Bruce Woodcock to Make Comeback Bid in September

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 22697, 23 July 1948, Page 4 (Supplement)

Bruce Woodcock to Make Comeback Bid in September

LONDON (By Air Mail)

Bruce Woodcock, British, Empire and European heavyweight champion, stepped in the ring again, after a iay-ofX of 14 months, recently, when he took part in a sparring exhibition with Ted Slade, a Doncaster heavyweight, at the Exeter City football ground. The British champion weighed 15st. and showed flashes of his old self, in spite of the fact that he had travelled nearly 300 miles by car from Doncaster that same day.

Fully recovered from his broken jaw and his eye injury, Woodcock has been training for some weeks, and is confident about his forthcoming fight in September. He has declared that he does not mind who he meets as long as he is “not a nobody.” “All I want is to show that I am no invalid,” he said. A number of American heavyweights have been named in connection with Woodcock's come-back, and foremost among them is Tami Mauriello, who knocked out Woodcock two years ago. American Opponents Sought

The London promoter, Jack Solomons, has also been negotiating with the Americans, Lee Savold and Joey Maxim, but it is understood that Mau-

riello has agreed to meet Woodcock. The British champion’s camp will probably make a decision after talks with Solomons, who returned from the United States recently. If Woodcock agrees to fight Mauriello, the match is likely to cause much controversy, one argument being that Mauriello would be too tough an opponent for Woodcock after such a long period of inactivity. On the other hand, reports from New York indicate that the New York heavyweight is on the down grade and would not be too difficult for the British champion.

There are those who advocate, however, that if Woodcock is to make a “come-back,” the only effective way is to fight someone of merit—no “hasbeens” or novices. Only then will he be able to prove that he is not “washedup” as a boxer and that he has fully recovered from the beating he received from Joe Baksi, and the fact remains that a victory over an opponent of standing would be the quickest way of getting back into the “big money” again.