My Universe

[JCWeb]

Titles and Title Bouts

WBA: Mickey Walker, the "Toy Bulldog," made three more successful defenses in 1928, defeating Billy Angelo (TKO 5), Frankie Schoell (TKO 10) and Bryan Downey (KO 6).

NABF: Two title bouts and two new champions: Oakland Jimmy Duffy took the belt from Billy Angelo (TKO 9) but was then dethroned by Tiger Flowers (UD 12).

USBA: Title changed hands twice in three 1928 bouts. Dave Shade took the title from Jack McVey (UD 12), then defended versus Jimmy Darcy (UD 12). Tiger Flowers then took the title from Shade (SD 12) but is expected to relinquish it in favor of the NABF belt won later in the year.

CBU: Two bouts and two new titleholders. Roland Todd spoiled Alf Stewart's defense (UD 12), then Frank Moody took the belt from Todd (UD 12).

GBU: Len Johnson won the belt from Tommy Milligan (TKO 12), then relinquished it after winning the EBU title. Frank Moody then defeated Ted Moore (UD 12) for the vacant belt.

EBU: "Little Fox" Rene DeVos defended versus Hein Domgorgen (MD 12), then lost the belt to Len Johnson (TKO 6), who defended versus Mario Bosisio (D 12).

OPBF: No title bouts, as Filipino Ceferino Garcia continues to hold this belt.

Division Profile

Total: 170 RL: 106 TC: 64

RL by Career Stage:
End - 7
Post - 18
Prime - 42
Pre - 23
Beginning - 16 (10 New)

Rated: 71
800+: 14
500+: 37
200+ : 64

Jan 1929 Rankings (Perf Points and Changes from Jan. 1928 in Parens):

Champ: Mickey Walker 38-1 (29) (1815) (NC)
1. Frankie Schoell 33-11-3 (11) (1216) (+5)
2. Jack McVey 29-8-1 (16) (1141) (+5)
3. Mike O'Dowd 42-13-2 (16) (1141) (+2)
4. Bryan Downey 45-17-4 (20) (1134) (-3)
5. Jock Malone 29-14-3 (11) (1067) (-3)
6. Panama Joe Gans 49-12-2 (19) (1066) (-2)
7. Len Johnson 22-8-1 (14) (1049) (+3) (EBU Champ)
8. Tiger Flowers 36-12-1 (17) (1017) (+7) (NABF, USBA Champ)
9. Dave Shade 28-12-4 (9) (973) (-1)
10. Young Terry 20-1-3 (9) (960) (+13)

Others: 14. Frank Moody 37-16-4 (13) (770) (+17) (CBU, GBU Champ)
27. Ceferino Garcia 20-5 (15) (631) (NC) (OPBF Champ)

Top Ten: O'Dowd, who actually moved up in the rankings, is at End while Downey, Panama Joe and now Flowers at Post for 1929. The amazing winning streak of Mickey Walker, the "Toy Bulldog," reached 15 with four more successful title defenses to bring his WBA title bout winning streak to 13; Walker has not lost since early 1924, spanning a period close to five years now. Schoell won three of four, losing the title clash with Walker but impressing with a trio of UD wins versus Downey, Panama Joe Gans and the Cuban, Kid Charol. McVey recovered strongly from the loss of his USBA title to Dave Shade, ripping off successive wins over Graybar, Gans and Malone, then drawing a rematch with Gans (the first bout had ended in a controversial DQ win for McVey). A rejuvenated O'Dowd refused to fade into oblivion, securing a draw with Malone and following with a UD over OPBF Champion Garcia. Downey slipped after two successive losses to Schoell and Walker, the only bright spot being a SD 10 win over Malone. Malone, who has not won since mid-1927, still managed to maintain a top five spot. Panama Joe's only win in four 1928 bouts (over the lowly rated Allentown Joe Gans) also caused him to dip in the ratings list. Moving up was surprising Brit, Len Johnson, who added the EBU belt to the GBU title while extending his unbeaten string to six. Flowers has won five straight, capturing two titles after two UDs over Graybar and Garcia. Dave Shade appeared to be well on his way to top contender status, but the SD loss to Flowers has stymied his progress for now. Rounding out the top group is Young Terry, who impressed with successive UD wins over Charol, Moore and DeVos, running his impressive unbeaten streak to 12 (last loss in August 1926).

