Tag Archives | learn from the fight

The Gazelle Leaps into the History Books Again (diary entry)

September 13, 2023 | Diary / Training Notes [ssba]
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          “Learn from the Fight” Lesson: Floyd Patterson versus Ingemar Johansson Undisputed World Heavyweight Championship 20.06.1960 It had been almost a year to the day that Ingemar Johansson had shocked the world with his upset victory over Floyd Patterson. Johansson became an instant celebrity and was the first Swede to win a world title. He had also handed Patterson both his second career defeat and his first knockout. During a match that Patterson said he had […]

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Spider in a Cyclone (diary entry)

January 11, 2023 | Diary / Training Notes [ssba]
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11.01.2023 This year’s first “Learn from the Fight” session finished off the 1950s with Gene “The Cyclone” Fullmer’s first defence of the National Boxing Association version of the world middleweight championship. His opponent was Ellsworth Webb who had previously defeated on a unanimous decision a year ago. Ellsworth “Spider” Webb was born on 20th November 1931 Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA. He was one of 11 children born to a hard working single mother. The unsupervised young Webb was quick to get […]

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The Big Controversy & The Big Comeback (diary entry)

April 13, 2022 | Diary / Training Notes [ssba]
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13.04.2022 Kid Gavilan versus Johnny Saxton Undisputed World Welterweight Championship 20.10.1954 After failing to go up a division to win the Middleweight title from Bobo Olson, Kid Gavilan returned to defend his welterweight title against Johnny Saxton. This would be his ninth defence since uniting the three major versions of the title in a contest with reigning NBA champion Johnny Bratton, where the two vacant Ring and NYSAC versions were also put on the line in 1951. The contest had […]

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Flight of the Gavilán (diary entry)

March 24, 2022 | Diary / Training Notes [ssba]
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23.03.2022 Somewhat inspired by an article published in “Fight City”, I decided to revisit 1953 boxing and analyse a forgotten non-title classic from the career of Gerardo Gonzalez, better known as Kid (aka “The Keed” and “The Cuban Hawk”) Gavilán. The last time we saw him he had made a successful, albeit split-decision, defence of his world welterweight title against Carmen Basilo. However, back in 1951 Gavilán had fought Johnny Bratton twice. The first time they met, Gavilán had taken […]

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Legends of Japan, Hawaii, South Africa & Australia (diary entry)

February 3, 2022 | Diary / Training Notes [ssba]
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02.02.2022 As if 1952 wasn’t a monumental enough for boxing, tonight’s highlight fights saw Australia and Japan on the world title scene. Through Jimmy Carruthers we covered highlights from a 1951 match, a 1952 match and then took our first step into 1953. Yoshiro Shirai versus Dado Marino NBA/Ring World Flyweight Championship 19.05.1952 Shirai Yoshio was born on 23rd November 1923 in Tokyo, Japan. His first noted boxing activity was at elementary school where he took part in a boxing […]

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Dealing with Spoilers (diary entry)

January 27, 2022 | Diary / Training Notes [ssba]
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26.01.2022 Wednesday’s “Learn from the Fight” looked at two title bouts in 1952. One thing that connected these two fights from a fight analysis perspective was the way two outboxers dealt with spoilers. Such tactics rarely make for overly aesthetically pleasing fights, but they happen a lot. Jimmy Carter had to contend with Lauro Salas’s dominant style of swarming. Archie Moore was up against Joey Maxim, an outboxer known for his jab and his iron chin. Maxim’s jab seemed to […]

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Meanwhile in the ’51 Lightweight Division (diary entry)

January 20, 2022 | Diary / Training Notes [ssba]
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18.01.1951   Tonight we caught up with the lightweight division and I was fortunate enough to catch one of the last recorded matches of Ike Williams before we moved onto a new era under Jimmy Carter.   Ike Williams versus Jose Maria Gatica 05.01.1951   By this stage in his career, Ike Williams had a record of 115–15–4. He had defended the title three times since beating Beau Jack in 1948 and a total of five times since he took […]

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The New King (diary entry)

January 13, 2022 | Diary / Training Notes [ssba]
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12.01.2022 Jersey Joe Walcott versus Rocky Marciano Undisputed World Heavyweight Championship 23.09.1952 After his second round knockout rematch with Gino Buovino Rocky Marciano knocked out Bernie Reynolds in round three and Harry Matthews in round two. Jersey Joe Walcott’s unanimous decision against Ezzard Charles was his first title defence before facing Marciano. Both these fighters had had careers of being the underdogs, but now it was accepted they were best two boxers to fight for the heavyweight crown and proven […]

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Gavilán, Marciano & Walcott (diary entry)

