The Brooklyn Bugle
March 16, 1950
PAPP HALTS HERBIE IN SIX!
By Larry Rubin
Unbeaten Hungarian middleweight Laszlo Papp picked up his eleventh win and third straight TKO victory by stopping Coney Island ring veteran Herbie Kronowitz in the sixth heat of their scheduled ten rounder last night at Madison Square Garden.
Kronowitz had nearly a six inch edge in height over the stocky Papp but was unable to make it work to his advantage. From the opening bell, Kronowitz tried to use his jab to set up the right cross in an effort to keep the soutpaw Papp at bay but had little success.
The shorter Papp proved to be a small target and worked his way inside Kronowitz's defenses to wreck havoc. Papp, who won an Olympic gold medal in 1956, punished his opponents body with hooks in the early rounds before shifting his attack to the head.
Kronowitz, a ring veteran of more than eighty pro fights and a savvy boxer, could not hold Papp off. Bobbing and weaving, Laszlo cut off the ring and effectively neutralized Kronowitz's reach advantage.
As he came out for the sixth round, Herbie looked like he had gone through a meat grinder. He had cuts both above and below his left eye while his right eye was starting to close. This made him an easy target for Papp's power punches.
With a minute remaining in the round, Herbie's face was covered with gore, and he was taking a severe beating from Papp, offering little in the way of a defense. With the clock at 2:22, referee Vince DeMattia stepped in and stopped the slaughter.
The crowd at ringside was impressed by Papp's performance. Kronowitz, who was a top ten contender for the world title a few years ago, is a polished and accomplished fighter. Laszlo's demolition of Herbie makes him a serious presence in the middleweight division.
In his last two fights he dispatched Sal Belloise and Vinnie Cidone with first round stoppages. The fact that it took him six rounds to put away Kronowitz wasn't seen as a step backwards by any stretch of the imagination. Herbie is the most skilled fighter that Papp has faced to date.
Al Weill, who manages Papp, was not definite about his fighter's next opponent, but indicated that he expects to have Laszlo back in the ring in late June against a "name" fighter.
Some of the names that have been frequently mentioned are former world champion Rocky Graziano and hard-hitting Syracuse slugger Joey DeJohn. A victory for Papp over either man would almost certainly assure Laszlo a place in the world rankings.
Weill, however, has indicated that he's in no rush to secure his man a title shot. Papp just turned twenty-four and has yet to reach his prime as a boxer.