Other Notables: DeVos, the "Little Fox," had a disappointing year, losing his EBU title and then the loss to Terry, tumbling eight spots to #11. One spot lower is German Hein Domgorgen, who fell just short in trying for DeVos' EBU belt but came away a winner in four other 1928 contests, including a KOs over Soldier Eddie Burnbrook and Italian Joe Gans to go with a first-round DQ win over Billy Shade; Domgorgen's career totals now stand at 25-7 (14). Former NABF Champ Billy Angelo survived two title bout losses, recovering with a UD win over Garcia, to hold down the #13 spot. GBU and CBU titleholder Frank Moody won three of four 1928 contests, his one loss a UD at the hands of Oakland Jimmy Duffy. Vince Dundee, who won four of five, wound up the year at 21-3-1 (12) in the #16 spot, sporting a TKO over Gorilla Jones in his last bout; the one loss was a SD 10 to Roland Todd. Todd and Duffy are next in order, at #17 and #18, respectively. Aging veteran Johnny Wilson, now at End career stage, slid all the way from #9 to #22, dropping both his 1928 bouts to extend his two-year losing streak to four. Garcia's only 1928 win was a TKO over Wilson; otherwise, he struggled against higher-rated opposition (while lacking credible challengers for his OPBF crown). Italian Enzo Fiermonte, unbeaten heading into the year, suffered his first loss (to Edouard Tenet) in his most recent outing and now stands at 17-1-1 (8), ranked #32. Only newcomer ranked in the top 50 is Herman Ratzlaff, who TKO'd Willie Feldman but dropped a UD to the more experienced Tillie Herman to end up at 13-2-1 (9), only good for 45th in this year's list.

Prospects: Freddie Steele, the "Tacoma Assassin," is the most impressive prospect in the division right now, winning his first 13 (12 inside the distance). his KO victims include Tony Tozzo, Pete Horton and Henry Firpo; only Johnny Romero has managed to last the distance with Steele thus far. Another impressive unbeaten prospect is Cuban Relampago Saguero, whose 13-0-1 (9) slate includes UDs over Willie Feldman and Bob Sage and a recent draw with Spaniard Ignacio Ara. Scotsmant Jack McAvoy emerged at 12-0 (11), registering stoppage wins over Archie Sexton and Joe Roche in his last two bouts. Ad Zachow remains perfect, pounding out 11 straight KO wins at the expense of TC opponents. Pete Horton, at 11-1 (11) and Johnny Romero, at 11-1 (10), each has lost to Steele. Still unbeaten are Brit Jack Casey (10-0, 7 KO); Ray "Showboat" McQuillan (9-0, 7 KO); Puerto Rican sensation Angel Cliville (8-0, 5 KO); Chick Devlin (8-0, 4 KO); Ben Jeby (7-0, 4 KO); and Harry Smith, the "Harlem Thunderbolt: (6-0, 6 KO). Off to a good start are two Canadians, Lou Brouillard (2-0, 1 KO) and Frank Battaglia (1-0, 0 KO).

Retirements: Five retirements from the MW ranks in 1928.

George Ashe (USA) 1910-28 35-24-9 (18) No Titles Highest Rank: 6
Joe Eagan (USA) 1911-28 31-28-3 (7) No Titles Highest Rank: 9
Al Grayber (USA) 1910-28 36-29-4 (13) No Titles Highest Rank: 7
Jack McCarron (USA) 1910-28 39-29-4 (15) No Titles Highest Rank: 4
Jackie Clark (USA) 1910-28 30-31-8 (9) No Titles Highest Rank: 14

Looking Ahead: Walker is approaching an all-time high PP number, having ended the year at over 1800 in my Uni. There is talk of his moving up to LH, perhaps to challenge Loughran for the LH WBA crown. Meanwhile, the top 10 rankings may not tell the whole story; Len Johnson and Tiger Flowers (who unfortunately hits Post-Prime in 1929) made the greatest strides during 1928. DeVos is itching for a chance to regain his EBU title, but other contenders such as Hein Domgorgen, Frenchman Marcel Thil and Brits Roland Todd and Ted Moore are looking to challenge for the belt as well. Garcia, who struggled in 1928, is looking to re-establish his credentials as a major contender. Freddie Steele is about a year away and is hoping to keep his unbeaten form intact until he hits Prime. Eddie "Babe" Risko and Teddy Yarosz pace the 10 newcomers to the MW ranks in 1929.

