CARNERA BUBBLE BURST

Taranaki Daily News, 15 October 1931, Page 11

CARNERA BUBBLE BURST

DEFEAT BY JACK SHARKEY.

BY AMERICAN WRITER.

The decisive defeat of Primo Camera, or as he is aptly named by American fans, the Ambling Alp, by Jack Sharkey in a contest for the American championship, has settled for the time being at least the vexed question of whether or not the Colossus is a world-beater. For many months there has existed a sharp division of opinion among the critics. as to ..the capabilities of the giant pugilist; and while on the one hand some have championed his cause with column upon column of lavish phraseology, others have been equally emphatic°that Primo is a “glove mutt” (an American term applied, to boxers of limited ability), whose bulk, plus a heavy punch, alone, have won him an imposing list of victories over unimposino- third-raters. Sharkey, who has so effectively pricked- the Camera bubble, is a boxer , of great possibilities, but one who is cursed with an ungovernable temper;, his lack of restraint has cost him more than one decision. From among the prophecies of the American sporting writers as to the re-, suit of the contest between the Lithuanian David and the Italian Goliath, that penned by Rolfe Garrett in The Arena is of particular interest. In a summing-up • the writer wrote as follows: — ' , “Sharkey has been a top-notch heavyweight so long that everyone has been expecting him to begin to slip for years, but somehow or other Sharkey manages to stay on top. He has had several championship opportunities and always seems to fall down when- he gets his biggest chance. Will he do so again against Camera? We predict he won’t,

for Sharkey realises that" he must win this time or be counted out of the running. The fans are, tired of his fooling. “Sharkey, -who we cay is the _ ’best heavyweight ir the world to-day, is the oldest of the four contenders in the summer battles. He is in his 30th year, having been born in Binghampton, N.Y., on October 6, 1902. He has not been as active as either Stribling or Schmeling. In fact, his Brooklyn opponent, Carnera, has engaged in more fights than he has. In his more than six years of fio-htina Sharkey has engaged in only 35 fighte.° He has won 13 via the k.o. route, 21 by decisions, has been stopped twice—by Jack Dempsey and Romero Rojas—has lost- six decisions, fought one draw with Tom Heeney and two no decision affaire, with Young Jack Johnson and Charlie Weinert. . “But where Sharkey’s record lacks in number it more than makes up in quality He has fought better opponents than any of the other championship contenders. He has had no set-ups at any time in hie career. He faced a chance at the championship crown of Gene Tunney in 1927, but was belted out of the picture by Dempsey. He then went to the top again and engaged Schmeling in what was supposed to be a bout tor the heavyweight crown. What happened then is history now. Sharkey once again failed, this time losing on a foul. We don’t believe he can fail against Carnera. “The Man Mountain of Italy lacks the experience to battle such a clever boxer and hard hitter as Sharkey is. Carnera was a comparative novice in the ring game until he came to Arnerica. I?e was lucky that Young Sri ling went to Europe in 1929. Otherwise he might etill be fighting thirdraters across the pond. Cameras two fights with the Georgia wonder put him in the heavyweight picture. We expect his fight with Sharkey to erase him from it. ’ . . “Carnera, in his 25th year, having been born on October 25, 19Q6, is the biggest of the heavyweight battlers. He is°six feet seven inches in height and weighs more than 260 pounds. What a man? He engaged in only about fifteen firrhte before coming to America, winnine eleven by knock-outs. He was disqualified in one fight, with Fritz Deiner, the German battler, and lost to Joe Stoessle, on a decision in six rounds, in addition to the Stribling defeat. . “Things changed for Primo just as soon as he landed here. He began to amass an enviable record, or rather his managers amassed it for him. He Tolled up a lonw series of knock-outs against set-ups and was becoming to be considered invincible. There was a great deal of crying that his fights were fake, maybe He -mt himself in trouble over an alleged fake fight in California and was suspended in New York, the suspension being lifted recently to permit him to fight Sharkey. “Then he engaged George Godfrey, the Black Shadow, in an open-air match in Philadelphia. Godfrey was outpointing him when all of a sudden the big negro landed a foul blow and the fight was awarded to Carnera. After that he could not get as many fights as formerly, but he managed to a score a few more knock-outs until he stacked up against Jim Maloney, the Boston in-and-outer. Maloney outpointed him. Not so wood for Carnera. Sharkey had knocked Maloney out. So had Godfrey. So had Tom Heeney and Johnny Risko, not to mention Leo Gates, a third rater. “The defeat at the hands of Maloney ended Camera’s United States tour and he sailed back for home. In Europe he defeated the veteran Paolino Uzcudun in ten rounds and then knocked out Reggie Meen, a 88th rater, in two rounds. The big boy then returned to wip© out his <lcfp3/t at the hands of Maloney. He did with a ten-round decision victory. And that is all theie is to Carnera. “Carnera doesn’t know enough for Sharkey. He may hit as hard, but he is miles behind in boxing skill.” "We predict that Sharkey will outpunch him decisively. Carnera is too strom- to be knocked out. We don’t believe there is a man alive who could hit hard enough to do that, and that includes Jack Dempsey. ’ . -