| Show I o J. J L 3 4 t i ln ULe d I I 1 l BY V HERO teRO JACK JAC OF 00 S FIGHTS FIGHTS- lT T O I I f By J. J JACK CJ mUTTON ARTICLE III I TilE THC MUCH DISCUSSED FIGHT WITH 1111 BENNY DENNY LEONARD How Bout AVas ns Won on on on a Foul Foul Foul- hat bat l Considers L Leonards Leonard's Leon Leon- n- n ards ard's Weak enk Points After Johnny Wilson won th the th middleweight championship from Mike ODowd and began t to be panned for winning the title on t aT fl fluke uke he remarked to some of or fi friends lends Maybe Mabe Ma be I am a poor champion but there thele Is one bird I can ahva always s 's baet and that Is Mike ODowd While the champion part of or It might not be applied exactly to our case that Is just the wiLy I I always felt about Benny Denny Leonard F om the first time I started I watching him and after the first of our three meetings mE I l knew new that B tiny Be-tiny was one opponent whom r I rould i always take Not that I did not him hurl a great champion because I do think he Is but forthe for forthe the reason that I had studied his i style so carefully and had It solved so completely that I knew I could I I keep him hint away I At one time earlier parlier In itt my caI carper ca- ca I rear reer I felt sure I knock knoek him 1110 out I alwa always s 's knew w i could outpoint outpoint outpoint out out- point him in a decision bout but butI I I I never d did think h that I would 1 I ta JeUb ever v win from 0 him l on a deliberate foul I A t CLEAN AX Leonard had always b ben been en re regarded regarded rei- rei by the fans tans as one ope of the the- coolest generals in th the ring I had hati seen een him several times badly flustered flustered flus flus- however He had always ahva'S been regarded as a clo and I would not say now that he heis heis is 18 otherwise Because he had such a tine fine character character char char- acter and because he was Vas Vas' regarded regard regard- ed as being of t the highest t cr type i ti i t the r ring when a was called S Son on him In the thirteenth round of ot our contest In the New York Velo- Velo last June giving t victory ictor some talk went around that the fight was fixed or it was not a foul foul or Leonard Leonar to torun torun i run out that way i Everyone Is 15 entitled to his own i opinion and I guess I I ca ea can pave nave 1 mine admitting th that t It I Is purely re an opinion PI 1 p y i T 7 think Benny los his head As for tor It being a a. foul toul I know I it I was I WON AVON TWO TO WAYS A YS I It has been a a. pet crack of ot nino Ino that I won von two ways was from fron Leonard Leonard Leonard Leon Leon- I ard that night night on on points a as far faras ar aras r ras as It went and on a a. foul tout I dont don't 1 believe there Is an any question that I had him In twelve rounds If It the bout had been staged three I nights before I am sure I would have sto stopped ped Leonard I never felt better In my career and I know I will wilt never be in the same perfect condition again As said in a previous chapter I ha had been suffering with Insomnia I I for tor more than a year When I t Iwas Iwas I was not training I used to remain i up until near midnight and sleep I 1 until late In the morning After my first bout with Mickey Walker I 1 though I began to get get- nerves i When T I started to train and had bait had I lo to retire earl early early I could not ot alec alecI sleep I until after midnight ht and andr then than T I didn't get any rest resL I tried all kinds of remedies but none of ot them worked CHANGES TRAINING METHODS Working indoors around bad badly ventilated gymnasiums I knew had hadnot hadnot hadnot not helped me mo any so when I s started to train for tor the Leonard figl I decided to do my work outside out out- I side aide and anti I went to Saratoga Th Th change of scenery climate and surrounding sur sur- rounding acted Just like a tonic and I began to get get pleasure out of ot my my work In fact 1 I go got t td 5 feeling feel feel- hg ing so good that I Idid did too much work worl and became fine too quickly Three days before the fight tight I had become pointed and anti by tOe time 1 went into the ring j 1 was a bit stale I do not mean that I fel felt el poorly but I didn't have as much pep pep and fire tire as asI I had been feel feel- ing Technical description of ot the actual actual actual ac ac- fight tIght is Impossible I remember remember ber her only the sixth eighth eleventh and thirteenth rounds The rest were almost the routine of going Into him hm keeping him close to the ropes and watching about stepping stepping step step- ping back from hm hIm 1 1 I have always found that no op opponent opponent op- op is very ery dangerous if