BOXING.

Waikato Times, Volume 108, Issue 18168, 5 November 1930, Page 11

BOXING.

CHAMPIONSHIP CROWN. ■ SIDELIGHTS ON STRIBLING. FOLLOWS DEMPSEY TRADITION. Will the next heavy-weight boxing champion of the world be Young Stribling, who recently disposed so easily of Phil Scott, in England? Evidently Robert Edgren, noted American boxing critic, thinks Stribling will be not only the next champion, but a genuine champion. Edgren sees something like another Dempsey in the young fighter from Georgia. To his fighting equipment Stribling has added a left hook very like Dempsey’s. Reviewing Stribling’s progress, Edgren has high hopes of seeing a worthy wearer of the heavy-weight crown before long. For years the world has been waiting for "another Dempsey.” The last we saw of the real dynamiting Dempsey was in the fight /with Firpo in 1923, writes Edgren. After that there was one round that approximated the old Dempsey, the seventh of the Sharkey fight three years ago, when he knocked the galloping Bob loose from his championship hopes with a left hook squarely in the pit of the stomach, followed by another left hook on the jaw as the falling Sharkey turned his head toward the referee.

There was just a flash of the old Dempsey at Chicago, two months later, also in the seventh round, when Dempsey put all he had left in an effort for a knockout, and crushed Gene Tunney to the floor for the famous long count. But, at the best, that was a flash of the old Dempsey, with rto hope that it would ever.be repeated in the ring. Then there was no more Dempsey—nothing but a tradition of the smashing, crashing champion, who sunk them all, one after another, with the same desperate grasping for a oneround victory in every fight. After Dempsey faded, champions and contenders became a cautious lot, picking safe opponents, boxing with great care, quite content to get through with any kind of a win. Stribllng Come 9. And now here we have Young Stribling popping them off in the old Dempsey style, and apparently full of determination to win the big title and 1 prove to the world that he can fight. Stribling has the punch. In the past year he had developed a knockout left hook very much like Dempsey’s, He always had a good solid right. If you want a really expert opinion of a fighter, you can get it from the men who have fought him, or who have dodged fighting him.. All the other light-heavies, when Stribling was a light-heavy-weight, had a lot of respect for Strib’s punching ability. When he became a heavyweight, his opponents, of any class, were very careful, indeed, to keep out of the way of his right' hand. At Miami a year and a-half ago Sharkey held.and wrestled with Stribling and boxed with extreme caution after the Georgian had shaken him to his shoe laces with one wandering right-hand punch. At that time Stribling was still under the spell of the circus management and - was taking more care to protect .his own chin than to pop over knock-out punches. Otherwise he certainly would have beaten Sharkey. He has shown what he can do in recent fights. Stribling, fighting about every two weeks through the past tw r o or three years, has had plenty of ring experience while the other big fellows have been loafing and waiting for “big shots.” He has done more fighting than any other heavy-weight on record, although most of his victims have been among the second-raters. He has scored over 100 knockouts. And he won’t be 26 until next December.

As Stribling was a very clever boxer When he began his professional career nine years ago, he hasn’t taken many hard punches. There has been nothing to soften him. He has developed gradually with plenty of ring work, and to-day he has everything.-' He can box, can take care of himself against any fighter if he wants to stand back on his defence, and he knows everything there is to know about hitting. Six feet tall, weihging 187 pounds, in perfect fighting condition, and trained like a circus acrobat, he’s no easy mark for anybody. And this past few months Stribling has changed his fighting style, has abandoned the safety first principles of his early days and has begun to fight. A Daring Aviator. He is a daring aviator and at this time is. a reserve lieutenant in the United States Air Service. When they gave Tunney a commission as marine reserve officer, Tunney changed his style of fighting and seemed to take on new confidence. It may. have worked the same way with Stribling. When the giant Camera was fighting in England Stribling hopped over to get ahead of the rest of the boys and fought Camera twice. He lost on, a foul, and won on a foul, two fights. At present he leads Camera, liav iiife taken the last decision. The fouls, by the way, were not of the cowardly, * low-hitting variety. It was a matter of too much excitement and fighting after the bell. He knocked the giant flat on his back twice—something no other fighter has accomplished. But Stribling’s real fighting rush started when he knocked out Otto von Porat—a dangerous big fellow with a punch, who was very unpopular among the heavyweights with title hopes. A terrific left on tiie chin spilled von Porat. Stribling went to England i’id knocked out Phil Scott quickly and decisively, pasting Scott in the ribs and jaw and folding him up so suddenly that Scott forgot to go through the usual formula and claim a foul.

It may be remembered that this same Scott put up something of a fight with Sharkey, popping Sharkey on the nose with a one-two punch and 'annoying Sharkey so' greatly that Sharkey lost his head completely. Scott made no showing at all against Stribling. The Georgian was too sudden and swift in attack'.

Picking Harder Ones. Stribllng is already planning to go on piling up a lot more knockouts to add to the string of 120-odd now. decorating his record. He is going to pick tougher opponents and keep his new knock-out punches working, and as the other fistic heroes seem to be inclined to go along without fighting in hope of being matched with Max Schmeling in a “big money shot,’’ Stribling undoubtedly will be the star heavy-weight attraction in the United States when a lot of the others are forgotten. At this lime it seems very likely that the public demand will be for Stribling to fight Schmeling. And if Willie does fight the German, it is very likely indeed that the heavy(Continued in next column.}

weight itle will come right back home. He is too clever for Max and will be an even match for him in youthful condition, in weight, and in strength. There i§ nothing flabby about Stribling, and he doesn’t lose his head if he is hit on the chin. And the punch he has shown in his last two fights and in the fights in which he dropped big Camera, should be good enough to. win.

SEARCH FOR WHITE HOPE. Talbot O’Farrell, well-known English actor, is searching for an English “White Hope.” , “I am going on tour, and intend to hire the local parish hall in each town I play in, and invite all the youngsters to enter the competitions. The champion of each town will be brought to London for a competition proper, and the final winners will be fed, clothed, and be properly trained, and given every opportunity to develop their boxing ability. I am prepared to spend £4OOO on my scheme.”

JOHNSON IN NEW ROLE. A new one about Jack Johnson. “LiltT Arthur” is in Spain, and commenced operations as a thrower of bulls, by the courtesy of the owners of a “Bull ring." “Lttl’ Arthur” tossed the tame practice bulls with ease, and on the night of his first public exhibition the usual young lighting bull was sent in the ring for him to tackle. The beast glared at Johnson .and began to paw the ground. The ex-world’s champion didn’t like the look of things and amidst jeers from the big crowd present, he just managed to, get over the fence before the bull reached him.

BUSINESS FIRST. The Jack (Kid) Berg—Al Singer match for world’s light-weight title is still in the air, and much of the blame belong to Berg. Madison Square Garden, New York City, offered to stage the match under championship conditions, which calls for the champion to receive 374 per cent and the challenger 124 per cent of the “gate." Singer was willing, hut Berg demanded his 12 4 per cent, should he increased to 27 4 per cent. Singer as champion refused to accept any less than his 374 per cent; Hie

"Garden” people refuse to run the show for pure fun—and it all shows Berg is in the game for business.

SEQUENCE BROKEN.

Benny Bass, world’s junior lightweight "champion, outpointed Eddie Anderson over ten rounds at Des Moines (Ind.) last month. A week later he lost to Tommy Cello on a foul, which broke up a sequence of 27 straight wins since he knocked out Tpd Morgan for the title early this year.