Cap's New and Improved Alternate Universe

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From the Australian Star...Frank Slavin is campaigning in the sports departments of every Sydney newspaper for a rematch with Steve O'Donnell convinced he got a short count in their first fight....Rumours are widespread that following his recent defeat in England Joe Goddard is preparing to return to Australia to rebuild his lost fortunes...Harry Laing is looking for another crack at Billy Smith this year and is working himself into fighting trim at his farm in New Zealand....Australian Boxing News [Sydney] has put up a championship belt to be awarded to the winner of a fight proposed by them between Peter Felix and Bill Doherty.....

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From the Coaltown Gazette....On the undercard of the Gardiner-Mitchell bout at Limerick Sports Hall in Eire Toronto's Jack Stewart climbed off the canvas to KO "Trooper" Parsons in round one....Heralded prospect Bob Jones of California ran his record to 9-1-1 with a 3rd round TKO of the Troy Terror Tom 'Stockings' Conroy at the New York Athletic Club....Chicago's John Willie is now 11-0 with 9 knockouts and is being groomed by a local promoter to take on Frank Childs....Former Canadian amateur champion John Scholes (7-1-1) failed to put away Joe Grim 'The Rubber Man' in 10 rounds but took a lopsided decision according to the Toronto Telegram....Both Jerry Quarry and Joe Goddard lost last month so were eliminated as potential opponents for world champion Peter Jackson....At the Olympic Athletic Club in San Francisco James J Corbett managed a win over ten rounds with big South Afrikan Corrie Sanders but was loudly jeered by the assembled members...

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From the pages of the Detroit Tribune....Music Hall impresario and Sportsman Jimmy Cafferty has proposed building an arena in Oakland for the sole purpose of holding professional boxing contests and announced plans to stage a tournament to establish the heavyweight champion of California.... Peter Jackson is said to be considering an offer from the National Sporting Club in London to defend his championship against Jack Root for a purse of £2,000 the fight to take place in two months time....Bob Fitzsimmons has tasked his lawyer with a communication to the chairman of the IBU demanding he be given another try at Jackson's world title based on his victories over Quarry, Corbett, Sharkey and Chuvalo....Charles 'Parson' Davies manager of Bob Armstrong has issued a challenge to Denver Ed Martin to meet Armstrong in a ten round contest in Los Angeles this summer...Jim Jeffries the burly former boilermaker has set his sights on the championship belt around the waist of James J Corbett and has put up a $500 forfeit as proof of his determination...

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Excerpt from the sports page of the Calgary Herald....The crowd at Mechanic's Pavilion in Frisco was shocked into silence when Jim Jeffries received the nod from referee Ed Graney at the end of his 12 round battle with James Corbett as few who witnessed it had picked Jeffries the winner....The press at ringside had Corbett well ahead after seven rounds and gave only two of the last five rounds to the new champion....When questioned afterwards Graney said he felt Jeffries made the fight with constant pressure and decided it when he put Corbett down briefly in the last round....A representative of the American Boxing Association said he would be discussing the fight with referee Graney and might suggest an immediate rematch.... Lionel Butler stopped Jack Stelzner in the 9th round of the semi-windup to Jeffries-Corbett....Fred Russell coming off two straight losses in the East knocked out Fred Morris in three fast rounds...Some weeks ago it is reported from New Zealand that Harry Laing and Steve O'Donnell boxed ten rounds to a draw...On the advice of famed trainer Jerry Marshall , Johnny Van Heest who was crippled in a training accident last year joined with Albert "Young Griffo" Griffiths to open a boxing academy in Sydney, Australia with the express notion of turning out world-class boxers of the 'modern style'....

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From the May 1893 issue....Peter Jackson and Jack Root have signed articles to meet at the National Sporting Club in London for a purse of £2,000 with 60% for the winner and 40% for the loser, plus adequate sums for training expenses...Root's backers have put up £5,000 in side wagers and have been covered by Jackson's friends and supporters....The odds quoted by London books heavily favour the champion and few 'experts' give the challenger much of a chance despite his unquestioned ring skills siting the fact Jackson will have at least a two stone pull in weight and is much the harder puncher....Joe Goddard is expected to challenge the winner unless he receives a better offer to tour Australia....Corrie Sanders the South Afrikan heavyweight champion is trying to get George Chuvalo to agree to meet him in a California ring but George seems reluctant to leave the comforts of home in Canada...If both sides can finally come to terms on a division of the purse put up by Jimmy Cafferty Denver Ed Martin and Bob Armstrong will battle it out possibly as early as June....

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From the Chicago Daily News Evening edition June 1893....

