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Show LEONARD CAM MAKE . WEIGHT AND WILL1 FIGHT TO RETAIN HIS TITLE RIGHTS Lightweight Crown Is Back t to Its Own, Where Fans Will Get Money's Worth THE lightweight championablp baa coma back to I la own. t For the flrat time In year that tltlebolder la a boy who can do the legitimate weight. 1J3 pounda rlngeMe, who haa a knockout punch like the lightweights light-weights of old and wbo will Uckla anyone In hla dlvlelon. ... aTisnr I snna-il lb New Tork eaat aide a Hebrew, who hammered h. way through Kreddte Weleh'a aunerh Hefena to a knockout, haa theee reejuleltee. Ha sug-ireeta sug-ireeta the daya of Kid Lavign and Jack McAultife. . ... ' Mince November. IMS. the llrhtwetgto! at Otle haa been held by welterweight.. Willie Ritchie made IM nouno. then far Ad Wolgast and won on a ful In aUteew rounda. Ritchie never made tha waihl After Freddie Weleh won the title ra m a twenty-round decleion bout Hi lxm4n. In 1!4. he arbitrarily fixed the w.iahl t' 13S pound", but oftener boxed from IM to 140 pounda, DAY OF GENIUS OON I. -a Tha dav of the (renulne !lhlwelbt ha ' gone. Scorea of boxera flghllna between 1X and 140 pounda aftertiaed themeehree aa linhtwelghte. Not one of them could have made the welKht at which Jlmmie Brllt, Lavlgne. Nelaon or Wolcaat da- w fended their tltlea. Now a lefltlmate llrhtwrlf ht la title-holder. title-holder. He won hla title at l.ti pounda ringside and will defend It at that wet(ht. The recent record of Ieonard. Including t five conaecutive knockouta. aunreata tha a old daya before the ring tanao waa dia the ring to defend hla laurels not merely to hold hla title by hook or crook. Leonard, whoae real name la l,elner, la , 21. His mother Is German, hla father l Jewish. He haa been boxing for about i five yeara But it win not until late In HIS that he began making a hid for fame. Twice . in tltls year he had been knocked out I by Frankle Fleming and waa given a lacing by Johnny Kilbanc. Then late In December he knocked out Joe Mandot and began hla climb for the championship. HAS K. O. PUNCH. t J Ionard began developing a knockout 1 punch. He practiced faithfully to become a two-handed fighter, something rare la present-day fighters. a Hlx knockouta were scattered through V hia record until March. 11)1. when he out-pointed out-pointed Melsh. A few week, later the wily champion reversed the decision, but u this did not deter Leonard. .er His real drive for Ihe title started early In 1917. when he began a string of knockouta knock-outa starting with Packey Hommey and ending with Welsh. These were five in all, the other victims being Charley Thomas, Richie Ultchell and Eddie shannon, shan-non, r ir Leonard rights aa he fought he will be a popular champion. He haa never re- f fused to meet an opponent In his own ! he has never looked for soft spots to light he has not aaked for hand-picked refereea. Tha king la dead long live the king. |