[BigBoyBrackey]

Martin Burke W10 Otto von Porat: With the fight even on two cards going into the 10th, Burke drops his favored foe with less than a minute remaining in a back-and-forth frame to emerge with a 96-94, 96-94, 97-94 upset.

Jack Johnson W10 Chuck Wiggins: Even in his 40s, Johnson is far too smooth for Wiggins. Neither fighter is down or cut, or even particularly hurt, but Johnson is in control throughout for a 99-91, 97-94, 99-91 nod.

Max Schmeling TKO6 Arthur de Kuh: Max makes like a machine, battering de Kuh from the opening bell. Schmeling has his prey down and nearly out in the fifth, drops him again in the sixth and finally forces the ref to intervene at the 2:26 mark.

Georges Carpentier W10 Monte Munn: The Orchid Man, apparently eager to show that he can get away with perhaps the least intimidating nickname in pugilistic history, batters his overmatched opponent throughout. Carpentier drops Munn in the eighth and ninth, but backs off in the final frame, content with a 97-92, 99-89, 98-90 decision.

[BigBoyBrackey]

The fourth and final bracket takes place over two nights at the Rhode Island Auditorium in Providence.





Built in 1926, the Auditorium – also known as the Arena, apparently to cause confusion – would later serve as the home base for Rocky Marciano’s early career, as seen in the rendering above.

Jess Willard (29) vs. Bartley Madden (36)

Jess Willard
The Pottawatomie Giant
26-6-1, 20 KO





Notable fights: KO26 Jack Johnson; KOby3 Jack Dempsey; W10 Frank Moran; W10 Carl Morris; TKO11 Floyd Johnson; KOby8 Luis Angel Firpo; W10 Arthur Pelkey; L20 Gunboat Smith.

The first of the giant heavyweights (6-foot-6, 238 when he won the title), Willard’s reputation suffers from Johnson’s claim that he took a dive in Havana, as well as from having made just one successful defense in four-plus years before getting pulverized by Dempsey.

Bartley Madden
39-25-6, 14 KO





Notable fights: W4 John Lester Johnson; L10, L10, D12, L15, W8, L10 Battling Levinsky; L10, W8, L10, D12 Bill Brennan; L10 Tommy Gibbons; L8 Billy Miske; L10 Harry Greb; LbyDQ4 Joe Jeannette; W15 Martin Burke; L10 Bob Roper; L12 Jack Renault; KOby3 Gene Tunney.

Had won three straight when he died in Washington, D.C., at age 39, “from injuries received in a 20-foot fall from a landing at the Treasury Building,” according to boxrec.com. “His wife had died only three weeks earlier.”

Phil Scott (22) vs. Tut Jackson (43)

Phil Scott
65-13-5, 30 KO





Notable fights: W20, W20 Tom Heeney; KOby6 Paulino Uzcudun; KOby11 Harry Persson; KOby1 Knute Hansen; KO10 Monte Munn; L10 Johnny Risko; W10 Victorio Campolo; WbyDQ2 Otto von Porat; TKOby3 Jack Sharkey; KOby2 Young Stribling; KOby2 Larry Gains.

Earned derisive nickname “Faintin’ Phil” by running up six victories via disqualification. Suffering quick KOs to Hansen, Sharkey (when his claim of a foul was rejected), Stribling and Gains didn’t help, either. First DQ won him the British title and he later took three within four months in 1926-27.

Tut Jackson
76-38-11, 51 KO





Notable fights: KOby3 Harry Wills; KOby1, KOby9 Sam Langford; TKOby8 Carl Morris; KOby4 Bill Tate; L12, L12, L10 Tiger Flowers; KOby4 John Lester Johnson; W10 Battling Siki; KOby5 George Godfrey; D10 Bill Hartwell; L10, D10, KOby5, KOby7, KOby7 Bearcat Wright; L10, L10 Johnny Risko.

Fought, and was beaten by, the best of the ‘20s. Was 38-1-2 before facing Wills for the first time, 38-37-9 from there on.

Bill Brennan (15) vs. Harry Persson (50)

Bill Brennan
KO Bill
76-19-7, 48 KO





Notable fights: TKOby6, KOby12 Jack Dempsey; W10, W10, L8, W10, D12 Bartley Madden; D12, W12, L12, D12 Battling Levinsky; L10, L10, L15, L10 Harry Greb; L15, D8, L10, KOby4 Billy Miske; W6 Willie Meehan; W12 Bob Martin; L15 Floyd Johnson; KOby12 Luis Angel Firpo.

The Razor Ruddock of his time, Brennan is best remembered for his two hard-fought losses to Dempsey than for any fight he actually won. Ran up most of his wins against mediocre opposition. Murdered in a bar he owned, the Club Tia Juana, in Manhattan in 1924, supposedly after running afoul of mobsters.

Harry Persson
35-5-4, 17 KO





Notable fights: KO2 Larry Gains; KO11 Phil Scott; W10 Johnny Risko; LbyDQ5, TKO4 Bud Gorman; L10 Jim Maloney; TKOby1 Otto von Porat.

Most of his impressive record compiled in his native Sweden, Persson was 4-4 in the U.S. and against world-caliber foes.

Jack Delaney (8) vs. George Cook (57)

Jack Delaney
Bright Eyes
77-12-2, 43 KO





Notable fights: KO2 Bud Gorman; L10 Jim Maloney; WbyDQ7 Paulino Uzcudun; L10 Johnny Risko; W10 Jack Renault; W15, TKO6 Paul Berlenbach; KO1 Sully Montgomery; L15 Tom Heeney; KOby1 Jack Sharkey.

Did his best work at light-heavy, including beating Berlenbach for the title, but did reach the finals of Tex Rickard’s tournament to select a challenger to Gene Tunney, losing to Heeney.

George Cook
45-54-12, 11 KO





Notable fights: W20 Tiger Jack Payne; D10, TKOby7 John Lester Johnson; NC9 Martin Burke; L10 Jim Maloney; L10, L10, L10, TKOby8 Young Stribling; W10 Bob Lawson; W10, L15 Larry Gains; W20 Tom Heeney; L15 Phil Scott; L15 Harry Persson; W10, W15 Paulino Uzcudun; KOby4 Georges Carpentier; L20 Chuck Wiggins; D10 Babe Hunt.

