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This report includes bouts from the second half of August 1949. Two WBA title bouts are included in this report.

Aug. 19, 1949: Time for another edition of the Friday night fights “Down Under” series, this to take place in Sydney, Australia. A Commonwealth title clash tops the card, but first up, in the main supporting bout, two veteran LW contenders take to the ring, as veteran Aussie LW Vic Patrick, a former WBA LW Champion, faces George LaRover in a 10-round, non-title bout. It is the first meeting of the two, and Patrick has slipped into Post-Prime career stage, while LaRover is still at Prime. A strong start and some accurate punching put LaRover in the driver’s seat and, by the end of round three, a mouse is present under Patrick’s left eye. By the middle rounds, however, Patrick has begun to make progress and, at the halfway point, the unofficial scorer had the Aussie ex-Champ ahead (by a count of 48-47). LaRover continued to have an edge in terms of the punch count stats, and he elected to pick up the pace, taking the initiative as the bout headed into the later rounds. Heading into the final few rounds, LaRover continues to hold a lead in the punches landed category, and he exhibits greater stamina as well. The bout goes the distance without incident (no cuts or knockdowns), and, to the dismay of the Aussie fight fans in attendance, LaRover walks away a UD 10 victor (97-94, 97-94, 96-95). The win boosts LaRover’s career stats to 26-8-2 (13); the loss leaves Patrick at 32-9-1 (23). Then, in the main event, Brit Ronnie Clayton is on hand, putting his Commonwealth FW title on the line, facing a challenge from Aussie Eddie Miller, the reigning OPBF FW titleholder. The two have not met before and the challenger, Miller, will have the support of a hometown crowd but also be handicapped by his Post-Prime career status. Clayton gets off to an excellent start, dominating the action in the opening stanza. Clayton continues to hold the upper hand through much of the early going and, by the fifth round, Miller’s left eye begins to show signs of swelling. Then, late in round five, more trouble for Miller, as Clayton is able to rip open a cut over the challenger’s swollen left eye. At the halfway point, Clayton has a comfortable points lead (60-54) on the unofficial scorer’s card. Despite the cut, the swelling, and a huge stamina deficit, Miller tries to become more aggressive in the second half of the bout. In round eight, the cut over Miller’s eye is reopened; the cut is patched up only to be reopened in the final round, leading to an early stoppage. Thus, although Clayton was on the verge of a comfortable points win, the bout goes into the books as a TKO 12 for Clayton, who retains the CBU belt. Post-bout marks: Clayton, 30-5 (15); Miller, 33-16-3 (13).

Aug. 20, 1949: It is back to Europe for the next fight card, which takes place at the Ullevi Stadium in Gothenburg, Sweden. Paired together in the feature bout are Aldo Spoldi, the long-time EBU LW Champ, and Santa Bucca, a fast rising American LW contender. The two are meeting for the first time, and Spoldi is near the end of this long career, so Bucca is hoping to pull off the upset. Bucca gets off to a solid start and forges a nice lead in the punches landed category in the early rounds. By the halfway point, Bucca is well ahead (49-46) on the unofficial scorer’s card. Spoldi finally gets going with a strong round six and, at this point, there is some initial puffiness under Bucca’s right eye. Spoldi is able to mount a rally, taking rounds seven and eight but is thwarted by Bucca, who recovers with a strong round in the ninth, resulting in Spoldi also suffering from the effects of a rapidly swelling right eye. Bucca goes on to take a UD 10 (97-93, 98-92, 98-92), improving his career totals to 21-7-3 (8). Spoldi, now one bout closer to retirement, finishes the bout at 50-20-7 (18) but still in possession of the EBU LW title belt which was not at stake in this bout.

