[JCWeb]

Hi, Javier, didn't realize you were still following these Forums ...


This report includes bouts from the second half of February 1949. One WBA title bout is included.

Feb. 18, 1949: More Friday night fistic action, this time at the Gran Stadium in Havana. Topping the card is some HW action, this a non-title bout, featuring the big Cuban, Nino Valdes, matched with former LABF HW Champ Alberto Santiago Lovell. Lovell stopped Valdes in two when the two met previously, back in 1944, for the LABF title, but Lovell is now past his Prime, while Valdes was at Pre-Prime in that previous encounter. With a large throng of Cuban fight fans in support, Valdes is expecting to reverse that earlier outcome. After an indifferent start in the opening round, Valdes takes charge in round two, landing some sharp blows and causing some initial puffiness to appear under the left eye of Lovell. The two sluggers continue to tee off, neither showing any signs of retreat, as the bout heads into the middle rounds. Early in the fourth, Lovell uncorks a vicious cross that lands flush, and Valdes is forced to cover up to allow time to recover from the blow. In round five, a resilient Valdes comes storming back, launching an all-out offensive that Lovell is unable to resist. The swollen left eye becomes progressively worse and, with Valdes landing blow after unanswered blow, the ref steps in to call a halt. It goes in the books as a TKO 5 for Valdes on the early stoppage. Post-bout career marks: Valdes, 22-8-2 (18); Lovell, 41-20-1 (30).

Feb. 19, 1949: To New York’s Madison Square Garden for the next fight card, and the main event is a rematch featuring two LH contenders: Harry Matthews and Joey Maxim. The two battled to a draw in November 1948, and the hard luck Maxim is hoping to have a second chance to seize this opportunity to move up the ranks after a rather lackluster career thus far. The two appear to be evenly matched, but it is the harder hitting Matthews who has the upper hand through the opening couple of rounds. Maxim recovers from a slow start and begins to find the range with his punches in round three. After the first five are in the books, however, the unofficial scorer has Matthews with a wide points lead (50-45) although the punch count status indicate a much closer contest. Sensing a possible defeat looming, Maxim ups the pace in the later rounds, finally going on the offensive. However, while Maxim was successful with causing some puffiness to appear under Matthews’ left eye late in the bout, it was insufficient to overcome Matthews’ early lead. The judges’ cards are read, and the result is a close but UD 10 for Matthews (97-93, 96-94, 97-93), who improves to 33-9-1 (21) with the win. For Maxim, another disappointing loss drops him to 21-9-5 (5) and still well out of contention for a top 10 spot in the LH rankings.

Feb. 19, 1949: A WBA title contest tops the next card, at Los Angeles. First, in the main supporting bout, two top 10 HWs do battle in a non-title affair. Turkey Thompson and Lee Q. Murray are meeting in the ring for the first time. Some heavy hitting from Thompson in the game’s early stages manages to cause a trace of puffiness to appear under Murray’s right eye by the end of the third round. However, a strong round four puts Murray ahead in the punches landed count. The action heats up in round five, when Thompson decks Murray with an overhand right. Murray arises as the count reaches six, and he manages to survive the round by covering up. The 10-8 round in the fifth puts Thompson ahead at the midway point (48-46 on the unofficial scorer’s card). In round six, both men are cut: Murray on the upper lip, Thompson over the right eye. The cut men in both corners go to work; Thompson’s cut is patched up, but Murray’s cut continues to ooze blood. Ignoring the cut, Murray lands some strong shots in round eight, and Thompson returns to his corner with a rapidly swelling left eye that needs attention. From here on, this intriguing bout goes the rest of the way without further incident. Murray takes a MD 10 (96-94, 95-95, 96-94), having taken Thompson’s best shots and survived the fifth round knockdown. Post-bout career marks: Murray, 33-11-2 (25); Thompson, 28-11-2 (21). Then, in the main event, Archie Moore defends the WBA LH title against #1 contender and former WBA LH Champ Lloyd Marshall, who currently holds the USBA LH title. The two have met four times previously, and Marshall has failed to record a single win, as Moore has won twice before with two draws in the other two encounters. Coming into the bout, both fighters have compiled impressive winning streaks; Moore has won his last six and Marshall, his last seven. This time around, it is a cautious start by both men. In round five, Moore begins to assert himself, winning most of the inside exchanges; after the round, the unofficial scorer has the bout scored as even (48-48). Into the middle rounds, and it is Moore who is pressing the action, working inside while Marshall prefers to rely on counterpunching. With a minute left in round eight, Moore connects with a hard hook to the body that makes Marshall wince; the challenger elects to cover up to avert further damage. A sharp combination from Moore early in round nine puts Marshall on the defensive once again. Moore’s killer instinct kicks in, and this time, Marshall has little left in the tank to fend off a determined Champion. Moore dominates the action, landing blow after blow until the ref steps in to call a halt with just two seconds left in the round. It goes into the books as a TKO 9 for Moore, who retains the title and improves to 46-4-5 (32). The loss leaves Marshall at 39-7-5 (31). Impressive performance by Moore, who is now contemplating a move up to HW.