Fight itinerary included native Australia, Europe, North and South America. Had a number of quality wins, but miserable overall record. Win over Tiger Jack Payne, an American, for the Aussie heavyweight title in December 1926 was apparently enough to earn him the No. 15 spot in The Ring’s heavyweight rankings for 1927, a list that was trimmed to 10 the following year.

[BigBoyBrackey]

Jess Willard W10 Bartley Madden: After starting slow and dropping two of the first three rounds, Willard hurts Madden with an uppercut in the fourth and spends the rest of the fight chasing down his retreating foe. The ex-champ wins every round the rest of the way, nearly dropping Madden in the 4th, 8th and 10th before settling for a 98-93, 98-92, 98-93 win.

Phil Scott W10 Tut Jackson: The oft-mocked Brit starts and finishes strong, winning the last four rounds on two cards to pull out a 97-93, 95-95, 97-93 majority nod, with a right in the eighth causing a cut and swelling near Jackson’s left eye. Each fighter is warned twice for fouls, but disqualification is never an issue.

Bill Brennan W10 Harry Persson: “KO Bill” drops the Swede with an overhand right early in the eighth and nearly stops Persson. Brennan goes on to win a split decision controversial only because it wasn’t unanimous, by scores of 97-94, 97-94 and 95-96. The dissenting judge somehow saw fit to give the fourth and sixth, which seemed clearly to belong to Brennan, to Persson, drawing a smattering of boos when announced.

George Cook TKO3 Jack Delaney: The boos were full-throated when referee Alan Moore declared Cook the winner in the upset of the tournament thus far.

Less than a minute into the first round, the 5-foot-9 Cook lands his best shot of the fight – with the top of his head. Moore admonishes the Australian for the foul, which manifests itself moments later when blood starts pouring from a gash over Delaney’s right eye.

Despite the wound, Delaney batters Cook through the second round, nearly forcing Moore to intervene.

Cook battles back in the third, fighting the Canadian on even terms until late in the round, when a left hook sends Delaney’s sweat flying and reopens the wound over his eye. After consulting with the ringside physician, Moore waves the fight over, then stuns everyone in the building, including Cook, by pronouncing the tournament’s No. 57 seed the winner by technical knockout.

Delaney, who led 20-18, 19-19, 20-18 at the stoppage, protests vociferously, but Moore stands by his bizarre decision and exits the Auditorium without commenting to the press.

[BigBoyBrackey]

Charlie Weinert (25) vs. Young Bob Fitzsimmons (40)

Charlie Weinert
Newark Adonis
70-21-4, 26 KO





Notable fights: D10, L10, L8, W15 Battling Levinsky; W12 Young Bob Fitzsimmons; TKOby2, L10 Jack Dillon; L10, W10, W12 Gunboat Smith; KOby2, LbyDQ2 Fred Fulton; L10 Billy Miske; WbyDQ4 Bob Roper; W12 Willie Meehan; W10 Bartley Madden; L15 Harry Greb; D15 Martin Burke; L12, KOby4 Gene Tunney; W12, WbyDQ4 Chuck Wiggins; TKOby2, W12 Luis Angel Firpo; W12, W10 Jack Sharkey; KOby2 Harry Wills; Quintin Romero Rojas W12.

Victim of bad timing, beating Sharkey, Firpo, Rojas and Burke at a time when Dempsey was playing keep-away with the world championship. Also lost close decisions to Tunney and Greb.

Young Bob Fitzsimmons
35-20-3, 16 KO





Notable fights: W12 Erminio Spalla; L15 Martin Burke; L12 Charlie Weinert; D10, L12 Bud Gorman; L10 Young Stribling; L10 Jimmy Delaney; KO3 Quintin Romero Rojas; L12 Jack Delaney; L10 Johnny Risko; L10 Tiger Flowers; L10 Jack Demave

Unlike most who adopted the “Young” preface before a famous fighter’s name, Young Bob was actually the son of the former heavyweight champion. Resemblance ended there, as Fitzsimmons lacked Dad’s knockout power, but fought many top contenders without ever being stopped.

Primo Carnera (18) vs. Lou Barba (47)

Primo Carnera
The Ambling Alp
89-14, 72 KO





Notable fights: WbyDQ4, LbyDQ7 Young Stribling; KO2 Sully Montgomery; KO2 Chuck Wiggins; WbyDQ5 George Godfrey; KO4 Bearcat Wright; KO4, TKO7 Jack Gross; L10 Jim Maloney; W10, W15 Paulino Uzcudun; KO2, W12 Victorio Campolo; L10 Larry Gains; KO1 Knute Hansen; KO2 Bud Gorman; KO13 Ernie Schaaf; KO6 Jack Sharkey; W15 Tommy Loughran; TKOby11 Max Baer; TKOby6 Joe Louis; TKO4 Big Boy Brackey.

Carnera wouldn’t win the world title until 1933, and most of his biggest fights took place in the ‘30s, but the buzz caused by his size and string of early successes in Europe – including a split of two DQ fights with Young Stribling -- had him ranked No. 9 by The Ring in 1929.

Lou Barba
31-8-4, 8 KO





Notable fights: L6, L4 Jim Braddock; L10 Tiger Jack Payne; W6 Charlie Wepner.

Max Schmeling’s former sparring partner who shunned the sport after retiring, according to boxrec.com, Barba’s inclusion in the database and, quite frankly, this tournament is somewhat mysterious, leading observers to wonder if Carnera’s nefarious connections may have lined him up a soft touch in the first round.

Paulino Uzcudun (10) vs. Knute Hansen (55)

Paulino Uzcudun
The Basque Woodchopper
50-17-3, 34 KO





Notable fights: W15 Erminio Spalla, W10 Knute Hansen; W10, D15 Tom Heeney; KO4 Harry Wills; LbyDQ7 Jack Delaney; L10 Johnny Risko; KO3 Quintin Romero Rojas; L10 George Godfrey; W10 Otto von Porat; W10 Bill Hartwell; L15, L12 Max Schmeling; L10 Tuffy Griffiths; W10 Otto von Porat; L10, L15 Primo Carnera; L15 Ernie Schaaf; KOby4 Joe Louis.