January 5, 2022 | Diary / Training Notes [ssba]
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04.01.2022   Tuesday night’s “Learn from the Fight” we stepped back to 1951 as Kid Gavilán challenged Johnny Bratton for the undisputed World Welterweight Championship. Then it was back to Rocky Marciano in 1952 as he fought a rematch against Gino Buovino on his way to the world heavyweight title. Later that year the actual title was being contested in yet another rematch between Jersey Joe Walcott and Ezzard Charles.   Kid Gavilán versus Johnny Bratton World Undisputed Welterweight Championship 18.05.1951 […]

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The Machine Gun (diary entry)

November 10, 2021 | Diary / Training Notes [ssba]
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09.11.2021 Joey “Machine Gun” Maxim was the light-heavyweight champion in 1952 when Archie Moore was finally given his shot at the title.  Tonight, we had a look at Maxim and two interesting bouts he fought prior to finally giving Archie Moore his shot. Born Giuseppe Antonio Berardinelli on 28th March 1922 in Collinwood, Cleveland, Ohio, USA, he earned the ring-name Joey Maxim after the Maxim gun, the world’s first self-acting machine gun. This came from his rapid use of the […]

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Great Feuds – St Valentine’s Day Massacre (diary entry)

October 27, 2021 | Diary / Training Notes [ssba]
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26.10.21 Tuesday night returned us to the careers of Jake “The Bronx Bull” LaMotta and Sugar Ray Robinson. None of their first five matchups are easy to access, at least the first three were damaged beyond repair, and we have to settle for what many consider to be a legendary sixth contest: The St. Valentine’s Day Massacre. This would be the last time the two fighters met and would be a key scene in Martin Scorsese’s biopic on LaMotta, “Raging […]

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Great Feuds – Pep vs Saddler (diary entry)

October 20, 2021 | Diary / Training Notes [ssba]
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19.10.21 Tuesday night’s “Learn from the Fight” returned to the career of Willie Pep and Sandy Saddler. We were unable to unearth footage from their first two fights when Pep was given the spotlight. However, we had access to highlights from their third encounter and the full fourth encounter. Pep and Saddler are often ranked as the greatest featherweights of all time, respectively the greatest pure out-boxer and slugger of all time and in just about anyone’s top 20 greatest […]

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Cinderella Man 2 (diary entry)

October 13, 2021 | Diary / Training Notes [ssba]
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12.10.2021 Tuesday night’s second lesson was “learn from the fight” where we reviewed highlights from Ezzard Charles and Jersey Joe Walcott’s second fight and the entirety of their third clash. Ezzard Charles versus Jersey Joe Walcott World Heavyweight Championship 07.03.1951 It had been two years since Walcott and Charles had last met to fight for the then vacant NBA heavyweight title. Charles had emerged the victor on a unanimous decision and then gone on to beat the man who had […]

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King Cobra (diary entry)

October 6, 2021 | Diary / Training Notes [ssba]
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Ezzard Charles versus Joe Louis 27.09.1950 After winning the tournament that decided Joe Louis’s successor for the NBA version of the World Heavyweight title, Ezzard Charles fought three title defences before he was given an opportunity to unite the belt with the NYSAC and The Ring titles. He soundly defeated Gus Lesnevich, Pat Valentino and Freddie Beshore inside the distance with a corner stoppage, a straight KO and TKO respectively, but the general audiences weren’t impressed. Neither the first nor […]

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Boxer-Puncher versus Out-Boxer & Swarmer (diary entry)

September 1, 2021 | Diary / Training Notes [ssba]
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31.08.21 Tuesday’s “Learn from the Fight” lesson focused on two championship bouts where Isiah “Ike” Williams defended his World Lightweight title. Williams was born in Brunswick, Georgia on 2nd August 1923. He moved to Trenton, New Jersey as a boy and apparently worked as a newsboy. He turned professional in 1940 aged 17. He fought 157 fights, including newspaper decisions, with an official record of 128 wins (61 KOs), 24 losses and five draws. He was a natural lightweight and […]

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“The Casablanca Clouter” (diary entry)

August 25, 2021 | Diary / Training Notes [ssba]
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Tuesday night’s “Learn from the Fight” lesson focused on the career and three fights of Marcel “The Casablanca Clouter” Cerdan. The first fight acts as a direct sequel to last lesson’s rubber match finale of the Rocky Graziano/Tony Zale trilogy as it was Zale’s first defence. Tony Zale versus Marcel Cerdan Undisputed World Middleweight Title Defence 21.09.1948 After winning the title back from Rocky Graziano, Tony Zale only fought one more time and that was to defend this very title. […]

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