TUNNEY’S LAST WORKOUT

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 417, 27 July 1928, Page 1

TUNNEY’S LAST WORKOUT

READY FOR THE FRAY Press Association GISBORNE, Thursday. From a New York broadcast just received, Mr. Ivan O’Meara learned that Gene Tunney yesterday did his last “workout,” covering four miles of road work. He retired to bed at 10 p.m. and gave instructions to be called at 8 a.m. to-day. After a light breakfast the champion will go out on the lake for a while and later board a seaplane and fly to New York. He says he will have his last meal before the fight at 3 p.m. He has adopted a “drying-out” process and will take no more liquids with his meals. A further message picked up by Mr. O’Meara this evening from the San Frisco “Examiner” radio says: It is a matter of record that this will be Tunney’s first 15-round bout as the champion, both his clashes with Dempsey having been 10-round decision bouts. He is the first heavyweight champion to capture the title without knocking out his opponent. Some observers believe he will knock out Heeney to-night. The New York “Times” to-day says: Dempsey in a statement to-day says Heeney has a wonderful pair of legs, and that he needs them against Tunney. “If I had Heeney’s legs,” he said, “I could whip Tunney easily." A crowd of 60,000 is expected to-night to see the champions at the Yankee Stadium. Tunney is a three-to-one favourite against the New Zealander, but the betting is light. Short-wave stations which will broadcast the fight are 2XAF on 31.4 metres, and 2XAD on 21.96 metres.