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Show IT IS only fitting that the heavyweight heavy-weight championship of the world was decided between two Negroes, since most of the better fighters in the last few years have belonged to the Negro race. I might mention Joe Louis, Joe Walcott, Ray Robinson, Robin-son, Ike Williams, Ezzard Charles, Beau Jack- and a few others. The only two white entries I can think of now who belong around the top are Tony Zale and Gus Lesnevich. "Why is this?" I asked a well-known well-known trainer. "Here's the trouble," he said. "Most of the white fighters are lazy or yellow. They won't train and they can't take it." This is a minor detail that the white section might consider. Remember Re-member this: "They won't train and they can't take it." Good white fighters have become about as scarce as the extinct dodo. Zale and Lesnevich are exceptions. So is Willie Pep. Outside of Zale, Pep and Lesnevich, Lesne-vich, most of the white fighters that I know are crude, lazy and incompetent in-competent They dislike the training train-ing routine or, like Rocky Grazi-ano, Grazi-ano, they won't learn their trade how to box. "A right hand will do it," was Rocky's answer. Only It didn't. Zale is a professional. Graziano Isn't. He never will be, except on the financial side. Graziano will never be the pro that Zale Is. "Strictly a pro," Francis Albertantl says of Zale. "Graziano? Maybe a semipro. But never a pro." Citation's Goals Unless something of a harsh physical phy-sical nature happens to Calumet's Citation, he is almost certain to reach two coveted goals 1. To finish the high-money winner win-ner of all time above one million dollars in total purses. 2. To be ranked as the top horse of all time rated definitely above Man o' War. There is little doubt of his passing pass-ing the one million dollar mark unless un-less he breaks a leg or is badly injured. in-jured. The Calumet star already has Slipped by the $544,000 mark, and he is just warming up with such stakes as the Arlington Classic in Chicago and the $100,000 International Interna-tional Gold Cup race, at Belmont on his list There is more than $500,000 in big stake purses left on the '48 schedule and Citation is still a young three-year-old. There will be much baying and braying among many members of the old guard in placing any horse above Man o' War. But don't forget for-get two things that Man o' War ceased firing as a three-year-old and that Man o' War never won a handicap race. He never ran against older horses except Sir Barton who, at the time, was badly bad-ly crippled. Man o' War was a great race horse. But the big test comes in the handicap handi-cap division where you might give away weight, where you must carry from 130 to 140 pounds to prove your place. There is no reason to believe Man o' War couldn't have carried this weight. Citation already has run against older horses and beaten them. Two of these were Armed and Buzfuz in the Seminole handicap. Citation can finish his three-year-old career on even terms with Man o' War, getting none the best of things. But if he goes on from there into the handicap division to meet older horses, he is almost sure to finish as the greatest race horse this country ever has known. It is always just as well to wait until a competitor has at least reached the stretch of his career before be-fore he Is finally judged and placed. Ticenty-Game Pitchers How many 20-game pitchers, on the winning side will there be this season? The crop will be extremely thin. When the 1948 season opened, the leading probabilities included Black-well, Black-well, Newhauser, Feller, Lemon, Reynolds, Dobson, Munger, Marchil-don, Marchil-don, Trout, Sain, Spahn, Jansen and Branca. I could mention one or two others. How many of these will make It? Blackwell and Feller, two of the favored sons, certainly two of the best, are out of It, unless they finish fin-ish like a brace of Citations. Blackwell with a bad arm, has three victories out of eight starts. At this time last year Ewell, the lone pine, was on his way to 18 straight. Feller has been battling to break even. It might also be noted that Feller has been driven from the field of glory seven times, at least, In less than two months. Hal Newhouser drew the roughest start of the bunch, losing four of his first five games. But the scrappy and skillful Tiger put on a hot rally ral-ly and proceeded to win seven in a row. He still has an outside chance to reach the olive crowned circle. Red Munger of the Cardinals has been one of the season's major disappointments. dis-appointments. Picked as a 25-game winner, big, strong and fast, the ex-army ex-army officer has been below par most of the year. |