While there is no concrete evidence that Uzcudun ever chopped wood, he was a tough contender for a decade who was never stopped until facing Louis in the final fight of his career at age 36.

Knute Hansen
18-12-1, 10 KO





Notable fights: KO3 Quintin Romero Rojas; L10 Paulino Uzcudun; KO1 Phil Scott; KOby2 Babe Hunt; KOby1 Primo Carnera; W10 Monte Munn.

Dropped Scott seven times in less than a round, helping soil the reputation of British heavyweights for generations to come.

In 1933, United Press Staff Correspondent Henry M'Lemore wrote, according to boxrec.com: "Knute Hansen, once one of Boston's better trial horses, is now a Parisian painter, specializing in posies... He quit the ring, he says, when he felt himself getting goofy... Knute classes himself a 'neo-realist'... Maybe he didn't quit soon enough ..."

Jack Dempsey (1) vs. Sully Montgomery (64)

Jack Dempsey
The Manassa Mauler
66-6-11, 51 KO





Notable fights: D10 John Lester Johnson; KOby1 Fireman Jim Flynn; W4, L4, D4, D4 Willie Meehan; W4, KO2 Gunboat Smith; KO1 Fred Fulton; KO3 Battling Levinsky; KO1 Carl Morris; D10, KO3 Billy Miske; TKO3 Jess Willard; KO6, KO12 Bill Brennan; KO1 Arthur Pelkey; KO4 Georges Carpentier; W15 Tommy Gibbons; KO2 Luis Angel Firpo; W4 Jimmy Darcy; L10, L10 Gene Tunney; KO7 Jack Sharkey.

The tournament’s top seed figures to mow through the early rounds, with an at-peak showdown with Gene Tunney looming in the finals, if each can avoid an upset.

Sully Montgomery
38-33-1, 29 KO





Notable fights: L10 Fireman Jim Flynn; L10, L10 Martin Burke; WbyDQ2 Carl Morris; D6 Quintin Romero Rojas; L10 Jack Sharkey; W12 Johnny Risko; LbyDQ7 George Godfrey; KO1 Ed Keeley; TKOby7 Jack Renault; KOby1 Jack Delaney; KOby2 Primo Carnera; KOby1 Tuffy Griffiths.

A big puncher with a glass jaw, Montgomery – the No. 64 seed -- generally made things, well, interesting.


The Associated Press reported of his disqualification loss to Godfrey: "In defeat, Montgomery gave one of the worst exhibitions of mucker tactics ever seen in a California ring. The only thing he didn't do was bite ... Montgomery was guilty of at least a dozen fouls. Holborrow, referee, overlooked all of Montgomery's muckerism until Dr. Lloyd Mace examined Godfrey, between the seventh and eighth rounds. He declared the Negro had been badly fouled and Holborrow then awarded the bout to Godfrey."

Montgomery’s stint as sheriff of Terrant County, Texas in the 1940s and ‘50s was nearly as eventful. Rumored to be involved in various nefarious activities, he was eventually indicted for tax evasion, which led to being mentioned in a 1952 Time magazine:

“In Fort Worth, over the desk of Sheriff Sully Montgomery, recently indicted for income-tax evasion, hangs a carefully lettered motto: ‘Always tell the truth and you won't have to remember what you said.’”

The official version of Sheriff Montgomery’s tenure, from the Tarrant County Web site, is a bit different:


“James Ralph “Sully” Montgomery grew up on Fort Worth’s north side. Mr. Montgomery played football and boxed in the Golden Gloves. He also played college football and went on to be a professional player for three years. Sully next boxed professionally for twelve years. His career ended when he was defeated by Jack Dempsey. At 6’3” and 225 pounds, he was obviously a heavyweight.
Sully Montgomery first held office as the Constable of Precinct 1 in 1942. After two terms as Constable, Mr. Montgomery was elected Sheriff of Tarrant County. In the 1940’s, Fort Worth proper and even the downtown pretty much elected even County-wide elected officials. Sheriff Montgomery held office during some of Tarrant County’s more notorious days of gangsters and widespread gambling.
After leaving the Sheriff’s Office, Sully Montgomery bought a franchise for coffee, tea and chocolate vending machines. In 1956, Sully Montgomery was appointed Chief Deputy in a constable’s office. He held that position until he died on September 6, 1970 at the age of 69.”


Montgomery, of course, never fought Dempsey – who was long retired by the time Sully hung them up in 1930 -- in a recorded bout. But that does sound more glamorous than “His career ended when he was knocked out in short order by Primo Carnera and Tuffy Griffiths.” He did play football for Centre College, as pictured above, and briefly in the early days of the NFL.

[BigBoyBrackey]

Charlie Weinert W10 Young Bob Fitzsimmons: The champ’s son comes out swinging – low, that is -- and is penalized a point for hitting below the belt in the first. Though Fitzsimmons is busier, Weinert is far more accurate with his shots and wins 98-92 and 99-91 on two cards. The fight looks closer from ringside, though, and the third official sees things completely differently, scoring it a draw. If not for the point taken away from Fitzsimmons, he would have seen Young Bob as the winner.

Primo Carnera W10 Lou Barba: Much cruder but half a foot and more than 50 pounds larger, Carnera bludgeons the hesitant Barba throughout a one-sided bout. Carnera’s clubbing rights to the head and hooks to the body put him in control early, and he opens a cut over Barba’s right eye that bothers the smaller man throughout. Barba goes down twice in the ninth, but gamely gets up each time and makes it to the final bell. Carnera is the clear winner by scores of 97-89 (twice) and 98-88.

Paulino Uzcudun TKO9 Knute Hansen: The alleged Basque Woodchopper wobbles Hansen with a left hook to the head less than 20 seconds into the fight and is in control thereafter. Hansen crashes after absorbing an uppercut in the sixth and, following his best round of the fight in the eighth, gets torn up in the ninth. Uzcudun drops his exhausted foe with a left hook midway through the round and, though Hansen rises, referee Soeren Saugmann has little choice but to wave it over at 1:51 of the ninth. Uzcudun leads 78-72 on all three cards at the time.

