[JCWeb]

Thanks, Ric. As part of the plan to move things along a bit, I am going to focus more on the featured bouts on each fight card and filing periodic reports (one or two per month). The year-end reports will still be there but expect them to become more of a summary but less round-by-round action. Pleased to report I am already halfway through Jan. 1928 at the moment, so here's the first of this new feature:

Jan. 6, 1928: Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo NY: First of the "Friday night feature" program sees two top 10 LHs matched together -- boxer Maxie Rosenbloom "Slapsie Maxie") versus Paul Berlenbach (the "Astoria Assassin"). It's a classic boxer versus slugger matchup, and it's at a key point in both men's careers as one or both may soon step up and challenge for a major title. Action gets serious in round three as Berlenbach rips a hook to left hook to the body. Maxie is also battling a swollen left eye. More excitement in round four, as Berlenbach lands a straight right on the button that staggers Maxie, causing Rosenbloom to cover up. Nonetheless, Rosenbloom is the far more effective puncher, impressing the judges and piling up points while Berlenbach, always the aggressor, seems to be flailing away at times. Rosenbloom has to battle a cut over the swollen eye that is re-opened late in the bout. Despite constant pressure from Berlenbach, there are no knockdowns and the bout goes the distance. Rosenbloom takes an impressive UD 10 (98-92 on all three cards) to remain undefeated, running his career record to 20-0-4 (10) while Berlenbach slips to 19-3 (15).

Jan. 7, 1928: Action tonight in the Cow Palace in San Francisco concludes with a 12-round bout for the USBA Middleweight title. Jack McVey is defending the belt versus highly regarded contender Dave Shade, who has tried unsuccessfully for the WBA and NABF title belts in the past year, and now he sets his sights on McVey's USBA belt. Not much action in the early rounds, as Shade takes awhile to get going, falling behind in the early rounds. Then, in round six, he catches McVey with a solid shot, and continues to apply strong pressure for the rest of the bout. At the start of round eight, he rocks McVey with a sharp combination, forcing the Champ to cover up. No knockdowns, but Shade -- the aggressor -- dictates the pace for the rest of the fight. Scorecards show Shade taking the title (in his fourth try for a MW belt) via a UD 12 (115-113, 116-112, 117-111). Shade is now 27-11-4 (9) while the loss drops McVey to 26-8 (16).

Jan. 7, 1928: Fans gather at the Stadium in Liverpool, UK for the featured bout, a 12-rounder with the British MW title at stake, matching the current champ (Tommy Milligan) with the former champion (Len Johnson). Johnson has impressed with a recent win over Billy Angelo to lift him into the top 10 in the world rankings, and now he is looking to regain his spot as the British MW king. Johnson works his jab effectively, building an early points lead. Milligan suffers a cut eye in round three, and then the other eye starts to swell up midway through the bout. The cut worsens, reopening twice in the later rounds, finally leading to a late stoppage although it seemed like Johnson was well on his way to victory anyway. The TKO 12 win lifts Johnson (the new GBU champ) to 21-8 (13) while Milligan slips to 20-9 (15).

Jan. 13, 1928: Second edition of "Friday night feature" series of bouts goes to Miami, and this time it's a 12-rounder for vacant NABF WW title, matching USBA Champion Pete Latzo versus Willie Harmon, both of whom are among the current top 10 WW contenders. Not much excitement in the early rounds, as Latzo worked effectively from the outside primarily, building a huge points lead through a very workmanlike performance. Then, in round nine, Harmon staged a comeback, putting Latzo down and regaining even more lost ground when Latzo loses a point for repeatedly hitting below the belt a round later. Despite these setbacks, Latzo hangs on to take a MD 12 (114-112, 113-113, 114-112) to take the belt and move to 28-9-1 (11) while Harmon drops to 23-7-2 (11).

Jan. 14, 1928: Action tonight at the Sports Palace in Rome, Italy, pitting France's Eugene Criqui against Hamilton Johnny Brown for the EBU FW crown that was vacated by Routis after he won the WBA title. No fireworks in the early rounds, and Criqui appears to be gaining the upper hand. The bout turns around quickly in the eighth round, when Criqui is forced to break after clutching and grabbing Brown, then Brown lets go with a shot that puts Criqui down for an eight-count. Brown then seizes control the rest of the way, as Criqui shows the effect of aging and tires quickly. A second KD late in the final round seals a UD 12 win for Young Johnny Brown (116-113, 118-110, 118-112), who moves to 25-7-1 (13) while Criqui, his career now in decline, slips to 48-15-6 (21).

Jan. 20, 1928: Friday night fight action moves to Australia and Melbourne arena. Topping an abbreviated fight card tonight is a 10-rounder featuring Australia's new Commonwealth titleholder, George Thompson, who takes on #1 rated contender, NABF Champion George Godfrey. The bout turns out to be an entertaining one, with lots of momentum swings. After a couple of uneventful opening rounds, Godfrey unleashes a powerful hook to put the Australian down for an eight-count in round three. Thompson rallies back to connect with a hard cross to the head of Godfrey, who crumbles to the canvas, arising at the count of eight in round six. Godfrey bounces back a round later, decking Thompson for a second time with a vicious combination. Thompson is back on his feet at the count of seven. Thompson stages a rally in the later rounds, making the final decision a close one. The judges' cards are read, and the final result is a draw -- the bout was so close that Godfrey had to win the final round from two of the three judges to avert defeat. Final scores are 95-92 Godfrey, 94-all, 94-93 Thompson. Godfrey is now 34-7-1 (24) while Thompson moves to 20-1-1 (12).