[JCWeb]

Titles and TItle Bouts

WBA: Young Corbett III, who began the year with the belt, defended it twice, versus Ted Kid Lewis (UD 15) and Bermondsey Billy Wells (TKO 15) before losing it to Benny Leonard (UD 15), with Leonard successfully completing his 1928 campaign after moving up from LW.

NABF: Two title bouts produced two new champions. First, Pete Latzo defeated Willie Harmon (MD 12) for the belt vacated by Young Corbett once he added the WBA crown. Then, Joe Dundee bested Latzo (UD 12) to capture his first title.

USBA: Title changed hands three times during the year. Jack Sparr edged Jimmy Leto (SD 12) to win the vacant title. Then, Benny Leonard moved up from LW, defeating Sparr (UD 12) to take the title. Finally, Sparr regained the belt via a TKO 4 over Tommy Robson once Leonard captured the WBA title.

CBU: Two bouts and two new titleholders. Roland Todd spoiled Alf Stewart's defense (UD 12), then Frank Moody took the belt from Todd (UD 12).

GBU: Len Johnson won the belt from Tommy Milligan (TKO 12), then relinquished it after winning the EBU title. Frank Moody then defeated Ted Moore (UD 12) for the vacant belt.

EBU: No title defenses by Bermondsey Billy Wells, who faces a mandatory defense in early 1929.

OPBF: Lope Tenorio keeps the belt, no defenses in 1928 (no serious challengers emerging).

Division Profile

Total: 118 RL: 78 TC: 40

RL by Career Stage:
End - 5
Post - 9
Prime - 40
Pre - 13
Beginning - 11 (8 New)

Rated: 61
800+: 12
500+: 37
200+ : 57

Jan 1929 Rankings (Perf Points and Changes from Jan. 1928 in Parens):

Champ: Benny Leonard 72-3-1 (41) (1650) (new)
1. Joe Dundee 30-7-4 (12) (1333) (+1) (NABF Champ)
2. Young Corbett III 28-6-2 (12) (1237) (-2)
3. Bermondsey Billy Wells 44-11-1 (16) (1171) (-2) (EBU Champ)
4. Young Jack Thompson 24-3-4 (15) (1092) (-1)
5. Pete Latzo 28-10-1 (11) (1036) (-1)
6. Jimmy McLarnin 24-2 (18) (990) (+3) (CBU Champ)
7. Packey McFarland 68-13-5 (30) (976) (+1)
8. Jack Sparr 31-12-1 (17) (919) (+2) (USBA Champ)
9. Ted Kid Lewis 52-18-4 (22) (900) (-2) (GBU Champ)
10. Willie Harmon 25-9-2 (12) (857) (-4)

Others: 11. Lope Tenorio 21-4-5 (6) (800) (NC) (OPBF Champ)

Top Ten: McFarland and Lewis at Post, everyone else at Prime heading into 1929. Leonard rebounded from the shocking loss of his LW WBA crown at the end of 1927 by moving up to WW, winning all five 1928 contests, the last one for the WBA title after first annexing the USBA title. Joe Dundee has an even longer win streak, 10 bouts -- going back to 1926 -- impressing with a TKO over ex-Champ Young Jack Thompson plus a UD 10 win over JWW king Jack Kid Berg in a non-title bout, before taking his first title (the NABF belt) near the end of the year. Former Champ Corbett still has some good years left, but the title loss to Leonard took some wind out of his sails, in addition to snapping a seven-bout unbeaten streak. Wells rebounded with an impressive UD 10 win over Thompson after losing two in a row, to Leonard and Corbett. Thompson has won only one of his last six (a UD over Harmon), yet he reamins in the top five. Latzo went 2-1, all in title bouts for lesser belts. McLarnin seemed to settle in with a strong year, uncorking four straight wins, two in title contests plus a UD 10 over the OPBF Champ, Tenorio. Aging veteran McFarland hung on for his 19th straight year in the WW top ten, by winning all three of his 1928 outings (including a UD 10 over long-time JWW Champ Pinkey Mitchell), barely escaping with a MD win over Johnny Indrisano -- but no wins versus current top 10 WWs. Sparr was involved in three USBA title tilts, winning two, also posting a UD over Morrie Schlaifer to return to the top 10 group. Ted Kid Lewis won two of four 1928 bouts, losing to higher rated opposition (like Leonard and Corbett). Harmon rounds out the top 10, despite losses to Tenorio and Thompson, bouncing back with a UD 10 win over Jones late in the year.

