WEARY OF FAKES

Hawera Star, Volume L, 29 November 1930, Page 10

WEARY OF FAKES

AMERICA’S FIGHT FANS

HOPE IN FUTURE CHAMPIONS BATTLERS COMING FORWARD. Apparently Robert Edgreu, noted American boxing critic, lias become more hopeful ot improvement in the general condition ot boxing in the united States of America. In the appended article he .surveys recent- events in t arious weight grades, and comes to the conclusion that real champions who will fight, not fake, are coming to the front. There’s an interesting new development in ring affairs, writes Edgren. iVe’s had a lot of stallers and stalling champions, fancy dancers, featherduster punchers, tap-and-slap artists, clinchers and wrestlers, and birds who hit low as soon as they become discouraged. Now it seems that even the fighters coming up have come to the conclusion that faking to get the money for nothing doesn’t pay. The first to cut loose entirely from the old order of things was Young Stribling. This Stribling hoy can fight and always could fight, hut he was brought up in a circus and managed according to Barnum’.s most famous theory. Very likely Young Stribling had very little to say about the way lie should fight. He stalled, wrestled, played safe with any puncher he met, and knocked out the sans and dubs without wasting time, according fo Pa Stribling’s instructions. He was humorously named the King of the Canebrakes, and it didn’t look likely Ihe’s ever .he king of anything else.' But he had real stuff in him. Years of training and boxing gave him a. marvellous development for figliting.

WHEN STRIBLING GREW HP. Then suddenly Stribling grew up. He decided that he had enough easy money and that it was time to fight. He hopped to Europe and fought the huge Camera twice. He came back anti found lie was still considered King of the Canebrakes, lnit a court jester in New York. There the Madison Square Garden monopoly shoved Jack Sharkey in with Sclimeling, and the commission agreed to call the event a “championship” because it was for the milk fund. A poor fight, and Sclimeling won on a foul! Stribling was on the outside looking on. He knocoked out Von Porat, a dangerous puncher, and he went to England and knocked out Phil Scott in his own backyard. He has shown more fighting spirit and a better punch than any heavy-weight since Dempsey faded ■out. He" seems to have started something. First, A 1 Singer, a young New York light-weight with a wicked punch, hut an in-and-out record, met Sammy Man dell. Singer rusliesd the dancing master off his feet and knocked Ihim cold with half-a-dozen punches. It looked like old times.

Then Jack Rerg. clever English light-weight, fought Kid Chocolate, the great little Cuban feather-weight. Berg Iliad about 81b advantage in weight, hut Chocolate was considered clever enough to discount that. Berg swarmed all over Chocolate and won the decision. If Berg had a good ounch he’d be a. champion, and even without a kayo in his system he can be very nnnoVing. He surely takes the crowd with his tireless attack. “LITTLE WILD BULL.”

Now we have another Berg, with a sock in either mitt, and a light-weight. He is Just© Saurez, from the Argentine. They are calling him “The Little Wild Bull.” Saurez started in this country by walloping tough Joe Glick out of the picture—a very unexpected proceeding. He had whipped a lot of American fighters invading the Argentine, but that attracted little attention here.

A few days ago Saurez knocked out Bruce Flowers, a first-class _ fighting man. He never stopped rushing Flowers, and he never stopped hitting. It was like the two fights between Flowers and Berg, except that this Saurez had what Berg lacked, a knockout punch. He has the swift attack that spoils a clever defence, and the punch to win with. He’ll make it hot for champion A 1 Singer, if they ever meet. Young Corbett is another newcomer —fairly new—who has upset the nonfighting clique. Corbett licked Jack Thompson twice before Thompson took the title from Jackie Fields. He whipped Thompson as champion, but Thompson’s manager had insisted that Corbett must oome in a pound overweight, so that technically the title wouldn’t be at stake.

CARNERA AND SHARKEY

Even Camera, they say, is to be sent out to fight in the future. The Camera crowd of managers has been forced, however unwillingly, to realise that the American public is very weary of faking and diving, and that things are shifting around so that a fighter in the future is likely to be judged by the brand of fighting lie delivers, not by the number of dives taken by the' hired help. With his big hands Camera ought to be able to knock over nearly any heavy-weight. But a new situation looms. Jack Sharkey tipped it off. Camera may not get any real fights. Sharkey, after it had been annonneed that he was no longer under contract to the Madison Square hea.vy-weiglit trust, agreed, with his managers, to fight Camera in Chicago. That was given out for publication. Next day the Sharkey outfit suddenly discovered that there was a Madison Square Garden contract entanglement after all, and that same day called off the Carnera proposition and signed to fight a much softer mark, the tall Campolo, in New York, probably for a fraction of the Chicago money. The obvious conclusion' is that Sharkey never did intend to fight Camera, but went through the motions of agreeing to fight him just as a ballyhoo for another match.