Amputee boxer defied the odds by fighting for world title after losing leg in serious accident

Craig ‘Gator’ Bodzianowski’s boxing story defines the old adage, ‘Fall down seven times, get up eight’.

A promising pugilist, who had gotten off to a perfect 13-0 start to life in the paid ranks, Bodzianowski had his life turned upside down when he was involved in a serious motorcycle accident in 1984.

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Bodzianowski’s right foot was left in a sorry state, and after several unsuccessful surgeries, doctors gave him a choice: retain his damaged foot and walk with the aid of a cane, or have it amputated.

Motivated by a seemingly insurmountable dream of returning to the ring, ‘Gator’ opted for the amputation nine inches below the knee.

“I didn’t want to be walking around with a dead foot for the rest of my life,” said Bodzianowski.

“So I said cut it, I just said adios.”

He also maintained his sense of humour when asked whether he wished to sue the driver of the car he had collided with.

“I can’t go to court,” said Bodzianowski. “I won’t have a leg to stand on.”

Bodzianowski was fitted with a prosthetic leg, which physicians assured him would give him 85% mobility.

After completing his rehabilitation programme and returning to the boxing gym, the Chicago slugger received a probationary license from the Illinois Boxing Commission—the first ever granted to an amputee.

Within 18 months of his accident, Bodzianowski was back in the ring against all the odds, where he faced a familiar foe in Francis Sargent.

Bodzianowski had defeated Sargent via unanimous decision over 10 rounds in his last fight before the crash, but needed just two frames to blast away his adversary when they ran it back.

Following another stoppage victory of Rick Enis in a televised bout, Bodzianowski won the Illinois State heavyweight title by taking the unbeaten record of Bobby Hiltz.

A subsequent defeat to Alfonzo Ratliff for the Illinois State cruiserweight did little to deter him.

Bodzianowski picked himself up off the canvas three times to hear the final bell in a majority decision loss that won the admiration of the packed-out Ismarck Pavilion crowd.

His popularity skyrocketed as book deals and movie scripts were dangled above his head.

Even the Vatican took notice. Bodzianowski was invited to Rome to meet with Pope John Paul II, with pictures of the pair facing off plastered on the back pages of the national newspapers.

Refusing to take a backwards step, even with one leg, Bodzianowski ploughed on with his career, trading wins and losses with varying levels of opposition until, in 1990, he landed the opportunity of a lifetime: a WBA cruiserweight title shot.

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At the time, Bodzianowski was 24–3–1 and had been ranked in the major sanctioning body’s top 10 for just over a year.

The champion, Robert Daniels, had got his hands on the vacant black and gold strap in his previous outing when he outpointed Dwight Muhammad Qawi, who by then had already won world titles at both light heavyweight and cruiserweight.

Daniels vs Bodzianowski drew a massive crowd at the Kingdome Stadium in Seattle.

Even the great Muhammad Ali turned up to watch the action from ringside.

Ultimately, Daniels proved too good for Bodzianowski, closing his rival’s left eye and cracking his ribs en route to a lopsided unanimous decision victory.

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And yet the brave challenger never stopped forcing the action in pursuit of a lofty goal that had already been half achieved by simply stepping into the ring.

Bodzianowski fought seven more times, winning each contest, before eventually hanging up his gloves in 1993 with a 31-4-1 record.

In retirement, ‘Gator’ slipped into a deep depression as his struggles with alcohol took hold of his life.

Criminal charges piled up, and then in 2013, at the age of just 52 years old, Bodzianowski died in his sleep of a heart attack.

A sad end to a remarkable tale worthy of the Hollywood treatment.