMullen | PTS | 6 | Oct 7, 1932 | ||
| 33 | Draw | 22–5–6 | Harry Walton | PTS | 4 | Sep 16, 1932 | ||
| 32 | Loss | 22–5–5 | Leroy Brown | KO | 6 (10) | Jul 6, 1932 | ||
| 31 | Win | 22–4–5 | Jack McCarthy | PTS | 8 | Jun 30, 1932 | ||
| 30 | Win | 21–4–5 | Vic Suquera | TKO | 3 (6) | Jun 23, 1932 | ||
| 29 | Win | 20–4–5 | Joe Smallwood | PTS | 6 | Apr 14, 1932 | ||
| 28 | Loss | 19–4–5 | Joe Colucci | PTS | 8 | Feb 26, 1932 | ||
| 27 | Win | 19–3–5 | Chick Williams | PTS | 6 | Feb 18, 1932 | ||
| 26 | Draw | 18–3–5 | Leroy Brown | PTS | 10 | Nov 23, 1931 | ||
| 25 | Loss | 18–3–4 | Rufus Miles | PTS | 10 | Oct 29, 1931 | ||
| 24 | Win | 18–2–4 | Bud Spittle | PTS | 10 | Oct 12, 1931 | ||
| 23 | Win | 17–2–4 | Carl Schlieper | PTS | 6 | Jun 19, 1931 | ||
| 22 | Win | 16–2–4 | Frank Sumter | PTS | 10 | May 20, 1931 | ||
| 21 | Loss | 15–2–4 | Charlie Brown | PTS | 10 | Jan 6, 1931 | ||
| 20 | Draw | 15–1–4 | Bud Spittle | PTS | 10 | Dec 19, 1930 | ||
| 19 | Draw | 15–1–3 | Rufus Miles | PTS | 10 | Dec 5, 1930 | ||
| 18 | Win | 15–1–2 | Larry Leavitt | PTS | 10 | Nov 27, 1930 | ||
| 17 | Win | 14–1–2 | Rufus Miles | UD | 10 | Nov 14, 1930 | ||
| 16 | Win | 13–1–2 | Wendell Weeks | PTS | 10 | Nov 11, 1930 | ||
| 15 | Win | 12–1–2 | Bob Allison | PTS | 10 | Nov 5, 1930 | ||
| 14 | Win | 11–1–2 | Bob Allison | PTS | 10 | Oct 27, 1930 | ||
| 13 | Win | 10–1–2 | Larry Leavitt | PTS | 10 | Oct 17, 1930 | ||
| 12 | Win | 9–1–2 | Wendell Weeks | PTS | 10 | Oct 10, 1930 | ||
| 11 | Win | 8–1–2 | Freddy Brewer | KO | 4 (6) | Jul 22, 1930 | ||
| 10 | Loss | 7–1–2 | Eddie Cavanaugh | KO | 2 (6) | May 8, 1930 | ||
| 9 | Draw | 7–0–2 | Johnny Baruzzi | PTS | 6 | Apr 10, 1930 | ||
| 8 | Win | 7–0–1 | Tony Dallas | PTS | 6 | Mar 27, 1930 | ||
| 7 | Win | 6–0–1 | Roy LaDuca | TKO | 3 (6) | Dec 19, 1929 | ||
| 6 | Win | 5–0–1 | Charlie McKain | PTS | 4 | Dec 12, 1929 | ||
| 5 | Draw | 4–0–1 | Mule Brown | PTS | 8 | Dec 6, 1929 | ||
| 4 | Win | 4–0 | Roy LaDuca | PTS | 6 | Dec 5, 1929 | ||
| 3 | Win | 3–0 | Wendell Weeks | PTS | 6 | Nov 20, 1929 | ||
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | Young Murray | TKO | 5 (10) | Nov 9, 1929 | ||
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Diaz Music | PTS | 4 | Oct 26, 1929 | ||