Other Notables: Tenorio survived losses to Adams and McLarnin, remaining close to the top 10 with a nice UD win over Harmon. It was a frustrating year for veteran George Levine, who won two bouts, lost two, finished with a draw with JWW Pinkey Mitchell to end up at #12. Indrisano started out his Prime career stage with a UD win over Adams, but stalled with a tough MD loss to McFarland; he ends the year at 18-2-2 (9) in the #13 spot. Four wins in a row propelled Cuban Manuel Quintero to #15, with an impressive 18-2-3 (10) slate thus far; his victims included Tony Vaccarelli (UD) and Al Mello (SD). Jimmy Jones slid 11 spots all the way down to #16 after winning just one of four 1928 bouts (a TKO over Baby Joe Gans). The young Brit, Jack Hood, had a busy yet successful year, registering three wins, two draws, no losses, wins including a UD over Johnny Adams and a TKO over Jack Carroll. Hood checks in at #17 with a 18-2-2 (7) career record. Top newcomer to the rankings is Jackie Fields, who recovered from the only blemish in his career thus far (a draw in late 1927) with three more wins to run his record to 14-0-1 (11), good for 23rd spot. Two other impressive newcomers include Swiss, Cleto Locatelli, who ran off five more wins to wind up at 15-1 (8), in 28th place, and Freddie Polo, who suffered a narrow SD loss to Canada Lee and a UD in his last bout against Locatelli; Polo checks in at #32 with a 15-2 (13) career mark.

Prospects: Maintain unbeaten records, albeit versus TC opposition, were Tiger Joe Randall (12-0, 10 KO) and Italian Saviero Turiello (11-0, 6 KO). Marty Goldman got his career off on the right foot, winning his first five (three inside the distance). Paul Junior struggled to a draw in his debut bout, won all the rest to end the year at 4-0-1 (2). German Gustav Eder was impressive in winning his first four (only one KO win, however). Less impressive were Andy Callahan, off to a 2-0-1 (1) start, and Latvia's Eddie Ran, who was a surprising TKO victim in his second outing, finishing the year at 1-1 (1).

Retirements: Only two WW retirements in 1928.

Frithjof Hansen (DEN) 1917-28 24-22-2 (8) No Titles Highest Rank: 29
Eddie Shevlin (USA) 1909-28 43-20-5 (14) NABF, USBA Champ Highest Rank: 3

Looking Ahead: Not many more mountains for Benny Leonard to conquer, as he has won a WBA title in a second weight class. It will be interesting to see if any meaningful challengers emerge while Leonard is still at Prime career stage. Joe Dundee is the most likely challenger, but the rapidly improving McLarnin could also prove a difficult opponent for the Ghetto Wizard. Jackie Fields, the unbeaten prospect, needs another year of seasoning before moving up to challenge for a top 10 position. Things look good for the future, however, with Barney Ross and Cocoa Kid among those set to join the division in 1929.

[kenyan_cheena]

Damn, Walker is incredible. Makes me look forward to what he'll do in my uni. He's gonna challenge for the IBL belt and I'm pretty certain he'll win it.

[JCWeb]

KC, your post made me check something and must report a slight correction on Walker -- he's not the first to end a year with a PP of over 1800, instead he's the third (Leonard and Tunney have done it before). But, with another good year or two, he could set an all-time high.

[JCWeb]

Titles and Title Bouts

WBA: Jack Kid Berg captured the title from long-time Champ Pinkey Mitchell (TKO 10) and defended once, versus Mushy Callahan (TKO 5).

USBA: This title changed hands, as Johnny Jadick defended against Spug Myers (UD 12), then lost the title to Harry Wallach (SD 12). Wallach then defended versus Myers (KO 5).