Feb. 25, 1949: Next is the newest addition to the Friday Night fights “Down Under” series. Featured in the main event are two regional Champs, paired together in a 10-round, non-title contest. These two are Aussie Dave Sands, current OPBF MW Champ, faces Artie Towne, his USBA counterpart. The two have not met previously, and, just two minutes into the opening round, Towne decks Sands with a powerful uppercut. The Aussie MW recovers, arising after taking a six-count, then wisely elects to cover up for the remainder of the round. The bout remains reasonably close through the first half of the contest, but Towne (largely due to the strength of the 10-8 opening round), is well ahead on points (49-46) on the unofficial scorer’s card at the halfway point. In the second half of the contest, Towne continues to build on his early success, adding to his points lead. Despite the support of the hometown crowd, Sands continues to struggle; by the end of round seven, there is substantial puffiness around his right eye. Then, in round eight, Towne manages to open a cut over Sands’ injured right eye. In the final round, with the cut patched up, Sands goes all out for a knockout, but Towne’s defense holds up. The bout goes to the judges, and, to the surprise of many, it is Sands, not Towne, who walks away a UD 10 victor (97-92, 97-92, 96-93), as it appears the Aussie was a beneficiary of the some hometown judging to come away with the win despite the one knockdown along with the cut and swollen eye. Post-bout marks: Sands, 32-4 (20); Towne, 22-2-2 (8).

Feb. 26, 1949: A tripleheader of featured bouts tops the final card of the month at the Olympia in London. In the first of this trilogy of co-main events, British Flyweight Terry Allen faces LABF Flyweight Champ Black Pico in a 10-round, non-title clash. The two are meeting for the first time, and both are ranking among the top 10 in the Flyweight rankings. After an even opening round, in round three Allen takes the initiative, doing some good work on the inside. The bout remains a close one into the middle stages and, at the halfway point, the unofficial scorer has it adjudged as even (48-48). In the second half of the contest, the punch count remains close, while the stamina factor shows a slight edge for the Cuban, Black Pico. Into the final three rounds, and Allen, cheered on by an appreciate hometown crowd, takes on the mantle of the aggressor. Late in round eight, he connects with a big uppercut, but Pico manages to cover up and avert further difficulty. The bout goes the distance, and ends in a draw (98-95 Pico, 96-96, 96-95 Allen), much to the dismay of the British fight fans who expected Allen to prevail. Post-bout career marks: Allen, 28-4-1 (3); Pico, 19-3-2 (0). Next, in the second co-feature, more Flyweight action as two top five Flyweights, both regional Champions, take to the ring, as another Brit, Teddy Gardner, the reigning Commonwealth Fly Champion, takes on his NABF counterpart from the States, Dado Marino. One prior bout resulted in a split duke in favor of Gardner, this taking place in on U. S. Soli in Boston in 1947. In this return matchup, the action picks up in round two, when Gardner lands a hard shot that rips open a cut over Marino’s right eye. After this, the two settle in, with Gardner enjoying a slight edge in the punch count stat. In the fifth round, the cut over Marino’s eye is reopened and, at the midway point, the unofficial card has Gardner ahead on points (49-46). In the second half of the contest, Marino, now well behind on points and in the punches landed stat, tries to mount a rally. However, the cut continues to be an issue, having been reopened in round eight and, again, in round nine. Nevertheless, the bout proceeds to decision and, as expected, the UD 10 goes to Gardner (97-94, 97-94, 98-93), who runs his career record to 32-9-2 (11). The loss drops Marino to 33-10 (14). The final bout of the card is for the GBU BW title, currently held by Ritchie Tanner, who faces a familiar foe in challenger Norman Lewis. This is the fifth meeting of the two, with each having won twice before. Lewis takes charge in the opening round, putting Tanner on the deck with a combination of blows; Tanner takes an eight count and is able to last the round after resorting to the cover up strategy. Tanner recovers and settles into the bout, actually building a slight edge in the punches landed stat. However, at the midway point, the unofficial scorer’s card tells a different story: it has Lewis, the challenger, well ahead on points (59-54). In the second half of the bout, Lewis continues to apply pressure on the inside, keeping Tanner on the defensive. A late surge from Tanner keeps the issue in doubt, plus Lewis’ corner must deal with a rapidly swelling left eye that became problematic in the final few rounds of the contest. The bout goes the full 12 and Lewis is able to maintain his early advantage – just barely – to record a UD 12 (115-112, 114-113, 115-112) to regain the GBU BW title. Post-bout career marks: Lewis, 29-10-1 (16); Tanner, 28-16-3 (14).