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From the late edition of the Los Angeles Herald - July 1893...In Dunbarton, Scotland Italy's Roberto Damiani belted out favourite Jack Munroe the Cape Breton Miner in the 8th round of their 10 round contest...At the Baltimore Arena Adolphus "Jack" McCabe stopped Young Kilrain in 5 rounds to notch his sixth straight victory...Patsy Cardiff spoiled a huge post-fight party in Boston when he put the quietus to John L Sullivan in four rounds last night...At Brown's Arena in New York England's Battling Ed Corcoran pounded out a ten round decision over Philadelphia Jack O'Brien leaving many wondering what has happened to the fighting Quaker....Hank Griffin may be near the end of the road but he still has enough left for the likes of Joe Lannon who he edged out over ten fast rounds in Los Angeles...Reports out of San Francisco confirm that Jim Jeffries will defend his newly won American heavyweight title in a rematch with James J Corbett...

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Excerpt from the Australian Star August 1893....The new Australasian Boxing Academy opened its doors in Sydney last week with a second planned for Melbourne operated by a syndicate of former professional pugilists from both America and Australia....Several noted local prospects have already signed up as pupils after their trainers were hired on as instructors....Among the young heavyweights who have joined are Jim Henry the West Indies lad, Jack Blackmore of Sydney, Pyrmont's Jim Quigley and Ned Ryan of Braiwood....One student who may prove to be a standout is Des Quinlan a tall powerfully built lad from nearby Broken Bay who in the last few years has worked as longshoreman, cooper's helper and farrier and has been pegged by experts as brimming with potential....Melbourne promoter Bert Applegate has brought a small troupe of American and Canadian boxers to tour Australia and New Zealand, among them Kid McCoy, George Siddons and Patsy Cardiff...

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Excerpt from the Toronto Telegram - Aug 1893...Tom Dowling of the Pacific A.C. Los Angeles is offering a purse of $3,000 to bring together Bob Fitzsimmons, the last man to beat Tom Sharkey, and Corrie Sanders who recently beat George Chuvalo in a 10 round winner take all bout this Fall...Sandy Ferguson received a wire from the matchmaker of London's National Sporting Club to come to England to meet Empire champion Joe Goddard with a purse of £1,500 to be divided...Ferguson will sail on the Halifax and will be accompanied by his brother Harry and Toronto heavyweight Jack Stewart as his chief spar mate....Many who have known the mercurial Ferguson are amazed at the calm he now exhibits under the watchful eye of his brother, who happens to be a police constable....Informed of the proposed match between Fitzsimmons and Sanders, champion Peter Jackson has expressed his willingness to defend his title belt against the winner.....

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Excerpt from the Halifax Chronicle - September 1893....Bob Fitzsimmons and South Afrikan champion Corrie Sanders are in training in the Los Angeles area for their upcoming contest at Hazard's Pavilion....Lanky Bob is 27-4-2 with 20 KOs while Sanders' record is 20-2-0 with 12 knockouts ....Fitz expects to weigh between 168 and 175 ringside and Sanders between 208 and 220....The two camps have narrowed the choice of referee down to either Eddie Graney or Hiram Cook....Current odds favour Fitzsimmons slightly based on quality of past opponents but more Sanders money is certain from his supporters in New York and Boston....Gus Ruhlin's upset win over Bakersfield's Jerry Quarry has boosted his standing with the IBU but delayed any confrontation with Jim Jeffries....Jeffries may decide to defend his American championship belt against Denver's Fred Russell, Ray Mercer of Miami or Chicago Jack Johnson....Top US prospects according to the IBU are John Willie, Mike Schreck, Ulysses Cannon (aka Black Fitzsimmons), Bob Jones and Dixie Kid...Sandy Ferguson had Joe Goddard in serious trouble in the last round of their championship fight at London's National Sporting Club but failed to press the attack which cost him a decision....Ferguson has been promised a fight with European champion Jack Root.

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Two upcoming battles of some significance....If he wins Sandy Ferguson has a verbal agreement to fight the winner of the Peter Jackson - Joe Beckett world championship fight while Jack Root has signed contracts for two engagements at the NSC in 1894....Joe Goddard has booked passage for Australia where he intends to defend his Empire championship belt against all comers Frank Slavin preferred....James J Jeffries is heavily favoured to retain his title against Fred Russell and has posted a $2,000 forfeit with the San Francisco Call's sporting editor for a fight with Gus Ruhlin the Pacific Northwest champion....Denver Ed Martin has issued a defi to Jeffries and Ruhlin to defend their titles against him this year...

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From the Chicago Daily News - October 1893 final week of the World's Fair....Oh...Jim Jeffries knocked out Fred Russell in four rounds....details on page 11...

