BOXING

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXII, Issue 19364, 22 July 1925, Page 6

BOXING

PROFESSIONAL FIGHT AT TAUMARUNUI

TAUMARUNUI, July .18. The Taumarunui Boxing Association held a successful tournament here tonight. The main attraction was a professional fifteen-round light between A. Hay (Hastings) and Gus Venn (Taumarunui), lighting iat welterweight, lor a purse of £lOO. Hay’s original opponent was to have been [N. McKuight, of Hamilton, but Ale Knight wired on Friday saying he was unable to fulfil his engagement on his doctor’s advice, and Venn stepped into the breach. The professional fight did not provide many thrills. Venn lacked condition, and was unable to force the pace except in the eighth round, whim there was some lively exchanges. Venn went down for eight in the tenth round, and after being sent to the floor twice in the twelfth round his seconds threw in the towel, and the fight was ’awarded to Hay. A TOURNAMENT ABANDONED (Per Press Association.) GREYMOUTH, July 21. Lack of entries has caused the West Coast Boxing Association to abandon its annual championship tournament. Only fourteen nominations were received. It was decided to nominate representatives for various contests at Ch rist church. DEMPSEY “DONE” JACK KEARNS’ OPINION. CHAMPION THROUGH WITH RING In an effort to got back in good standing Jack Kearns has told the New York Boxing Commission that Jack Dempsey would never fight again, it was learned recently from a reliable source, says a New York dispatch of June 13. Kearns and Dempsey arc on the inactive list because of their failure to give the commission a definite answer about their intention to accept or reject the challenge filed by Harry Wills. When the commission gave the champion 24 hours to answer the challenge. Kearns sent a rather flippant letter in which he said that Dempsey had accepted the challenge several years ago. and that it was up to the commission to put up the money and promote the match. DEMPSEY THROUGH. At that time it was quite obvious that Kearns didn’t know that he was going 1o lose Dempsey or that the champion was going to retire. Since Dempsey has shown a disposition to got away from the ring Kearns has picked up Mickey Walker, thd welterweight champion, and it was for the purpose of getting a renewal of his manager’s license that he visited the commission and found that he was in the hole. Kearns told the commission, if is known, that he could not do business for Dempsey and he pleaded that he should not be held accountable for any actions of the champion in the future. The commission pointed out to him that when Dempsey was before them, just prior to his sailing for Europe, he said Kearns was his manager. Kearns then is said to have told the commission, ‘‘What good is a manager to a follow who is never going to fight again?” KEARNS 11 PEEVED. ’ ’ “I don’t know what to do with that fellow.” Kearns said. “He’s jumping all over the country ami I can’t got hold of him. Ho has kicked a good million dollars right out of our lap. He could have had two big fights this summer but the chance is gone now.

“I don’t even know when he’s coming hack. If he’s not here before July 2 I can’t work back of Walker to the (Jreb figlit and that means a lot. to me if it doesn’t mean anything to him.” TUNNEY’S VICTORY HOW GIBBONS WAS BEATEN. BRIDE OF ST. PAUL OUTCLASSED. FORGOT HIS SCIENCE. Tommy Gibbons, the only fighter who has been able to keep a pair of shoes beneath him in a fight with .lack Dempsey since Dempsey became champion, tumbled weakly to the mat in the twelfth round of his fight with Gene Tunney, got up and went down again for the full count. He was put away in the end by slams Io the jaw. but the real reason for his collapse seemed to be exhaustion from various causes. He was an old man for the rough, tough game of taking hearty young slams on his tortured frame; it was blazing hot in the focused glare of some thirty funnel-shaped ring lights which poured a merciless flood of rays on 1o the arena; and he had been thumped and clouted on the head and ribs until he was worn to the point of collapse. END CAME QUICKLY. The finish of the fight and, in all probability the finish of 'fommy Gibbons, who only took to the ring as a second guess in life, developed with startling quickness in the twelfth. Tun noy had been corking Gibbons on the head with clouts that were not of the stunning stiffening Dempsey sort, but dazzling, exhausting blows that must have made Tom’s head resound like the act of a Swiss bell ringers.

