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Show I CONFIDENCE Is one of the greatest f assets s bo: ever ii;d and without It none of theni ever get very far. but there Is something about being be-ing a champion that gives them that supreme confidence In themselves that Invariably makes them much greater fighters after they have got to be champion than they were before. Probably one of the best examples of this was the bout last Thursday night in the Madison Square Gardsn between Pancho Villa, flyweight champion, and Able Ooldsteln. Several months ago Villa came to this country coun-try from the Philippine Islands and amongst other tough boys he met w u fills samo Goldstein boy, at whose hands he received a pretty thorough, drubbing, and from accounts was on the verge of a K. O. A short time ago Villa met and beat Johnny Buff for the flyweight championship cham-pionship anil about his first Important battbi was with Goldstein last Thursday Thurs-day and although the latter was not compelled to make the flyweight limit, coming In at a hundred and sixteen, the champion showed wonderful won-derful Improvement over their last meeting and had no trouble In bringing bring-ing home the dei ision, never being In trouble at any time, although Goldstein Gold-stein Is reputed to carry the most dangerous wallop of any of the Httlo fellows around New York. Goldstein has not gone back, nor has Villa Improved so wonderfully in so short a time, except through that supremo confidence In himself which the winning of tho championship has given him. It looks as though Villa is going to be a mighty tough proposition to take the flyweight championship away from and if Rlckard or any other promoter ever succeeds In getting get-ting Jlmmle Wilde to como over here and risk his world's title against him he will probably 3end him home crownleys LOSE DESIRE HERE. The drubolngs the American fighters fight-ers have been dealing out to all the Europeans the last few years has apparently ap-parently mado them lose all their desire de-sire for huge purses, for none of them can bo envelgled Into coming over hero at the present time, regardless of the fact that they havo been of-fred of-fred more money, win or lose, for one bout than they could ihake being champion on the other side of the pond for a half dozen years. Georges Carpehtier was the first man to balk at a big purse to meet Tommy Gibbons tor the world's light heavyweight heavy-weight championship. Tex Rlckard offered him $150,000 for the match but ho always found some way ot avoiding the meeting. He took on a few bouts with Inferior men in Europe for which he probably received aJ High as $5,000 for his end and finally lost his title to Battling Slkl. for which he is reported to have drawn down $16,000, which was probably all the money in the house, as Slkl had the large sum of a dollar six bits for himself) him-self) according to reports. Jlmmle Wilde has been offered more money for one fight over here than he can make the rest of his life in Europe, but still he can't be I tempted to come over here and risk I his title and the purses on the other j side nro so small In comparison to the ones offered here that none of the best boys from here care to go over there However, some of thoin no doubt would If they could get a I match with the European champions, for they could well afford to go over and fight for nothing to copp off their titles and come hack hero and capitalize It. Anyone who could get Wilde Into a match and win the world's flyweight championship would he In a position to make a fortune 1 In this country In a very short time, hut though Europeans don't seem to want any of our boys' game. Joe Beckett, who was matched to meet Battling Sikl. when the latter) got Into a Jam and was suspended, i has also been offered a fortune to come over here and meet Tommy Gibbons, but he falls to become enthused. en-thused. Tommy Gibbons has also offered of-fered to go over there and meet him practically at his own terms, realizing ! that If he could bent Beckett, which ! ; he surely would, that It would put I 1 him more In line for a match with Dompsey, but Beckett and the promoters pro-moters on the other side are painfully-silent. painfully-silent. Spug Myers, the sensational Pocatello Poca-tello Junior welterweight. add ;d another scalp to his belt last Wednos-' Wednos-' day when he decisively beat Boston j Joo Adams, claimant of the weltcr-I weltcr-I weight championship of the Pacific ; coast, although reports of the bout j would Indicate that he gave Myers ' one of the toughest- battles he has i had In some time, the result was rea?iy never In doubt. , Myers Is now matched to meet Lee Morlssey in Pocatello the latter part i 1 of this month and as Lee ha3 been ; fighting the best of them In tho ii, 1.1 1 ' - a e..t la: 1 IT Allows how c!o. Spug Is drawing to the top-note he r I 1 Morrissey'a last bout in the mldwejt was in kluhoma: with Johnny Till-' man. whom the papers all clalmeJ Morrlsse beat decisively and he was , practically matched with Jack Brltton 1 for lh welterweight championship but the defeat of Brltton by Mickey j Walkoi cancelled the match, so If Myers can beat Morrlssey as decisively I as he h;s been boating the rest of; 1 the boys he has met he will have to ! be recognized as a championship pos- j slblllty inside of another year MYERS DIFFERENT. In one way Myers Is just the oppo-I oppo-I site of any prospective boxer I hav e ' ever had the ocaslon to observe care-1 care-1 fully. Every boxer I have ever known j who really looked like championship 'calibre was Invariably nervous and Irritable before entering the ring, caused by the anxiety of waiting and anxious to get under way. but onco the bell sent them on their way that! nervousness left them entirely Myers apparently hasn't a nerve lu I ; bodj up until the time he steps I throuhg tho ropes. I have seen him; sitting quietly In his dressing room Just a few minutes before he Is to be I called and go sound asleep in a chair or on a rubbing tablo and If he hap- j I pens to be B little late In getting roady I u do.-sn't excite him In the least and j while his attendants are trying to bustle him alon ghe Is apt to be talk-' I lng to someono about going fishing, the latter being one of his favorite I pastimes. However ,once he steps! , through the ropes his attitude change? I Immediately and he Is all nerves and j i perfect fighting machine and can I hardly wait for the minute rest to be i ! over between rounds. This, of course, j ! may not be due to tho fact that he j 1 has really never had to go through i gruelling contest having won practically practi-cally all of hlo bouts without much ! trouble and is anxious to get the thing over with as quickly as possible This mental condition should be a I wonderful asset to him, for It means ' that he Is not losing any of his ability worrying In the dressing room and ' saving It all for when he gets In action and probably means that He will last longer In the game than the average boxer. j(By special arrangement with Too i Salt Lake Telegram.) |