Jack Dempsey KO2 Sully Montgomery: The tournament’s top seed lives up to his legend, nearly beheading Montgomery with the first left hook he throws and battering him around the ring through the first. More of the same in the second, with a left hook-right cross to the chin dropping Sully shortly after the round begins and a hook under the rib cage paralyzing him as referee Mike England counts to 10 at the 1:55 mark. PunchStat showed Dempsey landing 53 punches to five for Montgomery, who was never even able to get in a punch to the groin or thumb to the eye.[/FONT]

[BigBoyBrackey]

We return now to Newark to complete the first round with a pair of bouts at the First Regiment Armory.

In the first bout, Fighting Bob Martin and Floyd Johnson look to settle things after struggling to a draw in their first meeting in the tournament’s opening bout.

In the main event, seventh seed Billy Miske takes on Willie Meehan. Their originally scheduled meeting was delayed when Miske suffered a flare-up of Bright’s Disease and had to be hospitalized.

Two weeks later, Miske insists he is able to fight and is being allowed to continue by the New Jersey commission, to the surprise of no one.

[BigBoyBrackey]

Bob Martin TKO9 Floyd Johnson: In the tournament curtain-raiser, Johnson came on strong in the second half of the fight by mauling and infighting his way to a draw. This time, though, Fighting Bob took the wind out of Johnson with a hook to the belly midway through the first round and stayed on the offensive throughout. More savage body work, capped by a disabling left hook to the ribs, nearly finished Johnson in the fourth.

Johnson threatened to stage another late rally, winning the seventh easily and out-slugging Martin during a torrid eighth. Floyd punched himself out in the process, though, and Martin landed a staggering right to the chin early in the following round. He followed up with a combination that dropped Johnson for the first time in their nearly 19 rounds of fisticuffs. Up at seven, Johnson fell again after eating a right cross. He rose at five, only to walk into an uppercut that put him down and all but out.

Johnson somehow made it up at eight, but another uppercut left him sagging over the top rope and left referee Bill Clancy with no choice but to jump in at 2:54 of the ninth. Martin led 79-73, 78-74, 78-75 at the time.

Billy Miske W10 Willie Meehan: Less than a week out of the hospital, Miske faded slightly in the final two rounds, but had built an insurmountable lead well before that with precision punching and solid defense, despite suffering a broken nose in the third round.

Meehan, whose slapping and wrestling works best against brawlers like Jack Dempsey, had little to work with when dealing with the efficient Miske. After getting treated like a speed bag in the first two rounds, Meehan had his best round in the third. As the two were milling away inside, Meehan connected to Miske’s nose with either a left hook or the sharp elbow that followed, causing an audible cracking sound and an immediate torrent of blood from both nostrils.

Miske clearly felt the injury was caused by a foul, and responded with a vicious left hook to Meehan’s protective cup. After Meehan clowned for the crowd for several moments, referee Genaro Rodriguez issued a warning to Miske and ordered the fight to continue. Meehan won the third and slugged it out in the fourth, but Miske came on strong with several combos at the end of the round, forcing the underdog’s left eye to swell.

Miske was in control for the next four rather dull rounds. Fighting to protect his lead, he allowed Meehan to take the ninth before spending the final three minutes in safety-first mode. The judges made the tournament’s No. 7 seed a 98-92, 99-91, 96-94 winner.

[BigBoyBrackey]

The first round of The Roaring Twenties Heavyweight Extravaganza featured stunning upsets, brutal knockouts, grotesque injuries and plenty of fouls.

Though some of the pre-tournament rankings were controversial, the seeds largely held, with seven of the 32 first-round bouts ending in upsets. Half the winners prevailed by decision, with 15 knockouts or TKOs and one disqualification.

FIGHT OF THE ROUND: Not surprisingly, Luis Angel Firpo was involved in a wild punch-out, prevailing in seven rounds over the original White Hope, Carl Morris.

The knockout came just one round after Firpo found himself on the floor, courtesy of a Morris right moments before the bell ending the sixth. Firpo responded by charging out of his corner in the seventh, dropping Morris with an overhand right behind a pawing jab. Morris – who also hit the canvas in round four -- got up, but fell twice more in the seventh, finally taking the 10-count after eating another big Firpo right.

Firpo also had Morris out on his feet at the end of the first, fourth and fifth, but referee Earl Morton, having seen The Wild Bull of the Pampas work before, let things play out to their natural conclusion.

UPSET OF THE ROUND: Captain Bob Roper, the No. 16 seed, can never get untracked against No. 49 Quintin Romero Rojas – largely because he can’t seem to stop fouling.

Referee Gerald Scott issues four warnings to Roper -- who is clearly frustrated by being repeatedly beaten to the punch -- in the first four rounds, before finally taking a point away in the fourth.

Rojas, who received two admonishments of his own, narrowly wins the fifth and sixth rounds. Roper, feeling the fight slipping away, loses it when Rojas pounds away at his face while holding him in a headlock. After yet another warning, Roper retaliates with a brutal kidney shot that drops Rojas along the ropes. When he is unable to continue, Scott disqualifies Roper, who trails 59-54 on all three scorecards.

CONTROVERSY OF THE ROUND: Australian George Cook, the No. 57 seed, opens a gash on the forehead of eighth-seeded Jack Delaney in the first on what is ruled an intentional head butt by referee Alan Moore. Yet when the cut is reopened (and worsened) by a Cook punch in the third, rendering the Canadian unable to continue, Moore declares the squat underdog the winner by technical knockout.

This was the biggest upset, in terms of disparity in seeding, of the first round, but the nature of Cook’s victory prevents it from being recognized as such by tournament officials.


QUICKEST KNOCKOUT: Second-seeded Gene Tunney flattened Bud Gorman with the first serious punch he threw, a straight right that caused a count-out at 1:42 of the first round.

Not surprisingly, the second-fastest ending came courtesy of top seed Jack Dempsey, who obliterated Sully Montgomery in less than two rounds.

[BigBoyBrackey]

The second round opens with two nights of boxing from Bisons Stadium in beautiful Buffalo, New York – America’s 11th-largest city in 1920 and a boxing hotbed.





Friday night’s fight card:

Young Stribling (6) vs. Martin Burke (38)
Tommy Gibbons (3) vs. Fred Fulton (30)
Jack Sharkey (9) vs. Erminio Spalla (41)
Bill Brennan (15) vs. Primo Carnera (18)

[BigBoyBrackey]

Young Stribling W10 Martin Burke: In the opening bout of the second round, Burke fought the favorite on even terms through the first four rounds, but Stribling’s superior quickness and power began to tell in the fifth.





