Brooklyn, CT – On July 15th, 2022, Paul Iannuzzi broke the world record as the oldest boxer to ever
make their professional boxing debut. Not only did he win the bout in fashion, but he fulfilled a
decade old promise to his daughter. On the night, Ianuzzi, who was at a 17-year age disadvantage,
scored a first-round knockout over Lucinei Santos, a professional MMA fighter and professional
boxer from Brazil.
Fast forward almost 18 months. With the assistance of the Tennessee Athletic Commission, 58 yearold “entertainer,” Scott England, surpassed Ianuzzi and became the oldest “boxer” to make their professional debut. To say it didn’t sit well with Inazuzzi is an understatement.
“I’ve been asked how I feel about it”, said Ianuzzi. “To be honest, I feel awful about it. Not because someone broke my record, records are made to be broken. But how, and by who it was broken by is absurd. This should
not be recognized, shame on the Tennessee Commission for allowing it. The commission, along
with whoever promoted this circus act, are incompetent.”
Scott England was knocked out in :46 seconds by an opponent 35 years his junior. An opponent,
despite having had professional boxing experience, brought an 0-6 record into the fight. Iannuzzi,
who has over 35 years of competitive boxing experience, couldn’t have been more fired up.
“Mr. England is a DJ who was a fan of Muhammed Ali. I guess he thought it would be cool to break my
record. But he did not belong anywhere near a boxing ring. He had zero amateur experience and got
dropped five seconds into the fight. “
Iannuzzi believed that there were several Master Boxing Amateur “legends” that would have been
much better candidates to hold the record. Instead, England will hold it hostage. He went on to
mention guys like Shawn McFadden, Tom Rosa, Johnny Farace, Paul Domerville and Thomas Hall.
“Those are the fighters with award winning amateur careers and years of training. This guy got off of
his couch, stepped inside the ropes and got dropped and hurt within five seconds,” said Iannuzzi.
“This act of foolishness by the Tennessee Commission hurts the sport of boxing. It will take away the
opportunity for a legit boxer to accomplish it. His record is safe for eternity, no commission will ever
allow this again.”
Immediately after his debut, Ianuzzi reiterated that he will never fight professionally again. However,
conventional wisdom would suggest that recent events may have changed his mind. When asked if
he would consider challenging England, Iannuzzi shot it down. “Nah, I’m done.”
Iannuzzi can take solace in the fact that he is still the oldest boxer in the world to win his pro debut.
A record, that in itself, may not ever be broken. As the Tennessee commission just proved, virtually
anyone off the street or out of the DJ booth can get a license to box professionally. Coming away
victorious is a much more difficult task to accomplish. Paul Iannuzzi did, Scott England didn’t.