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November 1893 issue of Mitt Slingers Magazine....Italy's Roberto Damiani is unbeaten in his last eight contests....Joe Kennedy currently residing in Los Angeles and working as Jim Jeffries sparring partner has won his last five....Bob Armstrong angling for a match with Jack Johnson is now 6-1 in last seven while Johnson has won 9 of his last 10....Marvin Hart has not lost in over two years his record standing at 16-1-2....Patsy Cardiff on tour in sunny Australia won his last four bouts prior to embarking....

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Excerpt from the Australian Star - November 1893....Joe Goddard is back home and ready to take on "Australian Billy" Smith in defence of his Empire title with the Australasian championship belt held by Smith also on the line....Frank Slavin has resumed training after recovering from an injured right arm the result of a sparring session with Fred Preston a local amateur champion...

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From the Detroit Tribune...December 8, 1893....Jim Jeffries and Gus Ruhlin met at the Las Vegas A. C. with both the American and Pacific Northwest titles on the line, Ruhlin putting up a stubborn fight until referee Eddie Graney stepped in with seconds left in the ninth round....Jeff announced he would vacate the Pacific Northwest championship and pursue the North American heavyweight title still held by George Chuvalo of Toronto ....Chuvalo recently suffered a loss to Eire's Tom Sharkey at New York having the fight stopped because of a bad gash over his eye, a result his corner protested vociferously citing ineptitude on the part of the referee....World champion Peter Jackson has abandoned plans to fight again at the NSC in London in favour of a match in San Francisco or Los Angeles with the big South Afrikan Corrie Sanders.....The much anticipated contest between Bob Armstrong and Jack Johnson of Chicago ended in a No Decision after 4 rounds due to a cut from an accidental head butt received by Armstrong who was unable to continue....Bob Fitzsimmons back on the mend after the Sanders fight, is considering an offer to box Denver Ed Martin somewhere in the Los Angeles area possibly at Woodward's Pavilion...

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Excerpt from the New York Sun....December 31, 1893...

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Quoted from an article in the Montreal Star...Millionaire speculator and avid sportsman M.J. Doheny of Toronto, wealthy Montreal industrialist J.D. Fournier and Coaltown "financier" Martin "The Mick" O'Brien have formed a consortium to fund the promotion of professional boxing in Canada. First on their reported agenda is the establishment of boxing schools in Toronto, Hamilton, Montreal and Halifax staffed by the best available instructors and coaches from Canada, the UK and the United States. Plans are to later expand westward to Winnipeg, Regina, Calgary and Vancouver. The combine will also fund a search for potential talent in the ranks of amateur and professional athletes as well as other physical occupations such as mining, forestry, fishing, etc. Their stated goal is to produce a pool of boxing talent to rival other nations and build a fan base in this country..."

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Fight posters begin appearing all over San Francisco, whetting the appetite of boxing fans for the big fight....Peter Jackson has settled into his training camp outside the city and has begun getting into condition after his long tedious journey from New York to sunny California....Bob Fitzsimmons and Denver Ed Martin have signed articles to box 10 rounds with six ounce gloves in the semi-windup to the Jackson-Sanders championship fight....In Toronto representatives of Jim Jeffries the American champion and North American champ George Chuvalo are meeting to arrange a 12 round contest for the NABF title to be held in February at the Mutual Street Arena....Several prominent local amateur prospects have enrolled at the new Dominion Boxing Foundation's schools established by the Doheny-Fournier-O'Brien combine along with young professionals like John Scholes, Johnny Jackson and Ross Delaney the former west coast amateur champion....Among the Canadian amateurs being tutored in the sweet science is Bob Day, ex-police constable and one-time amateur heavyweight champion of Scotland....

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Cutting from the Ballarat Independent - December 1893...Joe Goddard captures the Australian title while retaining his Empire championship belt....Two upsets in Melbourne when Peter Felix crawls back from six knockdowns to put away Frank Slavin at 2:09 of the ninth round...Felix weighed 13st 1lb and Slavin 14st 3.....In the second contest favourite Tut Ryan loses a lop-sided decision to Steve O'Donnell at Melbourne Boxing Club ....Promoters had hoped to match Goddard with Slavin or Ryan in front of a huge mob...At Timaru Athletic Hall Harry Laing squeaked out a points win over Mick Dooley in 10 rounds and likely put himself in place for a big money fight....

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From January issue of Mitt Slingers Magazine....Cleveland's Jimmy Bivins has shot to the No.6 slot in the IBU rankings with his win over former world champ James Corbett who drops from the top ten for the first time since their inception....Roberto Damiani continues his winning streak with a clear cut victory over Jack Root for the European Boxing Union's title...Root seemed unable to land anything that had any real effect on the big Italian....At the New York Athletic Club New Jersey heavyweight Ray Mercer administered a sound beating to the "Boston Strong Boy" John L Sullivan, knocking him out cold in the fifth round....