Paul Ross Spadafora (born September 5, 1975) is an American retired

professional boxer Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional fights are supervised by a regulatory auth ...

. He is the former IBF

lightweight Lightweight is a weight class in combat sports and rowing (sport), rowing. Boxing Professional boxing The lightweight division is over 130 pounds (59 kilograms) and up to 135 pounds (61.2 kilograms) boxing weight classes, weight class in the spor ...

champion of the world, and has challenged once for a

light welterweight Light welterweight, also known as junior welterweight or super lightweight, is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional boxing In professional boxing, light welterweight is contested between the lightweight and welterweight divisions, ...

world title. In 2020, he was inducted into the Pennsylvania Boxing Hall of Fame.

Personal background

Known as "The Pittsburgh Kid", Spadafora is from McKees Rocks, a borough outside of

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

. His childhood was poverty-stricken: his father died of a drug overdose when he was nine, and he was homeless for several weeks as a teenager. He started boxing when he was eleven, and left school in 9th grade to focus on it.

Troubles outside the ring

Spadafora was an alcoholic from a young age and at one point also abused drugs. He pleaded guilty to

aggravated assault In the terminology of law, an assault is the act of causing physical harm or unwanted physical contact to another person, or, in some legal definitions, the threat or attempt to do so. It is both a crime and a tort and, therefore, may result ...

for shooting his girlfriend Nadine Russo in the chest in October 2003 after a night of drinking, and in February 2005 was sentenced to six months in a bootcamp-style rehabilitation center. He had by then become engaged to Russo and she had born his second child. He ultimately went to prison for the crime. In September and October 2011, Spadafora was twice arrested on

DUI Driving under the influence (DUI) is the crime of driving, operating, or being in control of a vehicle while one is impaired from doing so safely by the effect of either alcohol (see drunk driving) or some other drug, whether recreational or ...

charges. The following September he pleaded guilty. On September 23, 2012, his manager filed suit against him in Allegheny County court for breach of contract.

Comeback

Despite his troubles outside the ring, Spadafora repeatedly expressed his intention to return to the ring. In November 2006 he returned after a 32-month layoff to stop Jesus Francisco Zepeda in round five at the Avalon Hotel in

Erie, Pennsylvania Erie is a city on the south shore of Lake Erie and the county seat of Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, fifth-most populous city in Pennsylvania and the most populous in Northwestern Pen ...

. On April 25, 2008, again in Erie, Spadafora returned to the ring to fight Shad Howard. Spadafora repeatedly connected with sharp jabs and combinations enroute to an 80–72 unanimous decision. In 2010 he defeated Italian boxer Ivan Fiorletta by knockout. In August 2012 he defeated

Humberto Toledo Humberto Toledo Valverde (born August 10, 1979) is an Ecuadorian professional boxer. He's the former WBC Latino Super Featherweight and is the current WBC FECARBOX Lightweight champion. Professional career In February 2007, Toledo lost to future ...

. On April 6, 2013, Spadafora defeated Robert Franckel for the NABF Super Lightweight Championship. Spadafora suffered the only loss of his career on November 30, 2013, losing to Johan Pérez by majority decision to lose the WBA Light Welterweight title.

Retirement

Paul Spadafora retired from boxing following his 2014 fight with Héctor Velázquez. In April 2016, Spadafora was charged with assault for an altercation with a woman outside of Redstone Tavern in

Crafton, Pennsylvania Crafton is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, west of downtown Pittsburgh. The population was 6,099 at the 2020 census. It is a residential suburb of the Pittsburgh metropolitan area. History Prior to European colonial ...

, and was sentenced to anger management classes. In December 2016, Spadafora was arrested after police responded to an altercation where Spadafora was accused of attacking his brother with a knife, stabbing him in the thigh, and kicking his mother in the back. In March 2018, Spadafora plead guilty to simple assault, resisting arrest, and terroristic threats, and was sentenced to time served and released on parole. As of 2024, Paul Spadafora is living in

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

and training boxers in a gym built in his garage. In October 2024, Spadafora was hospitalized after being bitten by his pet dog, severing an artery in his left arm.

Professional boxing record

References

External links

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Official Website
, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Spadafora, Paul Boxers from Pennsylvania 1975 births Living people Sportspeople from McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania International Boxing Federation champions People of Calabrian descent American people of Italian descent American male boxers Lightweight boxers 20th-century American sportsmen