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1913 FW Title Bouts

WBA

Abe Attell CH (53-2-1) vs Johnny Kilbane #2 (21-4-2)

Kilbane's third try to wrest the title from Attell, and the fact that the last time it was a narrow MD loss gives him some reason for optimism. Abe is gunning for his 22nd win a row, Kilbane has won two NABF bouts since his last loss to Attell.

After a good start in round one, Kilbane moves inside for round two but Attell quickly establishes his rhythm, landing more blows and causing swelling outside the right eye of the challenger. Round three, Kilbane retreats to the outside and two exchange blows from long range, an even round. Attell tries to pressure Kilbane in the fourth, scoring with a short uppercut that puts Kilbane on the canvas briefly. Not much action in round five as Kilbane stays away, putting defense first and trying to clear his head. The Lil' Champ continues to move inside and out, building a points lead in the middle rounds. Kilbane lands a good hook to the head of Attell in the 9th, but late in the round it is Attell who scores his second KD of the fight. Kilbane is down again late in the fight, and in the end Attell dominates the bout against the man thought to be his toughest competition in the division. Attell by UD 15 (145-137, 146-136, 147-136).

Abe Attell CH (54-2-1) vs Leo Johnson #6 (16-2)

Attell takes on one of the division's promising youngsters, Leo Johnson, for the first time. Johnson beat ex-Champ Young Corbett by a SD his last time out, but he is thought to be too inexperienced to give Attell much of a challenge.

Attell starts on the outside but switches to an inside attack in round 3 to put on the pressure. Johnson simply is unable to put any punches together, and Abe dominates the early action. Johnson has a few good moments in round 6, but Attell responds with a strong barrage in the 7th, staggering his younger foe. Round 8, some swelling appears around the right eye of the Champ, giving Johnson some hope as he registers another good round. Johnson tries to get more aggressive, but he tires badly in the later rounds. Attell by UD 15 (148-137, 147-138, 148-137).

Abe Attell CH (55-3-1) vs Johnny Dundee #3 (18-2)

Lack of top-flight challengers caused Attell to try his luck in the LW division, where he was handed his first defeat in seven years, a SD 10 loss to Harlem Tommy Murphy. Dundee, still an unproven talent, has solid wins over Grover Hayes, Steve Sullivan, and Brooklyn Tommy Sullivan to set up the title clash with Attell.

Attell again starts on the outside, gradually working his way inside to apply more pressure. A sharp combination by Abe at the end of round 2 stuns Dundee and by the end of the fourth, the right eye of the challenger is starting to swell up. Attell once again has the points lead, but Dundee rallies in the middle rounds to keep it close. He backs up the Champ with a strong hook in the 9th, but is unable to follow up. In the pivotal round 10, Attell comes back, catching Dundee with a big cross that forces him to cover up, then another strong shot has the challenger on the canvas for a 9-count. A series of Attell combinations leads to a second KD in round 11, but Abe can't put a game Dundee away. Attell by UD 15 (147-137, 147-137, 147-138).

NABF: Kilbane has the belt and defends versus Jimmy Walsh, the newly-crowned USBA champ. Kilbane is sharp early, mixing inside and outside attacks but his corner has to deal with a nasty cut above the right eye opened in round 5. Fortunately for Kilbane, the cut is ruled to be due to an accidental butt so when the bout is stopped it goes to the cards and is a technical draw (86-85 Kilbane, 85-85 Walsh, 86-86 even). Rather than granting a rematch, Kilbane takes on Eddie O'Keefe. He staggers O'Keefe in round 3 and wins a bout with a strong defensive bent. Kilbane by UD 12 (115-113, 116-112, 115-114) to keep the belt for another year.

USBA: Aging vet Brooklyn Tommy Sullivan starts the year with the belt, but runs into trouble when he takes on rugged Jimmy Walsh. Walsh takes the initiative early, opening a cut over Sullivan's right eye that is reopened twice and leads to a 10-round TKO. Walsh, the new US champ, defends versus Ty Cobb, and, in a bout that is surprisingly close, Walsh escapes with a SD 12 verdict (118-111, 114-115, 116-113).

CBU: Canada's Percy Cove had held the CBU belt since 1909, but this time he ran into a determined opponent in Brit Owen Moran, who slipped punches well and landed enough to take a UD 12 decision (116-113, 117-112, 116-113).

GBU: Moran did not defend his GBU title, as he was too busy chasing after the CBU crown in addition to defending his EBU belt.

EBU: Owen Moran started the year with the title, which he defended versus Kid Julian of Italy. It was Julian's first title shot of any kind, and he made the most of it, putting the favored Moran on his back with a big hook in the sixth and piecing together a SD 12 win (113-114, 115-112, 114-113) to become the third EBU FW champ in four bouts. Later in the year he defended against Billy Elliott, the only other EBU titleholder, landing a big uppercut in the third and following it up with a serious attack in the 5th that left Elliott with a gushing cut above the right eyebrow that led to an immediate stoppage. Julian by TKO 5 (cut).