Burke began tiring in the sixth, carrying his hands low as Stribling began to pocket rounds by increasing margins. The King of the Canebrakes’ windmill style cost him in the ninth, as he was docked a point for a shot to Burke’s groin, but won by scores of 98-92, 97-92 and an oddly close 95-94.

Fred Fulton W10 Tommy Gibbons: In a battle for the highly sought-after heavyweight bragging rights of Minnesota, Gibbons became the highest-seeded fighter to get eliminated to date.






After the much larger Fulton opened with a strong first round, the St. Paul native’s superior speed seemingly took over in the second and third. But Fulton landed some heavy shots in both frames, particularly in the second, which slowed Gibbons enough to make him an easier target for the Rochester Plasterer.

Nearly half a foot taller and 40 pounds heavier, Fulton’s slower jab landed more frequently as the fight went on, preventing Gibbons from utilizing his superior boxing skills.

Already well in the lead, Fulton punctuated the upset by dropping Gibbons with a thudding overhand right in the ninth. Only Gibbons’ guile helped him make it to the final bell, though he never tested Fulton’s often-suspect jaw.

The three judges mysteriously ignored referee Frank Cappuccino’s directive to deduct a point from Fulton after the big man landed a hard right to the face several seconds after the bell ending the fifth round. The mix-up didn’t matter, though, as Fulton, the No. 30 seed, prevailed by scores of 97-92, 98-92, 97-92.

Jack Sharkey WTech6 Erminio Spalla: The Boston Gob came out with uncharacteristic fire, dropping Spalla with an uppercut seconds into the fight.




Sharkey battered the European champion around the ring for the rest of the first and half of the second, until the wobbly Spalla stumbled face-first into his tormentor, opening a gash over his right eye with the resulting head butt.

Referee Denny Nelson ruled the cranial assault unintentional, and Sharkey kept piling up points, if no longer threatening to finish Spalla. The cut reopened several times, finally worsening to the point that Nelson called the fight in the sixth, leaving the outcome up to the judges with Spalla on his way to winning the round. Sharkey got the truncated win by scores of 49-45, 48-46, 49-45.

Primo Carnera KO5 Bill Brennan: The much-mocked Carnera scored the night’s second upset, his ponderous lefts and clubbing rights overwhelming KO Bill after nearly five hard-fought rounds.





Carnera did damage with several overhand rights in the first, then got outworked during the next three rounds. Still, as Fulton had done against Gibbons, Carnera used his size and strength to steadily immobilize his smaller foe.

Less than a minute into the fifth, another overhand right dropped Brennan to one knee, where he repeatedly shook his head in an apparent effort to clear it before rising at the count of seven.

A left hook raised swelling under Brennan’s right eye, and a right to the gut had him gasping for air. A pair of brutal left hooks sent Brennan – who held a 39-37, 39-37, 38-38 edge through four rounds -- to his knees again, where referee Kenny Bayless counted him out with three seconds left in the fifth.

[BigBoyBrackey]

After a wild first night of second-round action, fans are filling the grandstand seats at Bisons Stadium in Buffalo (and waiting for the baseball game to end so the ring and ringside seating can go up ...)

SATURDAY'S CARD

Quintin Romero Rojas (49) vs. Bearcat Wright (17): Rojas goes for a second straight upset.

George Godfrey (11) vs. Phil Scott (22): The free-swinging Godfrey against Faintin' Phil -- should be a busy night for the ref.

Harry Wills (5) vs. Larry Gains (28): Wills was as impressive as anyone in the first round, but will the Torontonian Gains get some home cooking in Buffalo, just across the river from Southern Ontario?

Jack Dempsey (1) vs. Fighting Bob Martin (32): Don't blink.

[Mad Bomber]

I love to watch the tournaments, and I am really enjoying this one thus far, but I was surprised to see Carnera topple Brennan.

[BigBoyBrackey]

Originally Posted by Mad Bomber

I love to watch the tournaments, and I am really enjoying this one thus far, but I was surprised to see Carnera topple Brennan.

Me, too. But it seems Carnera, in his latest TB incarnation, is no longer the thoroughly hapless punching bag he has been throughout the AH, APBA and TB1 days (to say nothing of his pitifulness in Data Boxing). And having watched some video of him on youtube, he doesn't look like the complete stiff I believed him to be growing up. He certainly looks like he'd be at least even money with anybody out there now, with the possible (but not definite) exception of the Klitschkos.

The way he won also seemed realistic, with Brennan outworking him until Da Preem's size and strength took over.

[BigBoyBrackey]

Quintin Romero Rojas W10 Bearcat Wright: Rojas pulls off his second huge upset of the tournament, out-mauling the No. 17 seed en route to a 97-95, 96-96, 97-95 majority decision.



The scoring was not without controversy, as the two judges who favored Rojas gave him the 10th round, though most ringside observers and the third judge thought Wright won that round. But a number of rounds were far less clear-cut, and Wright may have alienated the judges by receiving two official warnings and three cautions for a variety of fouls. Of course, Rojas, who was also on the receiving end of a head butt ruled accidental, was also warned twice. Neither fighter was floored or cut, though Wright’s swelling left eye seemed to cause him problems over the last three rounds.

George Godfrey KO7 Phil Scott: The fighter derisively known to generations as “Fainting Phil” came out as if he had something to prove (which, of course, he did). Rather than fighting defensively to protect his delicate chin or feigning undue discomfort at Godfrey’s borderline body shots, Scott took the offensive behind a sharp jab and solid body work with both hands.





Well in the lead by the fifth, Scott opened up and landed a right uppercut as the larger Godfrey moved in, dropping “The Leiperville Shadow” for a seven count. Godfrey just made it through the round, but took more punishment in the sixth and was carrying his hands low, his mouth gaping, by the end of the round.

Scott came out aggressively in the seventh, landing a cross to the chin and a hook to the body. But when the Brit charged in to follow up, Godfrey stopped him with a hard jab, then followed with a right cross that caused Scott to hop slightly back and to his right, then collapse. Scott flinched when referee Frank Cappuccino’s count reached five, but never made a serious effort to get up until several minutes after he had been counted out at 58 seconds of the seventh round. Scott led 58-55 (twice) and 59-54 at the sudden conclusion.