Division Profile

Total: 17 RL: 9 TC: 8

RL by Career Stage:
End - 0
Post - 2
Prime - 6
Pre - 1
Beginning - 0 (0 New)

Rated: 7
800+: 2
500+: 2
200+ : 7

Jan 1929 Rankings (Perf Points and Changes from Jan. 1928 in Parens):

Champ: Jack Kid Berg 20-1-1 (10) (932) (+1)
1. Pinkey Mitchell 31-12-4 (13) (884) (-1)
2. Mushy Callahan 18-6 (8) (355) (+2)
3. Harry Wallach 16-8 (9) (337) (+3) (USBA Champ)
4. Spug Myers 22-17-4 (9) (310) (-1)
5. Mickey Cohen 14-6 (8) (219) (NC)
6. Johnny Jadick 18-9-1 (5) (222) (-4)

Other: (Unrated). Basil Galiano 22-21-1 (4)

Comments: Mitchell and now Galiano at Post, everyone else at Prime. Jack Kid Berg moved to the fore, capturing the WBA JWW crown, but he lost his unbeaten status when he suffered a UD loss at the hands of top-ranked WW contender Joe Dundee. Mitchell was winless in 1928, dropping the WBA title then suffering a UD 10 loss to veteran WW Packey McFarland before salvaging a draw with George Levine late in the year. A pair of wins over the lowly rated Galiano extended Callahan's winning streak to three, setting him up for a title shot, which he lost. A UD win over WW Clyde Hull set up Wallach for his conquest of the USBA title, and with two more wins he wound up the year unbeaten. Spug Myers fell short in both USBA title bouts, but he did have the satisfaction of a UD over Galiano for his only win of the year. Mickey Cohen wrapped up his Pre-Prime career by winning two of four 1928 outings against WWs; he impressed with a TKO over Ted "Harbor Horror" Krache and then took a UD over veteran Soldier Bartfield. Jadick suffered a DQ loss to LW turned WW Archie Walker after losing his USBA JWW crown to Wallach.

Other Notables: Galiano continued his record of futility, losing three more bouts to extend his winless string to six. He has not won since 1926 and, now at Post-Prime, his prospects seem even dimmer.

Prospects: Only one prospect, Battling Shaw from Mexico, who ran his record to 10-0 (6) at the expense of JWW and WW TCs.

Retirements: None in 1928.

Looking Ahead: Wallach, the new USBA JWW king, is the most likely future challenger for Berg's WBA crown. With Mitchell and Galiano at Post, and only one current prospect (Shaw), the future seems somewhat bleak for this division, with no newcomers on the horizon. One possible scenario has top LW prospect Tony Canzoneri moving up to challenge Berg, and perhaps a Berg-Canzoneri rivalry will develop to enliven things a bit.

[JCWeb]

Titles and Title Bouts

WBA: Only two title bouts, but the belt changed hands in each one. First, veteran Rocky Kansas upended the "French Flash," Benny Valgar (UD 15). Then, another veteran LW, Ever Hammer, claimed the crown by stopping Kansas inside the distance (TKO 9).

NABF: Three title bouts in 1928, with the belt changing hands once. Jimmy Goodrich downed Lew Tendler (UD 12) and Ray Miller (SD 12) before losing the title to a determined Billy Petrolle (TKO 10).

USBA: Ray Miller won the title from Tommy O'Brien (UD 12) and then defended twice, versus Billy Petrolle (UD 12) and Sid Barbarian (UD 12).

CBU: Aussie Billy Grime defended this belt for the first time in over a year, taking the measure of Brit Harry Mason (UD 12).

GBU: Ernie Rice did not defend the title in 1928, but manages to keep the belt for another year (not many British LWs these days).

EBU: After losing the WBA crown, Valgar was back to work, regaining the EBU title for the third time, taking out Ernie Rice (KO 6).

Division Profile

Total: 125 RL: 74 TC: 51

RL by Career Stage:
End - 5
Post - 11
Prime - 33
Pre - 17
Beginning - 8 (5 New)

Rated: 51
800+: 15
500+: 29
200+ : 48

Jan 1929 Rankings (Perf Points and Changes from Jan. 1928 in Parens):

Champ: Ever Hammer 41-15-5 (17) (1089) (+9)
1. Benny Valgar 39-12-2 (13) (1262) (-1) (EBU Champ)
2. Ray Miller 26-3 (13) (1247) (+3) (USBA Champ)
3. Luis Vicentini 27-5 (12) (1194) (+5)
4. Billy Petrolle 26-3-2 (17) (1182) (NC) (NABF Champ)
5. Rocky Kansas 43-17-3 (20) (1078) (+8)
6. Tommy O'Brien 34-14-4 (16) (1072) (-3)
7. Jimmy Goodrich 38-11-1 (10) (1069) (-5)
8. Lew Tendler 45-16-3 (14) (999) (-2)
9. Sammy Fuller 23-1 (8) (942) (+10)
10. Sammy Mandell 28-9 (8) (915) (NC)

