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Show f WOLGAST WAS 1 i KNOCKED DOWN i (By Sam P. Hall) I Milwaukee. Wis., March 12. Ac Ii vvolgast failed to get Ills revenge. 7 The Cadillac Dutchman was out- ' fought by Lightweight Champion Rit- chie during the ten rounds of fight- ) ing tonight in the Auditorium ring i before the banner crowd in Milwaukee's Milwau-kee's boxing history. The Californian won, but not by a wido margin. He 1 did not even convince those present I that he would surely be the better man in a long fight, for Wolgast was , after him viciously and madly in the k S last round and left the ring without M a mark on face or body. V! The contest was won and lost j through a dramatic occurrence in the ti seventh round. The men were fight-ing fight-ing along viciously, head to head. it when Ritchie suddenly uncorked two i J right swings to the Wolgast stomach, j With the thud of the second padded ! V fist on his body the Michigan Dutch- man backed away and sank to the floor, holding his hands over his groin. He looked up at Referee Stout with an expression of pain on his face and naked that he be awarded award-ed the bout on a foul Ritchie was between Stout and the fallen WolgaGt and backed away to his comer, the while protesting that he had not struck low. Stout rushed over to Wolgast, refused to allow his claim and ordered him to get up and continue the fight. Here Stoiu proved his ability as a ring officer He believed that Ritchie's blows landed abovo the belt and he said so without hesitation. Wolgast got up, apparently unhurt and fought back wickedly during the rest of the three-minute three-minute spell. Stout's quick ruling prevented the making of sensational ring history. Had Wolgast's plea been hearkened to he would have received back the lightweight championship under the same identical circumstances by which Ritchie took the crown away from him over a year and a half ago. There were some of the critics a: the ringside who accused Adolph or trying "to put something over." They asserted that he went down in the hope of bluffing Stout Into giving him the championship and pointed to Ad's sudden recovery when ho found that he had to go on with the battle. If Wolgast did try to win by feigning feign-ing that ho was fouled he mado a grave mistake, for he tossed off tho fight by so doing. With Stout ruling that the blows were legal, under the rules Wolgast's fall to tho floor counted as a knockdown to Ritchie's credit. A knockdown Is as good au three rounds won on points and the upsot was what swung the popular verdict to tho champion. Outside of that round Ad hold tho California boxing master protty even. Ritchie having a shade in only ono other Besslon, the sixth. WolgaBt earned a shado in the fourth session and the rest were so evenly contested contest-ed that they could not bo handed to either combatant. Wolgast made a splendid finish, showing Ritchie up for a minute In tho tenth with a smashing left to the stomach. Ho was tough and strong at the final boll and looked good for another ten rounds. For that reason the popular vordlct In Ritchie's favor will not hurt Wolgast as a drawing card, cither here or on the coast-Thc coast-Thc fight' tonight did not decide definitely def-initely the question of superiority and Willie will not be better than a 10 to 7 favorite if they collide again. It was not a wonderful fight, but It was good enough to enthuse the 10,000 present and send them home satisfied that they had seen tho two best lightweights of the decade In furious combat with the five ouncers for one-half hour. Wolgast made 't a shambling, scuffling affair much of tho way because he refused to open up and fight until close enough to the champion to maul him and prevent the landing of that famous right cross that overthrew him In their previous engagement. The puzzling Wolgast guard fonled that right cross all the way, and forced Willie to resort to swings and uppercuts, chiefly the latter, with that paw. The punches that brought Ad down in the seventh were half uppercuts up-percuts and swings, delivered as Willie Wil-lie pulled his body away from his foe in a clinch, the champion backing away just enough to get all his forco into the wallop. Wolgast's right was of little use to him on offense. As Ritchie predicted, predict-ed, Wolgast used it chiefly as a chin guard and he made it an effective one. Ad got home with many a solid left, using little Jolts to the face when in close and swings and hooks to the body. Ho drew first blood right in the opening round with a short left slap to the nose. Ritchie's Hands Good. Ritchie displayed two corking good hand' His right is a haymaker sure enough and, had Wolgast given him a chance to cross with it he might have done lots more damage. The Ritchie left looked fine. too. He employed it for hooks to the head to open up the Wolgast defense and many of those hooks shook up the stockier Dutchman. Willie started to sidestep in ,the sixth round, got to making Ad lead to him and using right-hand count ers. From then on he won, showing that he had solved the hedge hog guard of the Cadillac wildcat. E$3-fore E$3-fore that, when he met the Wolgast rushes head on, he had none the better bet-ter of the going. Wolgast lived up to his reputation for roughness, Ritchie complaining to the referee of elbow work in two rounds. Ad hit once on the breakaway, break-away, too, but did no damage, and Stout contented himself with cautioning caution-ing him. Willie gave Ad some stiff clouts on the back of the neck to make him come out of his shell and stand up and box. To show the forco In his right-hand wallop, ho staggered Wolgast a couple of limes with clips to tho neck. Willie fought an absolute clean fight and looked like a real champion champi-on all the way. He was strong and rugged at the weight, 135, at 5 o'clock and looked to weigh 13S in the ring. He was cool, collected, showed clever clev-er ring generalship, plenty of boxing skill and hitting power. He fought , u careful, cautious battle, as a champion cham-pion with thousands ot dollars at stake should. Undoubtedly he could ( have set a dizzier paco had he cared to take chances. Wolgast left the ring outfought, but not discredited. Outside of a little blood he spat from his mouth after the sixth round, he left the ring as body-whole from the waist up as when he entered it. After the fight, Tom Jones rushed to the ringside to say that Wblgast's groin showed plain evidence of a low blow, but the evidence evi-dence of doctors was not presented to the scribes. The fans left the arena shouting, "They can't corao back." As far as they went tonight the old, saying still stands up. So ended the greatest great-est fight the middle west has staged in years. Chicago and Milwaukee will be talking about It for many days to come. 6 oo |