By Jim Amato

It is with great sadness to report that former world junior welterweight champion Nicolino Locche of Argentina has passed on. He was 66 years old. Reports from his homeland say that heart failure was the cause of death.

Loche was a defensive genius who won the crown from Paul Fuji. Locche had several successful defenses including one over the legendary Antonio Cervantes. He eventually lost the title to Alfonso "Peppermint" Frazier of Panama. Cervantes would defeat Frazier for the title and in a rematch, Locche would fail in an attempt to regain his crown from Cervantes.

Locche fought from 1958 to 1976. He ended his career with an impressive 117-4-14 record. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall Of Fame in 2003.

Rest in peace...