Harry Wills W10 Larry Gains: Fighting in front of an enthusiastic fans who made the drive down from his native Toronto, Gains, the tournament’s 28th seed, makes Wills work throughout. The No. 5 seed’s harder shots help him build an early lead, but Gains’ footwork, defense and counterpunching help him chip away, taking the sixth and the eighth, while fighting Wills to a standstill in the seventh on all three cards.





Going into the ninth, the fight is even on two cards, with Wills up by two on the third. A heavy hook to the ribs and a pair of hard rights give Wills the round, despite a late charge by Gains. It’s all Harry in the 10th, as two big right crosses wobble Gains and an uppercut drops him. The former Canadian champion fires back gamely, but referee Barry Yeats could, and perhaps should, have stopped it any time in the last 40 seconds.

Instead, it went to the judges, who ruled Wills the winner by scores of 97-94, 98-93 and 97-94.

Jack Dempsey TKO1 Fighting Bob Martin: Fighting Bob comes out intending to do just that, engaging Dempsey in a mid-ring brawl seconds after the opening bell. Such pluck seems only to enrage Dempsey, however. The Manassa Mauler connects with a devastating right to the face that drives Martin into his own corner, where he will spend the rest of the fight.





Dempsey traps him with flurry after flurry, following hooks to the body with rights to the jaw, throwing the occasional jab for variety and mixing in head-snapping uppercuts that keep Martin from falling forward. Finally, after a hook to the body, a right cross to the forehead and a right uppercut under the chin all land flush, referee Pat Russell pulls Dempsey off, allowing the semi-conscious Martin to slump to the floor with seven seconds left in the first.

PunchStat indicates Dempsey landed 58 punches, 44 of them power shots, to Martin’s seven. Quintin Romero Rojas, whose upset decision over Bearcat Wright earned him a spot in the corner opposite Dempsey in the round of 16, left the stadium without comment.

[BigBoyBrackey]

The second round continues with eight matches over two nights from the beautiful Oakland Auditorium ...

Friday's card

Georges Carpentier (12) vs. Alvin Hunt (44)
Billy Miske (7) vs. Jack Gross (39)
Tuffy Griffith (13) vs. Sam Langford (20)
Max Schmeling (4) vs. Jess Willard (29)

[BigBoyBrackey]

Georges Carpentier (12) WTechD9 Alvin Hunt (44): Despite being cut by an unintentional butt in the first round, a wound that reopened several times before forcing a ninth-round stoppage, Carpentier dominates throughout.



Carpentier’s superior hand speed and mechanics carry the day, as he lands to the head and body at will. Hunt crashes to the floor twice and should have been stopped in the eighth, a round scored 10-6 by all three judges. Carpentier wins the abbreviated bout by scores of 78-71, 79-70 and 80-70.

Billy Miske (7) W10 Jack Gross (39): Gross’ aggressive southpaw slugging puts Miske on the defensive early.



The fight is even through four rounds and Gross badly hurts Miske in the seventh, forcing the favorite to hold on in order to survive. Gross punches himself out in the process, and after an even eighth, Miske, with both eyes badly swollen from the beating he took in the seventh, controls what little action there is in the ninth. Gross resumes his attack in the 10th and carries the first half of the round, but gets cut over his right eye as Miske ices a tougher-than-expected majority decision by scores of 97-94, 96-96, 97-94.

Tuffy Griffiths (13) W10 Sam Langford (20): Well over 40 and all but blind, the legendary Langford shocks the sell-out crowd at Oakland Auditorium when he drills Griffiths with a left hook late in a closely contested first round. A badly disoriented Griffiths makes it to his feet at the count of eight and retreats successfully for the last 10 seconds of the round.


Langford also enjoys a big third round, staggering Griffiths with a right cross and scoring with a hard hook to the body. But it is mostly all Tuffy otherwise, as he wins six of the last seven rounds on all three cards, dropping Langford in the sixth and ninth and puffing his left eye badly.

Langford’s lone high point in the fight’s second half comes in the eighth, when he follows a strong right uppercut with a smashing cross, gaining additional advantage when Griffiths is docked a point for pulling down on Sam’s neck. Nonetheless, Griffiths takes a clear 96-92, 96-91, 96-91 nod.

Max Schmeling TKO10 Jess Willard: Schmeling’s early appeal in America was linked to the German’s strong facial resemblance to Jack Dempsey, and he delivers an almost equally horrific beating to the Pottawatomie Giant, if much later in the fight.


Schmeling is markedly quicker and more technically sound throughout, but Willard’s power keeps things interesting early on. His clubbing rights to the head are particularly effective in the first, third and fifth. Otherwise, though, Schmeling stays in control, moving inside Willard’s reach to score with heavy shots to the head and body and also displaying tight defense in the pocket.

Well ahead on points, Schmeling opens up in the seventh and especially the eighth, when the fight could, and perhaps should be stopped with Willard absorbing punishment without retaliating shortly before the bell, though he does remain on his feet.

Schmeling strips him of that distinction with a minute left in the ninth, when he decks Willard with a right to the jaw. As against Dempsey, he rises too quickly for his own good and goes down again after absorbing another half-dozen unanswered head shots. Willard somehow makes it up just before the bell and referee Johnny Callas shamefully abdicates his duty by allowing things to go on.

Willard goes down twice more in the 10th, first from a right cross and then after an uppercut, making it to an upright position on pure instinct both times. Finally, Willard’s corner takes the decision out of Callas’ hands by sending a white towel fluttering into the ring at 1:28 of the final round. Schmeling leads 88-80, 88-79, 88-82 at the end.

[BigBoyBrackey]

The second round concludes with four bouts that will finalize the field of 16:

George Cook (57) vs. Charlie Weinert (25)
Paulino Uzcudun (10) vs. Luis Angel Firpo (23)
Johnny Risko (14) vs. Jack Johnson (19)
Gene Tunney (2) vs. Ernie Schaaf (31)

[BigBoyBrackey]

SATURDAY

---George Cook W10 Charlie Weinert: The 57th-seeded Cook, who pulled the shocker of the first round with a controversial third-round stoppage of No. 8 Jack Delaney, scored another upset.