Others: 18. Billy Grime 22-11-1 (14) (688) (-1) (CBU Champ)
20. Ernie Rice 27-14-1 (15) (620) (NC) (GBU Champ)

Top Ten: Kansas and Tendler enter 1929 at Post, others still at Prime. Wins over Terris (UD) and Cabana (SD) set up Hammer for his WBA title try, and now he takes a three-bout winning streak into next year despite having only the fifth highest PP total. Valgar finished the year strongly, with UDs over O'Brien and Seeman after regaining his EBU title go three for four in his 1928 ring contests. Ray Millter continued his progress, capturing the USBA belt and winning four of five 1928 bouts, most recently a MD over the highly regarded Vicentini (his one loss came to Goodrich in a SD for the NABF title early in the year). Vicentini continues to press for a WBA title shot, after fashioning a five-bout winning streak that included a MD over Goodrich before the one recent loss to Miller. Billy Petrolle won three of four bouts during his 1928 campaign, winning the NABF title and taking UDs from O'Brien and Terris in non-title bouts. Kansas' only 1928 activity was the two WBA title tilts, winning one and then losing to Hammer. O'Brien struggled, winning only one of four (a UD over Goodrich) but falling short when matched against top-flight competition. Goodrich slipped badly, losing three in a row after starting off well, with two successful title defenses. Tendler also struggled, winning one, drawing one and losing two, his only win a UD over aging vet JLW Johnny Dundee. Surging into the top 10 was last year's top newcomer, Sammy Fuller, who racked up four more wins (extending his win streak to six), with UDs over Jimmy Dundee, Grime, and Andy Chaney followed by a split technical decision win at the expense of Sammy Mandell. Mandell maintains the final spot in the top 10, taking a TKO from Tendler before falling short in his bout with Fuller.

Other Notables: Dropping all the way out of the top ten was Andy Chaney, who went 0-3 in 1928 bouts to fall six spots to #13. (The only other top 10 dropout from the prior year's list, Benny Leonard, moved up to the WW division.) Maxie Strub registered three wins and a draw in four bouts, moving up to #15 on the basis of a 18-2-1 (9) career start; the draw came versus top contender Lew Tendler after a pair of wins over Jimmy Dundee and a TKO stoppage of Johnny Kaiser. Aussie Billy Grime defended his CBU title, but losses to Fuller and JLW king Eddie Wagner prevented further progress. GBU Champ Rice struggled to a SD win over Belgian Francois Sybille after being dominated by Valgar in their EBU title clash. Top newcomer is Tony Canzoneri, who won all five of his bouts versus name LWs to move to 16-1 (11), good for #23 in this year's rankings. Also new to the list are Lew Kirsch, #26 (15-2-1, 13 KO), who struggled earlier in the year but finished well with a TKO over veteran Clonie Tait, and Baby Sal Sorio, #33 (16-3, 12 KO), who is trying to recover from UD losses to Canzoneri and Meyer Grace in his last two outings.

Prospects: Several prospects who remain unbeaten hope to make their marks on the LW division in 1929. Panama's Pedro Amador has compiled an impressive 14-0 (11) record, scraping through with a SD over Jimmy McNamara but finishing strongly with a UD over Mexico's Joe Guerrero followed by a TKO of JLW prospect Leslie Wildcat Carter. Three young Americans, Jack Portney (12-0, 11 KO), Harry Dublinsky (12-0, 6 KO) and Cecil Payne (12-0, 5 KO), built their records by feasting -- largely -- on TC opposition. Brit George Rose yielded a draw to a TC but avenged it with a later win over the same fighter to end the year at 12-0-1 (6). McNamara bounced back from his first loss (to Amador) with wins over two JLWs, Pete Nebo (TKO) and Wildcat Carter (MD) and checks in at 12-1-1 (10). Al Singer won 10 in a row versus TCs but stumbled verus Portney, his first real-life opponent, to end 1928 at 10-1 (8). Likewise, Canadian Billy Townsend, who ends the year at 10-1 (6), suffered his initial loss to Payne. Keeping clean slates versus TCs were Roger Bernard (10-0, 8); Lew Feldman (8-0, 6); Ah Wing Lee (7-0, 6); Justo Suarez (5-0, 5); Eddie Cool (2-0, 0 KO); Joe Ghnouly (2-0, 0 KO); and Chino Alvarez (1-0, 1).