you youcan youcan youcan can keep a n left lect hand sticking in his face tace get in and out and prevent prevent prevent pre pre- vent him from getting set for a punch Funch These are the fundamentals of ot boxing ZlOty now LEO LEONARD LEORD RD BOXES Leonards Leonard's favorite is to get in In I close block with his hands after the fashion ot of Jack Johnson push you back I t t. and clip ou eu on the Jaw with a short hort i right hand back If U I as you step you keep coming into him strong a and d keep kelp keepen on en top of him he be cant can't do it I Another nother thing thing Leonard Leonard doesn't like I his back near the ropes Every time he ho gets gels near them he turns his head I i t little lIttie and looks around Very ery dan dan- ge usi I So I had been een carrying the fight to him and giving him I thought a a. neat patting Palling In the sixth and eighth rounds s I got two good shots at his ja Jaw The They h hut huft lt him hint but when the they didn't dro I him I thought thoua-ht Well ell Jack Its It's a decision now In the eleventh round It looked quite differently My Iy head was wall sinking the ring seemed going around and 1 I thought I 1 was wa's gone It has always been my I contention that Leonard wasn't as smart a a. fighter as he is generally credited with being It was borne out in this In instance tance and it sav saved d me me from being kno knocked k d a out KNOCKED OX ON TilE THE ROP ROPES Lae In n n the eleventh round 1 S did the I vety ety thing that I 1 had been trying to a. I 1 stepped back from him and anti he I shut shot over oyer a right hand like a a. bullet I tried t to tb roll my head away from tram It It but butI I 1 wasn't Quick duick enough It caught m me square on the Jaw and kno knocked ked me nie on Ii the ropes I 3 remembered what we had observed In all Leonards Leonard's fights fights he he al always always at- at ways wins win Oils ibis knockouts on the ropes or orIn orIn orin In a corner I was as on the ropes and badly hurt I sate laW him coming Into me ins and covered cov coy I red ered up my Jaw ja He hit me ma about five times an the back of the head and shoulders Instead of at going after the bod body H He stepped back to measure me and I made a grab for far him I 1 knew It I was my only hope and anil I got to him and held as hard as I ever held and along came camo the bell BE BENNY Y LOSES LOSys lOIS HIS HEAD lEAD That made Benny mad and I knew M. M That is one ope of oC the reasons why I t believe he be lost his hi head later It Is highly agI aggravating aggravating ag ag- ag- ag to miss a knockout victory by such uch a a. slim margin In a championship I contest Dont Don't forg forget t also that Benny wanted to tp be ha welterweight welter champion ily y he head was cleat clear when 1 I w wet went nt out fo the twelfth round and I kept right after him 1 I knew If It I kept on all him and watched him I 1 had him beaten Titan Then came camo the thirteenth round We Ve were In close In its the middle of ot the round Leonard got over o a short right hand punch Just below my heart that almost the wind out ot at- me I held on for a a. few minutes thinking that t the e pain would leave heave me me but it became worse It was like a stitch or a II cramp crampS I knew if it I tried to straighten up my Jaw would be wide open and I slipped down to the floor to take a count That Is the She reason It wa was said that no one saw dw th the blow and that I 1 slipped down downto to get a a. pr prearranged arranged foul I nodded to Dan Morgan In rny my y corner that I 1 was all right and Just wanted anted the count I was on one ohe knee with one hand on the canvas watching Referee Patsy y Haley count over o me I saw Leonard Leonard Leonard Leon Leon- ard walking toward me but I didn't pay much attention n to him until he hit m m. twice on the he head d. d Tho force torce pushed me roe over on onh h he he floor and I yelled at Haley a a. foul He lie nodded his h head In the affirmative and I got ol up and went to my corner That That's all there was waR to it The foul blows didn't hurt but the one that put me tao down did hurt I didn't pay much attention to the stories that went around because there was a lot of at betting th the bout befit Slid poor losers always yelp The Walker and Leonard contests practically closed my ray career In the next chapter I will tell got started on my ply boxing career Note Note Tn In th the fourth In Instalment I lm nt of My Twenty Years In the Britton lIntton lInt Brit ton tells of his lis early days daya Rr hir ho O was IJ accidentally aI thrust Into at t tI t's I in s spite of ot much different nt ambitions Tand Del what his fathers father's criticism did for or |