This one was not as big or as controversial as the win over Delaney, in which the referee ignored his ruling of a first-round butt as the cause of a cut over the favorite’s eye by ruling a TKO when the wound reopened and forced a stoppage.

After being out-boxed and battered through the first two rounds, Cook begins prevailing in his war of attrition in the third. Alternately clinching and punching, he wins close-but-dull rounds in the third and fourth (though a clash of heads began to cause his left eye to swell in the third) before opening up in the fifth to dominate that frame.

Weinert regains control in the sixth, peppering Cook’s bad eye with combinations and scoring with a heavy left hook to the side late in the round.

The two wrestle through a slow seventh round and early in the eighth, as Cook’s steadily swelling eye begins to affect his vision. Out of nowhere, he lands a devastating right cross that sends Weinert sprawling back and to his right.

Weinert makes it to his feet just as the word “ten” is about to pass from referee Derek Milham’s lips. With his legs gone and nearly two-and-a-half minutes left in the eighth, Weinert’s survival seems unlikely.

Cook wades in, swinging wildly. Though he lands some shots, Weinert is able to avoid enough shots to allow his head to clear and make it through the round.

The roles reverse in the ninth, with Weinert rocking Cook with an uppercut early on and then wailing away, including a right cross that nearly drops the Australian underdog, whose eye is now swollen shut.

Neither exhausted fighter does much for the first two minutes of the 10th, but another crunching uppercut by Weinert stands up and staggers the 5-foot-9 Cook, who clinches his way to the final bell.

When the cards are read, Cook again benefits from favorable judgment from the officials, winning 95-94 on all three cards, with the 10-8 round arising from the knockdown in the eighth making the difference. But, unlike the ruling against Delaney, which triggered riotous behavior among his loyal Canadian followers, this time there is no controversy.

---Luis Firpo W10 Paulino Uzcudun: For his second straight outing, The Wild Bull of the Pampas gets off the floor to win, though this time it involves more hanging on than coming back.




Firpo blasts his way through Uzcudun’s superior defense in the early going, winning the first five rounds on all three cards and the sixth on one. The Basque Woodchopper eats a lot of big shots, but his savvy and granite chin keep him out of serious trouble, except on the scorecards.

But even with a big lead and his right eye swelling, the thought of boxing or staying out of trouble never seems to occur to Firpo, who is dropped by a vicious left hook early in the eighth. Firpo makes it up at eight and weathers the rest of the round.

One huge right to the head by Firpo is enough to carry an otherwise uneventful ninth. Firpo charges across the ring in the final round, as if he were badly trailing, and he walks into a clean right cross that drops him on his face just 24 seconds into the round. He makes it up at eight and tries clinching his way to safety.

But when Uzcudun continually breaks free of his grasp and continues landing punches, Firpo fights his way off the ropes with a hook to the head and a hard jab with a hook to the head off of it. A three-punch combination nearly drops Uzcudun with the round winding down and the Spaniard misses a wild right at the bell, sending the fight to the judges.

One calls the fight a draw, but the others see it as 95-93 for Firpo, despite the two 10-8 rounds, giving the 23rd seed a majority decision and upset over the 10th-ranked Uzcudun.

---Jack Johnson TKO9 Johnny Risko: The 40-something Johnson turns back the clock by at least a decade, using near-flawless defense and superior hand speed to thoroughly outclass The Cleveland Rubber Man.




Out-landing Risko by better than a 2-1 ratio, Johnson controls the first six rounds, opening a nasty cut over the favorite’s right eye with a sharp left jab, then continuing to probe the injury at every opportunity.

An increasingly desperate Risko has his best round in the seventh, opening a gash under Johnson’s left eye. Johnson’s corner closes the cut between rounds, and he spends the eighth jabbing, moving and clinching to successfully stifle any notion that his age had suddenly caught up with him.

As if to prove a point, Johnson comes out as the aggressor in the ninth, landing a lead right and a quick right uppercut, then a heavier one that sends Risko crashing. He scrambles to his feet at the count of three, but is badly hurt.

Johnson moves in behind a hard left-right that sends Risko into the ropes and reopens the cut over his right eye. As the blood begins pouring into Risko’s eye, referee Lou Moret calls time-out and leads Risko to ringside. After a consultation with the reinstated Dr. Riviera, Moret waves the fight over at 1:42 of the ninth round, drawing a roar from the crowd Johnson had won over with his performance. At the end, Johnson led 79-73, 78-74, 77-75.

Gene Tunney W10 Ernie Schaaf: Tunney prevents the underdogs from sweeping the evening, delivering a clinical, if unexciting, performance en route to a majority decision.





Tunney outmaneuvers and out-jabs Schaaf through the early going. Unable to counter Tunney’s technical ability, Schaaf is forced to try to turn the match into a brawl. For the most part, he succeeds only in making things sloppy, but never really hurts the tournament’s No. 2 seed.

Schaaf does enough work inside to have the fight even on one scorecard after seven rounds, and holds a three-point lead on another at the same point – though it is not clear what fight the judge in question, Ray Hawkins was watching.

To his credit, Hawkins agreed with colleagues Hiroyuki Tezaki and Bobby Wells that the last three rounds belonged to Tunney. Tezaki had it 97-94, while Wells saw it at 98-93 and Hawkins turned in a 95-95 card.

[BigBoyBrackey]

The biggest names and physically largest fighters prevailed in the second round of The Roaring Twenties Heavyweight Extravaganza.

Top-seeded Jack Dempsey scored a second consecutive early knockout, No. 2 Gene Tunney did enough to advance and an aging Jack Johnson turned back the clock to reach the round of 16. Meanwhile, giants Fred Fulton and Primo Carnera scored upsets in which their immense size advantages over Tommy Gibbons and Bill Brennan, respectively, made the difference.

FIGHT OF THE ROUND:George Godfrey got beat up by the previously lightly regarded Phil Scott, who dropped The Leiperville Shadow and seemed on his way to burying his "Phaintin' Phil" knock when he dropped Godfrey and built an all-but-insurmountable points lead. Insurmountable, that is, until Godfrey finally found Scott's chin with a right cross in the seventh.