Suddenly he got Tom with a particularly square shot on the side of the head, a short left with plenty of beef in back of it, followed by a quick and helpful right. Gibbons swayed over to his left, tripped over his feet and slumped on his side. His hairy legs, stained green from the dye in his silk tigTsts, lashed the air for a few seconds and the knock-down timer, standing at the margin of the ring, had boomed seven blows with Tils mallet before Tom could get up. He wobbled sideways to his own corner and swayed there with his head lowered and his forearms upraised in a weak effort to block off the hurricane that he knew would be coming in an instant. Tunney, who had backed away, now rushed at him and smashed him on the lips with a right. That started Gibbons tottering again and an auxiliary punch of the left tipped him over, half on his back. TUNNEY TN FRONT. Ho groped for the lower strand of the ropes at the count of seven, and managed to get his straying feet beneath him at nine. At ten he was crouching to rise and an instant later he was up again, teetering on uncertain footing and facing about to withstand another collision.

But Dick Nugent, the referee, who was brought in from Buffalo, stepped in and told Gibbons he was out. Gone was in front all the way. Those who had seen Gibbons fight Dempsey at Shelby where he blocked off Dempsey’s furious rushes and popped him impudently on the jaw, were struck with the change in Tom. He had aged and lost his science. Gibbons, who list'd to have the finest precision in his fists, was winging wild blows at Tunney and falling a foot short. He went back 1o the principles of the preliminary fighter before he was long in the ring, lowering his head and raising his gloves before his face to fen<l off as many smashes as he could. There were times when he stood spread legged or stepped around weakly, intent only on getting out of the way or easing the shock of Tunney’s punches, with no thought of sending anything back.

Only in the eighth round did G!b bons flash a reminder of the sharp, certain Gibbons who went through 104 fights without being knocked off his i feet, including those fifteen rounds with Dempsey in Montana. More than 40,000 sweltered through the twelve rounds of battling. WELLINGTON CENTRE CHAMPIONSHIPS (Per Press Association.) WELLINGTON, July 21. The Wellington Centre championships were held this year in Blen’heim and resulted: Featherweights. Mark Carroll (Manawatu) beat Les O’Donnel (Marlborough). Welter.—W. H. Pearce (Wellington) beat (’. Bivers (Taranaki). Lightweight.— Jack Rodda (Marlborough) beat Slater Hayes (Manawatu). Lightweights.—R. Loveridge (Taranaki) lost to Ted Morgan (Wellington! on points after a very even go. Flyweight.—Clarrie Woods won by default. Middleweight.—Wis. Satherley (Marlborough) beat R. Johansen (Wairarapa) in the final. LITTLE FIGHTING MACHINE PANCHO VILLA’S GREAT RECORD. The following further details of the career of the late Pancho Villa are culled from, a Vancouver message to th<* Sydney Sun of Wednesday last: V illa suffered with an infected jaw, which probaldy accounts for his poor showing against McLarin a fortnight ago in San Francisco, when he was outpointed. Villa figured in over 100 bouts, of which he won 21 by knock-outs. He married a Filipino girl a year ago, and received a cable two days before his death announcing the birth <f a dhugh-

I’ancho Villa, one of the greatest little fighting machines of the modern ring, was within a tew weeks of 24 years of age at the time of his death, for he was born in the Philippine Islands on August 1. 1901. He was christened Franeisc Guilledo, but as the name was too unweildly for the boxing ring “Pancho Villa” was assumed when he became a professional in 1921. Villa crowded a great many lights into his short career, and only a year was spent in his native islands beating everybody he met. most of them unknowns and bearing weird and won derful names. Villa must have been impressed by his second professional victory as the boxer he toppled over was “Terrible I’ondong.” Villa also knocked out the late George Mendies in three rounds. It was in 1922 that Villa won the world’s championship. He went to America under the management of Frank Churchill, ami met with immediate success. In a few months he was world’s flyweight champion. Ho won the title by knocking out Johnny Buff at New York in the eleventh round. Astute management held the honour for him and staved off a man who proved himself "Villa’s superior—the New York Italian. Frankie Genaro. The pair did got together once, but Churchill would not permit the world’s title to be involved, Genaro won on points, and then the position arose of his conqueror being only labelled champion of the United States. After that Villa showed what a great little fighter he was by knocking out the English phenomenon, Jimmy Wilde, in the seventh round in a contest in New York.

The Genaro party was hot-fool after Villa for a world’s titular match, but Genaro was side-stepped and dodged so much Hint the New York Athletic Commission suspended Villa from boxing for .12 months. Villa returned to Manila, ami it was only a few months back that he again went to America. \ ilia’s manager, Frank Churchill, is well-known in Sydney. He was there a few years ago studying methods of conducting boxing contests, and it was he who started the boom in -Manila, where he had a fine stadium.