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Back to action in the regular Uni after making some progress in the ATG tourneys ...

This report covers fistic action from the first half of May 1939, encompassing a total of 45 bouts. One WBA title bout is included.

May 5, 1939: The month kicks off with a Friday night card at Jersey City’s Roosevelt Stadium. Only bout of note is the main event, with matches hot young LH prospect Eddie Booker, who has won his first 19, facing Jimmy Adamick, a former LH prospect who had won his first 17 and reached the top 10 but is now at Post-Prime career stage. Early edge to Booker, who moves inside in round three, fighting effectively. By the midway point, the unofficial card has Booker winning all the rounds (a 50-45 points lead). Near the end of round seven, Adamick finally comes to life, landing a straight right hand that staggers Booker, who covers up. Booker retreats into a defensive shell for the final two rounds, sitting on his huge points lead. Adamick suffers from a swollen right eye through the later rounds, and the bout goes the full 10 with the UD 10 going to Booker (97-93, 97-93, 97-94) in a bout that was much more one-sided that the scores might indicate. Post-fight, Booker improves to 20-0 (13) and will be at Prime for his next outing. The loss drops Adamick to 23-8-1 (21).

May 6, 1939: Next up is an abbreviated card at Havana, with the feature for the LABF MW title. Defending this belt is Cuban fan favorite Kid Tunero, and the challenger – in his first title bout of any kind – is Puerto Rico’s Angel Cliville. Tunero puts forth an excellent boxing exhibition, and in round five, he lands a sharp blow that bloodies Cliville’s nose. The unofficial card, however, has the bout even (57-all) at the midway point. Tunero mounts a rally to win most of the next rounds, and in round nine he backs Cliville up, landing a big hook that causes the challenger to cover up. However, Tunero is called for a low blow, and a point is subtracted from his total. After round nine, there is noticeable swelling under the right eye of Tunero. The bout appears to be headed to go the distance, with Tunero well ahead, when the cut on Cliville’s nose is re-opened and bleeds profusely, leading to a late stoppage. Thus, Tunero retains the belt via a TKO 12 on the cuts stoppage. Post-fight career marks are 29-9-5 (9) for Tunero; 33-19-2 (18) for Cliville.

May 6, 1939: Fistic action at Boston Garden. Again, an abbreviated card and the only bout of interest is the main event, which matches Jimmy Mendes defending the NABF HW title against once-beaten challenger Abe Simon, who is in his first title bout of any kind (Mendes will retain his LABF HW crown regardless of the outcome of this bout). It is the first meeting of the two, and Mendes’ second defense of the NABF title. Two sluggers square off but the first half of the bout is rather uneventful, with the challenger, Simon, emerging with a very slight points edge (58-57, according to the unofficial card) at the midway point. Action picks up near the end of round nine, when Simon gets in a short, clean hook that puts Mendes on the deck. Mendes, however, is saved by the bell which sounds as the count reaches one. Then, in round 10, Simon connects with a hard shot off the top of the head that forces Mendes to cover up. Sensing the title slipping away, Mendes goes all out in the final two rounds, weakening his defenses. This leaves him vulnearable to a big shot from Simon in the final round. Mendes goes down again, takes a five-count, but is unable to fend off a barrage of blows from Simon, who earns a TKO 12 victory as the ref does not allow the bout to go the distance. With the win, Simon improves to 22-1-1 (17). For Mendes, it is his first loss in over three years, dropping his career totals to 34-10-4 (27).