UPSET OF THE ROUND: No. 57 George Cook's razor-close decision over No. 25 Charlie Weinert was the biggest surprise in terms of seeding, but NO. 30 Fred Fulton's dominance against No. 3 Tommy Gibbons was even more shocking.

Despite getting battered early, Fulton kept cool and allowed his strength to take over, pounding out a clear 10-round win.

CONTROVERSY OF THE ROUND: Most at ringside thought No. 17 Bearcat Wright did enough to prevail over No. 49 Quintin Romero Rojas, particularly in the final and ultimately decisive round.

Five foul warnings issued to Wright may have swayed the judges in perhaps the tournament's nastiest fight to date, even though he was never official docked for his transgressions.

QUICKEST KNOCKOUT: Jack Dempsey, who had the second-quickest blowout of the opening round, took top honors this time, blasting Fighting Bob Martin into submission with seven seconds remaining in the first frame.

[BigBoyBrackey]

Jack Dempsey (1) vs. Quintin Romero Rojas (49): The second-lowest seed remaining, Rojas got here with a disqualification win – albeit not an especially controversial one, since he had won five of the six completed rounds on all three scorecards – over No. 16 Bob Roper, followed by a disputed majority decision win over No. 17 Bearcat Wright.

Dempsey left no questions about his first two fights, kayoing Sully Montgomery in two rounds, then obliterating Fighting Bob Martin in less than three minutes.

Rojas has shown tremendous heart so far, but will need a lot more just to make it past the six-minute mark.

Gene Tunney (2) vs. Primo Carnera (18): Carnera has been something of a revelation through two rounds, dominating Lou Barba throughout a 10-round decision and using his size and strength to stop favored Bill Brennan to reach the round of 16.

Tunney dispatched Bud Gorman with a perfectly thrown right cross in 102 seconds, then turned in a rather flat, if technically sound, performance in winning a clear-cut decision over Ernie Schaaf, even if one judge somehow scored it even.

Carnera’s size and brawling style could present problems, but Tunney figures to cruise if he can avoid Da Preem’s clubbing swings.

Fred Fulton (30) vs. Jack Johnson (19): Two of the bigger surprises meet, with a trip to the quarterfinals to be had.

Fulton came on late to beat Con O’Kelly in a first-round match that saw both men hit the floor, then overwhelmed No. 3 seed Tommy Gibbons with his size and power, scoring a ninth-round knockdown en route to a one-sided decision win.

It was no surprise that Jack Johnson, even well into his 40s, handled Chuck Wiggins with ease in the first round. His performance against Johnny Risko, though, recalled his championship peak, as The Galveston Giant slipped and blocked just about everything thrown by The Cleveland Rubber Man, while cutting and dropping the favorite, finally stopping him midway through the ninth.

Johnson is the clear favorite here, but Fulton’s power against a suspect chin could turn into another upset by The Rochester Plasterer.

Max Schmeling (4) vs. Tuffy Griffiths (13): Schmeling savaged Arthur De Kuh before stopping him in the sixth, then delivered a systematic beating to Jess Willard in the course of a 10th-round TKO.

Griffiths finished Sandy Seifert inside six rounds, then rebounded from a first-round knockdown to take a decision against ancient Sam Langford.

Stronger and equally clever, Schmeling offers Griffiths no clear path to victory.

Harry Wills (5) vs. Georges Carpentier (12): Wills dispatched Ray Neuman in the fifth before winning a tougher-than-expected nod over No. 28 Larry Gains, thanks to a strong showing in the last two rounds.

Carpentier won an easy decision over Monte Munn and thrashed Alvin Hunt, including a pair of eighth-round knockdowns, before a cut incurred by an unintentional butt rendered him unable to continue in the ninth, at which point he was awarded a clear technical decision.

The edges in skill and hand speed Carpentier enjoyed through the first two rounds should be nullified by Wills, who is also significantly larger and more powerful.

Young Stribling (6) vs. George Godfrey (11): Stribling impressed throughout a six-round stoppage over Bombardier Billy Wells and during the second half of a decision win against Martin Burke.

Godfrey started slow in both his fights, splitting four rounds before lowering the boom on Jack Dorval in the fifth, then getting floored by Phil Scott and dropping five of six rounds before suddenly ending things with a strong jab followed by a paralyzing right cross.

Godfrey doesn’t figure to have the luxury of giving away rounds against Stribling, who was stopped just once in 290 career bouts.

Billy Miske (7) vs. Luis Angel Firpo (23): Miske, a sentimental favorite due to his refusal to submit to the ravages of Bright’s Disease, scores a comprehensive decision against Arthur Pelkey, but struggles badly against Jack Gross, overcoming two badly swollen eyes to eke out a disputed win.

Firpo left no doubt in his two appearances, dropping Carl Morris three times and crashing once himself before scoring a seventh-round knockout, then wins a unanimous decision against No. 10 Paulino Uzcudun. As is his wont, though, Firpo makes things exciting by charging after The Basque Woodchopper as if badly trailing in the late rounds, getting dropped in the eighth and 10th.

Miske’s skill gives him a slight edge, though The Wild Bull of the Pampas is tough to pick against.

George Cook (57) vs. Jack Sharkey (9): Cook had a record of 45-54-12 in real life, but has somehow gotten to 2-0 in this tournament.

In the opening round, Cook was declared the winner over Jack Delaney in a bizarre decision by referee Alan Moore, who ignored his own directive that a cut over Delaney’s eye was caused by an unintentional head butt in the first round, then raised Cook’s hand when the wound reopened and worsened two rounds later. Instead of a technical draw and rematch, Cook got a TKO win and a date with No. 25 Charlie Weinert.

Brawling his way inside after getting out-boxed early, the 5-foot-9 Cook prevailed again, this time by a one-point decision on all three cards, a verdict which swung on the knockdown he scored in the eighth round.

Sharkey was nearly on the wrong end of an enormous upset in the first round, taking the late rounds off against Vittorio Campolo, but doing just enough to pull out a split decision.

The Boston Gob was more impressive in the second round, dropping Erminio Spalla in the first and building a decisive lead before a cut caused by an unintentional butt forced a technical decision in the sixth round.

Cook’s run has to stop sometime, or at least it would seem, but Sharkey can always be counted on to fight down to his opponent’s level.