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On to the first half of July, including a very memorable World title encounter as well as a non-title bout, each featuring two fistic legends.

July 4, 1929: July starts with a boxing card and fireworks show in Philadelphia. Featured bout has two aging but still highly rated HWs, ex-Champ Harry Wills, the "Black Panther," against Pat Lester. Wills gets off to a strong start, flooring Lester to score the fight's first knockdown in round three. Lester bounces back, but then he tires badly in the later rounds as Wills once again beats him to the punch, firing a nice uppercut for the bout's second KD in round nine, following up later in the round with a wild overhand right. Lester manages to hang on and last the distance, and the cards show Wills the winner by a MD 10 (96-94, 97-93, 97-93). Not sure how the one judge could call it a draw, thought Wills won by a comfortable margin after the late knockdowns. Post-fight records are 50-11-1 (46) for Wills and 24-7 (20) for Lester.

July 5, 1929: Next fight card, resuming the "Friday night fights" series, takes us to the Sportpalast in Berlin, Germany. Even though no titles are on the line tonight, a capacity crowd is on hand to see local HW hero Max Schmeling take on the legendary former Champ, Jack Dempsey. It is their first meeting and Dempsey, although at Post-Prime career stage, is still ranked #6 and a dangerous opponent for Schmeling, who is looking to move into the top ten with a big win. Dempsey rocks Schmeling with a good shot and takes the opening round. Max rebounds quickly, landing repeatedly over the next four rounds before uncorking a crippling right to the head that forces Dempsey to cover up in the fifth. The unofficial scorer has Schmeling up by one (49-48) at the halfway point of this scheduled 10-rounder. In round six, the crowd roars as the "Black Uhlan" connects with a hooik to the head, rocking Dempsey once again. The left eye of the "Manassa Mauler" is starting to puff up by the end of round seven as a result of the repeated effect of Schmeling's punches. Schmeling suffers a cut lip in round nine, but he presses forward, putting Dempsey on the canvas for a seven-count with a strong combination. Battered and bruised, Dempsey lasts the distance, but it is no surprise as the younger man, Schmeling, claims a UD 10 (99-91, 99-91, 98-91) by a fairly substantial margin. The win moves Schmeling to 20-1 (16) and a probable top ten HW ranking, while Dempsey is now 54-10-1 (49).

July 6, 1929: North of the border at Edmonton Gardens in Canada for the next fight card. Featured bout is for the USBA Flyweight crown, with Fidel LaBarba, the USBA titleholder, seeking to move up by challenging Lew Perfetti for this belt. It's a close bout in the early rounds, as both men exhibit strong boxing skills. LaBarba, the higher ranked challenger, gradually gains the upper hand after a strong round five. By the end of round seven, Perfetti's right eye shows signs of swelling. Then, in round eight, LaBarba catches Perfetti with a short, clean hook that decks the Champ. Perfetti struggles to his feet at the count of eight, then covers up to survive the final minute of the round. Perfetti tires in the later rounds but manages to stay on his feet the rest of the way. When the scorecards are read, it is no surprise that LaBarba takes a UD 12 (115-112, 115-112, 117-110) to add the NABF belt to his USBA title. LaBarba moves to 21-2-1 (9) with the win, while Perfetti slips to 21-9-4 (10).

July 12, 1929: Friday night fight card is at the Boston Garden. No title bouts, the main event has up-and-coming LH contender Lou Scozza matched against the legendary Harry Greb, an aging but still dangerous foe. After a couple of rounds of comparatively light sparring, Greb gets aggressive and dominates the action in round three. Scozza bounces back to take rounds four and five, building a slight points lead. The bout turns into the expected slugfest in the later rounds. In round eight, Scozza connects to put Greb down for a nine-count; although he follows up with a second KD later in the round, the veteran "Human Windmill" survives into round nine. Greb goes all out but again gets careless, walking into an uppercut. At the end of the round, his left eye is starting to swell. Sad, really, for even though the bout goes the distance, the former MW and LH king is but a shadow of his former self. Scozza by UD 10 (98-89, 95-92, 96-91) aided considerably by 10-7 and 10-8 counts in the rounds in which he scored the knockdowns. Scozza, now firmly entrenched among the top 10 LHs, improves to 22-1 (17) with the win, while Greb -- who moves from Post-Prime to End career stage after this bout -- is now 49-14-2 (26).

July 13, 1929: More fistic action back in the UK at the Stadium in Liverpool. Again, no titles at stake (there's a real paucity of title bouts this month), and the featured bout has up-and-coming Norwegian HW, Otto Von Porat, matched with "Fainting Phil" Scott, the current GBU titleholder who remains the #1 British HW hopeful at the moment. After a couple of even opening rounds, Scott seizes control in the third round and moves forward to apply the pressure on the inside in round four. He holds a sizable points lead after five rounds (49-46) and nurses the lead into the final stanzas. Scott also battles a cut nose in the final two rounds, finishing off a solid effort for a deserving UD 10 win (99-90, 98-91, 98-91). Scott moves to 26-16-2 (6) compared to 15-2-1 (11) for Von Porat.

July 13, 1929: A very good fight card to wrap up the first half of July action at Comiskey Park in Chicago. One of the preliminary bouts features unbeaten and now ranked MW prospect Freddie Steele, the "Astoria Assassin," who puts it on the line against ex-WBA MW Champ Johnny Wilson. While Wilson is now way past his prime, he still knows his way around the ring so it will be a good test for Steele. Good test or not, the bout is over in just 29 seconds as Steele floors Wilson with a strong right cross, and the aging vet cannot beat the count. Steele's exciting KO 1 win pushes his career totals to 16-0 (14) while Wilson, who announced his retirement after the loss, winds up a 19-year ring career at 40-25-1 (12). In the main support bout, another unbeaten young fighter is not so fortunate; LW Jack Portney suffers his first defeat to fellow prospect Roger Bernard via a MD 10; the win moves Bernard to 13-1 (10) while Portney is now 14-1 (12).
Finally, it's time for the main event, a 15-round WBA WW title bout featuring one all-time great, Benny Leonard against a likely future great, Jimmy '"Baby Face" McLarnin. For this bout, I have Leonard set at LW (suffering a penalty for moving up in weight) but also benefiting from the defending Champion bias. After a couple of quiet opening rounds, the Canadian challenger moves inside, getting aggressive in round three. Leonard battles back to dominate action in the fourth and fifth rounds, piling up a nice points lead on the unofficial card (49-46 after five rounds). McLarnin is able to cut into Leonard's lead with a strong effort in round eight, but Leonard's slick counterpunching and general boxing skills keep him in front (97-93 with five rounds left on the unofficial card). In the late rounds, McLarnin is simply looking to land a big shot and then take advantage of the opportunity. In round 13, the Canadian finds the range with a big cross and puts Leonard on the deck for a seven-count. There's a minute left in the round, and "the Ghetto Wizard" calls on all his defensive skills, covering up and preventing a second KD or further serious damage. Nonetheless, the tide appears to have turned and McLarnin finishes strongly, while Leonard avoids a second trip to the canvas. The scorecards indicate that McLarnin's late surge was just enough to overcome Leonard's early lead, as the belt goes to McLarnin via a very close but UD 15 (144-140, 143-141, 143-141) with the 13th round KD playing a key part in the outcome. Post fight records: McLarnin, 26-2 (18); Leonard, 73-4-1 (41). Leonard's six-bout win streak (all at WW) is snapped. Great fight, and already fans are clamoring for a rematch.