The Son Who Came to See His Daddy: Remembering Arturo Gatti, Jr.

My routine during my several trips to attend the International Boxing Hall of Fame inductions in Canastota, New York would be to cover the ceremony and then go to a nearby McDonald’s to write my column. One year sticks out.

In 2013 Arturo “Thunder” Gatti was inducted posthumously along with Virgil Hill, referee Mills Lane and announcer Jimmy Lennon Jr. Gatti’s controversial 2009 death in Brazil cast a somber note over the day of celebration in upstate New York. Gatti’s daughter, Sofia, age 7 at the time, joined Gatti’s former manager Pat Lynch on the stage and said into the microphone “Thank you for my Daddy.”

There was no mention of Arturo Gatti Jr. that day. The 4-year-old son of the late boxer was in the back of the large audience though no one knew it at the time. The young boy had been driven eight hours from Montreal by Victoria Purchio, a friend of Amanda Rodrigues, Gatti’s widow.

At the time, many of those close to Gatti believed Rodrigues was involved in the boxer’s death at a beach resort in Porto de Galinhas, Brazil. She was briefly jailed during an investigation into his death but released after 18 days when authorities ruled Gatti had committed suicide by hanging.

Rodrigues blamed her immigration status for keeping her from attending the induction ceremonies in Canastota four years later. It was just as well. An ugly confrontation between her and Gatti’s friends and family might have ensued. “She doesn’t have a good relationship with his family,” Purchio told me 12 years ago. Asked why she would drive the boy eight hours for a brief ceremony, Purchio said, “This is a very special occasion for him to remember about his dad.”

Arturo Jr. stayed in the background that afternoon, unnoticed until he stopped at McDonald’s on his way home.

“Arturo, Arturo,” I heard a women’s voice coming from near the counter. 

My attention turned to the little boy dressed in a smart black suit with a white shirt. His long dark hair nearly covered his eyes. Could it be? It must be. “Come here Arturo Jr. Come here!” Purchio said.

I got up from behind my computer and walked over to introduce myself. That’s when I met Arturo Gatti, Jr. and heard Purchio’s story. “I brought him here on behalf of his mom,” Purchio would tell me. “He’s the spitting image of his father.”

Arturo Gatti Jr. was 10 months old when his father died. Four year later he was driven from Canada to New York to honor him. “I came to see my daddy,” he told me, clutching a Happy Meal of chicken nuggets.

I was reminded of that special encounter this week upon learning Arturo Gatti Jr. had died at age 17. I couldn’t believe it. Reports are he committed suicide by hanging in Mexico where he lived with his mother. I couldn’t believe that either. A tragic ending to a life that was just getting started.

The final line of my story 12 years ago is that Arturo Jr. loved sports gymnastics, soccer, and tennis. He grew up to be an aspiring boxer, who spoke frequently about following in his father’s footsteps. It would have been nice to see him come full circle, embrace dad’s legacy and step out of the shadows that surrounded him that day in Canastota. Maybe his father’s legacy ultimately proved too much to bear.