Former boxing champ Gatti found dead in Brazil

[JIDinPhilly]

http://www.reuters.com/article/sport...56B00Z20090712

The Gatti/Ward fights were awesome.



RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - Former world champion boxer Arturo Gatti was found dead in a holiday apartment in a northern Brazilian seaside resort on Saturday with wounds to his neck and head, Pernambuco state police said.

They were investigating the death of the 37-year-old Canadian, who was found by his Brazilian wife Amanda in his underwear and there was a bloodied bag handle in the flat, a police spokesman said.

"According to his wife, the couple came to spend a second honeymoon for a month and rented a flat, making an advance payment," he told Reuters by telephone. He said no arrests had been made.

Gatti arrived at Porto de Galinhas resort south of the city of Recife with his wife and year-old son on Friday.

Italian-born Gatti, nicknamed Thunder, was IBF Super featherweight champion in 1995 and WBC Super lightweight champion in 2004. He retired in 2007.

(Reporting by Pedro Fonseca; Writing by Rex Gowar in Buenos Aires; Editing by Ian Ransom)

[Tequila Sunrise]

Damn, what battles this guy fought. He always had the punchers chance. What a shame.