Aug. 20, 1949: Next up is a card in New Orleans, where a WBA title clash tops the agenda. First up, in the main supporting bout, is a FW bout matching Carlos Chavez with “the Aldgate Tiger,” Al Phillips, who is the reigning GBU FW titleholder. The two have not met before, and the bout is scheduled for 10 rounds as no titles are at stake. While Phillips is the more aggressive of the two in the early going, Chavez pulls ahead in the punch count stats. The complexion of the bout is changed in round three when Phillips connects with a straight right, ripping open a cut over Chavez’s right eye. At the midway point of the bout, Chavez holds a two-point lead (49-47) on the unofficial scorer’s card. By the end of round six, Phillips has begun to show signs of a rapidly swelling left eye. Then, in the seventh, things being to turn around in favor of Phillips, who connects with an overhand right, and Chavez goes down, arising only after taking a count of six; additionally, the cut over Chavez’s eye is reopened. The bout comes down to the final few rounds, with the judges’ decision weighing Chavez’s advantage in the punches landed count versus the 10-8 round for the knockdown by Phillips. In the end, the judges cannot agree, and the nod goes to Chavez via a SD 10 (96-94, 94-96, 96-94), who Improves to 31-10-3 (10) with the win; Phillips slips to 30-13-1 (13) with the loss. Then, in the finale, the WBA LH title is on the line, as Archie Moore defends against challenger Tommy Yarosz. This is a rematch of a late 1948 title clash between these two that resulted in a points win for Moore. The bout devolves into a prototypical boxer versus slugger matchup, with Moore (the slugger) jockeying to work his way inside to put pressure on the challenger. At the one third mark of the contest, it is Yarosz who has a slim points lead (48-47) on the unofficial scorecard. Moore, who also is trailing in the punch count stats, redoubles his efforts to press the action in the middle rounds. As a result, a strong showing in the middle rounds results in Moore pulling ahead on points (96-94) after 10 rounds are in the books. Running low on energy, Yarosz switches tactics and looks to land a knockout blow as the bout enters the final few rounds. However, midway through round 13, Moore catches Yarosz with a sweet uppercut that forces the challenger to cover up. Moore takes advantage of a hurt opponent, steps up the pace as his killer instinct kicks in and forces an early conclusion, with the ref stepping in late in the round to save Yarosz from further punishment. Thus, Moore retains the title as it goes in the books as a TKO 13 for Moore, who had pulled ahead on two of the three judges’ cards while a third called it even (after the first 12 rounds were in the books). Post-bout marks: Moore, 48-4-5 (34); Yarosz, 29-7-2 (11).

Aug. 26, 1949: Next is a Friday night card at the Rand Stadium in Johannesburg, South Africa. A twin bill of feature bouts top the card. In the first of these, Flyweights take to the ring, as NABF and USBA Fly Champ Dado Marino faces, for the third time, former WBA Flyweight Champ Rinty Monaghan. Monaghan, who prevailed in both their prior encounters, is now at Post-Prime for this, a 10-round, non-title bout. Marino, a boxer, is willing to lay back on the outside through most of the early going, while Monaghan is more willing to mix it up on the inside. Marino is able to build a solid early lead in the punches landed count; at the halfway point, this translates into a narrow one-point lead for Marino (48-47) on the unofficial scorecard. Despite battling fatigue and signs of aging, Monaghan is able to mount a rally, winning rounds seven and eight to even the score. Thus, the bout comes down to the final few rounds, with Monaghan continuing to maintain his role as aggressor, and Marino succeeds in regaining his grip on the bout and goes on to take a UD 10 win (97-93, 96-94, 97-93). Post-bout records: Marino, 36-10 (14); Monaghan, 45-17-1 (12). In the second co-feature, two BW contenders do battle, with recently dethroned WBA BW Champ Manuel Ortiz, on the comeback trail, facing Joe Cornelis, who briefly held the EBU BW title in the 1943-44 time frame. One prior meeting in 1941 when both were at Pre-Prime resulted in a points win for Ortiz; for this rematch, scheduled for 10 rounds with no titles at stake, Cornelis will be at Post-Prime career stage. As expected, Ortiz jumps out to a solid early lead in the punches landed count. Ortiz continues to dominate through the middle rounds, and, at the midway point, he has a commanding lead (50-45 on the unofficial card). In the second half of the bout, a visibly tired Cornelis tries to get more aggressive, but all he has to show for his troubles is a rapidly swollen and puffy left eye. In the final round, a weary Cornelis goes down from an Ortiz combination, and he is able to resume, making it to the final bell, but there is little doubt as Ortiz takes a lopsided UD 10 (98-92, 100-90, 100-90) to run his career record to 37-9-3 (18). The loss leaves Cornelis at 28-16-2 (10).