May 12, 1939: Next card is a Friday night affair at Toronto’s Maple Leaf Gardens. A Commonwealth title bout headlines the agenda, preceded by a co-feature matching the #1 and #2 ranked LHs in a non-title bout as ex-Champ Tiger Jack Fox takes on current NABF and CBU titleholder Charley Belanger, hometown crowd favorite who is now at Post-Prime career stage. Fox is looking to avenge a 1936 loss to Belanger (one of only four career setbacks for Fox) via DQ. After a solid start, Fox is called for a foul and deducted a point in round three – indicating the need to be careful to avoid a repeat of the early DQ loss. More problems for Fox in round four when he suffers a split lip. Undeterred, Fox traps a hapless Belanger against the ropes and drops him with a hard cross right before the bell sounds to end round four. Fox is well ahead at the midway point (49-45, according to the unofficial ringside observer). Then, in round seven, a second KD occurs as Belanger walks into a Fox uppercut; he takes a seven-count before arising to resume the action. By the end of round seven, Belanger is showing signs of fatigue as well as some swelling under his left eye. A Fox combination finds its target, and Belanger drops to the canvas for a third time. This time, he is unable to beat the count. KO 9 for Tiger Jack Fox, running his record to 45-4 (32). Belanger, who has clearly seen better days, is now 42-19 (19). In the feature, the CBU FW title is up for grabs as Canadian titleholder Pete DeGrasse defends that belt against Dave Crowley, a former GBU FW titleholder. The two have met once before, back in 1932, with DeGrasse coming away a MD 10 winner. Not much in the way of action through most of the early going, with Crowley sustaining a cut under his left eye in round four. Building on a slight points edge at the midway point (58-57, according to the unofficial scorer), DeGrasse gradually pulls away in the second half of the fight, overcoming a late rally from Crowley to take a UD 12 (114-113, 116-111, 117-110) to retain the CBU title. Post-fight career marks: DeGrasse, 37-14-4 (10); Crowley, 26-20-1 (13).

May 13, 1939: To Europe and the Amor Bahn in Munich for the next card, featuring former NABF LH titleholder Bob Olin matched with Germany’s EBU LH Champ, Adolf Heuser, in a non-title affair. Olin, now at Post-Prime, is still ranked among the top 10 LHs, so Heuser’s supporters are viewing this as an opportunity to move up in the LH rankings. Olin seems to have the edge in punches landed through the first three rounds, but round four sees Heuser turn the tables with a big round. As a result, Olin returns to his corner with a trace of swelling under his right eye as a visual sign of the effectiveness of Heuser’s punches. Then, in round five, a straight right from Heuser stuns Olin, forcing the latter fighter to cover up. Despite holding a nominal points lead a the midway point (48-47, according to the unofficial card), Olin is on the losing end, with his other eye beginning to puff up as Heuser continues to dominate the action through the middle rounds. Olin is unable to mount a comeback, and Heuser goes on to record a UD 10 (98-93, 96-94, 96-95), although Olin did well to keep the scores reasonably close on at least two of the judges’ cards. Post-fight career marks: Heuser, 33-8-1 (16); Olin, 32-14-3 (10). With the win, Heuser secures a spot among the top 10 LHs.

May 13, 1939: Back to the States for a big card at San Francisco, with a WBA title bout as the main attraction. The main support has two top 10 WW contenders meeting in a non-title affair, as Young Corbett III faces Izzy Jannazzo. First meeting of the two, and long-time top WW contender Corbett is now at the Post-Prime stage of his career. Jannazzo has won four of his last five since dropping a USBA title fight to Henry Armstrong, and he is hoping for a big win to boost him into contention for another title shot. Action is slow to develop, but in round five Jannazzo begins to dominate, having built a solid points edge (49-46 on the unofficial card). After a big round six, Jannazzo becomes more aggressive in round seven but can’t finish or put Corbett in difficulty. No cuts or swelling, and Corbett is able to close the gap in the later rounds. Jannazzo goes on to take a UD 10 (96-94 on all three cards) but the margin was not as impressive as indicated by the midway check on the unofficial card. Post-bout, Jannazzo improves to 27-4 (13); Corbett slips to 53-17-6 (12). In the main event, Midget Wolgast makes his 22^nd defense of the WBA Flyweight title he won back in 1931, and his opponent is a familiar foe, long-time top contender Frankie Genaro, still the #1 ranked contender having registered wins in his last two outings despite reaching End career stage. It is the fourth meeting for these two, with Wolgast having won two and drawn a third in their prior meetings. Wolgast is content to stay on the outside, content to let Genaro attempt to force the action. The bout remains close through the opening rounds, with Wolgast holding a slim lead (48-47 on the unofficial card) after five rounds. Then, in round seven, Genaro is called for repeated low blows, and the fouls are ruled to be blatant and lead to an immediate disqualification. The DQ-7 result moves Wolgast to 49-5-1 (18), while Genaro ends the bout at 51-19-6 (19). A peek at the scorecards after the first six rounds reveal that all three judges had the bout even (57-all) so it was a harsh result for Genaro.