Aug. 27, 1949: A pair of regional title bouts top the next card at the Earls Court in London. In the first co-feature, Freddie Mills, holder of three regional title belts, puts his Commonwealth LH title on the line for the first time in over two years as he faces a challenge from a familiar foe in Aussie Jack A. Johnson. The two have met three times previously, with Mills holding a 2-1 edge in those prior encounters. This time around, both men are at Post-Prime, and the action heats up in round three, when Mills decks Johnson with a hard uppercut; Johnson scrambles back to his feet after taking an eight count, then covers up to last the round. Mills takes a large lead in the punch count stats into the middle rounds, but Johnson is able to recover and land sufficient blows to cause some initial puffiness to appear under Mills’ right eye. At the halfway point, Mills has a solid points lead (58-55) on the unofficial card, largely attributable to the early knockdown. In the second half of the bout, both fighters appear to tire visibly. Johnson does his best to remain in contention but, in the end, he falls just short as the bout goes the distance, and Mills retains the title via a SD 12 (115-112, 113-114, 116-111), with one judge siding with Johnson. Post-bout, Mills ends up at 34-19-2 (16), while Johnson slips to 27-15-1 (19). In the second featured bout, it is a rematch of an earlier 1949 bout as Ernie Roderick defends his GBU WW title against challenger Cliff Curvis for the second time as the two battled to a draw in their June 1949 encounter. As in their prior bout, Roderick is at Post-Prime, Curvis at Prime, but Roderick has the advantage of being the holder of the title Starting in round three, Curvis tries to work his way inside in an effort to disrupt Roderick’s rhythm. In the early rounds, Curvis is able to hold his own, and the punch count stats are relatively even. At the midway point, a peek at the unofficial scorer’s card illustrates the closeness of the bout, as he has it even (57-57) at this point. In the second half of the bout, Curvis remains focused on his strategy of working his way inside; this approach enables Curvis to pull ahead in the punches landed stats, forcing Roderick to take a more active approach in the bout’s final two rounds. The bout goes the distance and this time, Curvis’ approach is successful, as he takes a comfortable UD 12 win (118-110, 118-111, 118-110) to dethrone Roderick and take the GBU WW crown. Post-bout career marks: Curvis, 22-2-2 (1); Roderick, 40-26-7 (9). Roderick retains the Commonwealth WW belt that was not at stake in this bout.

Aug. 27, 1949: The month wraps up with a big card at the Polo Grounds in New York City. A WBA title clash tops the card, preceded by a main supporting bout which sees veteran HW Jersey Joe Walcott working his way back into contender status as he faces Joe Baksi in a 10-round, non-title affair. This is the first meeting of the two, but it wind up as Walcott’s swansong as Jersey Joe is at End career stage facing Baksi, who is still at Prime. Walcott starts strongly, and he builds an early lead in the punch count stats. Walcott maintains the edge into the middle rounds, but in the waning seconds of round five, Baksi connects with a sharp cross, and Walcott goes down, only to be saved by the bell. Nonetheless, despite the 10-8 round for Baksi, Walcott is up by one (48-47) at the midway point of the bout. In the second half of the bout, Baksi assumes the role of aggressor and, in the seventh round, he uncorks a big hook that stuns Walcott, but this time Jersey Joe remains upright and covers up to last the round. Again, in round nine, Walcott is rocked by a Bakis uppercut, but again he covers up and avoids further damage. The bout goes down to the final round, with Walcott suffering from a mouse under his right eye. The final seconds see Baksi land another hard shot, with Walcott going down for a second time. The two KDs have a definite impact, as Baksi takes a close SD 10 (94-93, 93-94, 94-93) to run his career record to 31-10 (19). For Walcott, it is his third straight loss, dropping him to 55-19 (31), and bringing him one bout closer to retirement. Then, in the final bout on the card, Jake LaMotta, the “Bronx Bull,” makes the first defense of the WBA MW title he won earlier in the year. Challenging LaMotta for the WBA title is Jose Basora, the reigning LABF MW titleholder. First meeting of the two, and the action heats up in round two, as a Basora hook opens up a cut over LaMotta’s right eye. LaMotta appears to have steadied himself as he builds an early lead in the punch count stats, but the bout comes to an early in round four, after the cut is reopened and leads to an early stoppage. The title changes hands, with Basora taking a TKO 4 on the cuts stoppage. Post-bout records: Basora, 36-9-1 (24); LaMotta, 34-5-1 (21).