Retirements: Five LWs left the ranks in 1928.

Harry Stone (USA) 1907-28 37-35-7 (7) No Titles Highest Rank: 23
Joe Benjamin (USA) 1915-28 26-22-2 (15) No Titles Highest Rank: 23
Sam Robideau (USA) 1911-28 30-33-2 (10) WBA Champ 1920-21
Frankie Farren (USA) 1915-28 24-24-6 (9) No Titles Highest Rank: 28
Clonie Tait (CAN) 1916-28 29-24-1 (6) CBU, NABF Champ Highest Rank: 5

Looking Ahead: Hammer may find it difficult to hang on to the WBA title, as Valgar, Miller, Vicentini and Petrolle all appear to be ready to take the next step. Fuller is ready to contend for one of the lesser titles, either the NABF or USBA belt. Fighters like Goodrich, Mandell, Solly Seeman and Sid Terris are approaching a crossroads in their careers. Strub, Canzoneri and Kirsch are the best of the top newcomers, but there is a possibility Canzoneri may try his hand against the more sparsely populated JWW ranks. Rose may emerge as a viable contender to Rice's GBU title, but that matchup is probably at least a year away. Wesley Ramey (rated a 9) leads the contigent of five newcomers to the division for 1929.

[JCWeb]

Titles and Title Bouts

WBA: Three title bouts, with the title changing hands once. Tod Morgan defended versus Mike Ballerino (TKO 10). Then, Eddie Wagner blasted out Wagner early to take the title (TKO 2). Wagner then defeated FW Dick Finnegan (TKO 6) to retain the belt into 1929.

USBA: Wagner defended versus Steve "Kid" Sullivan (UD 12) before winning the WBA title. Benny Bass moved up from FW to capture the vacant belt in a matchup with George Chaney (SD 120 and then defended versus Jack Bernstein (KO 3).

Division Profile

Total: 18 RL: 12 TC: 6

RL by Career Stage:
End - 2
Post - 2
Prime - 6
Pre - 2
Beginning - 0 (0 New)

Rated: 10
800+: 4
500+: 8
200+ : 10

Jan 1929 Rankings (Perf Points and Changes from Jan. 1928 in Parens):

Champ: Eddie Wagner 38-16-1 (17) (1090) (+1)
1. Tod Morgan 27-6 (10) (1029) (-1)
2. Benny Bass 30-7-3 (11) (1058) (new) (USBA Champ)
3. Johnny Dundee 51-19-2 (15) (824) (-1)
4. Steve Sullivan 36-25-7 (9) (663) (-1)
5. Mike Ballerino 20-9-4 (5) (566) (-1)
6. Frankie Klick 17-5 (10) (508) (-1)
7. Jack Bernstein 22-14-1 (6) (502) (-1)
8. Leslie Wildcat Carter 13-2 (7) (416) (new)
9. Sammy Vogel 20-12-2 (8) (942) (new)

Comments: Sullivan is now at End career stage, Dundee and Vogel are at Post, Carter is still at Pre-Prime. Wagner won all four of his 1928 bouts, adding a UD 10 over LW CBU Champ Billy Grime to his JLW title success to emerge as the first JLW Champion with over 1000 PPs. Ex-Champ Morgan remained the top ranked contender, registering a UD over "Kid" Sullivan in a non-title affair to bounce back from his title loss, having also won a surprise TKO over long-time LW contender Andy Chaney earlier in the year. Despite having more PPs, Bass is still ranked below Morgan. Benny moved up from FW after taking a UD from Mike Dundee, winning and defending the USBA JLW crown to extend his winning streak to three. Ex-Champ, the "Scotch Wop," Johnny Dundee, won two of three versus full-fledged LWs, downing Charley O'Connell but dropping a MD to Lew Tendler. Another veteran JLW, Sullivan, won two of four in another season of mixed results. Ballerino lost both his 1928 bouts, suffering a UD loss to Sullivan to extend his losing streak to three. Klick hit Prime career stage midway through the year and immediately recorded two solid wins, one a TKO of George Chaney and a UD over Gilbert Gallant. Bernstein had been undefeated in 1928, including an impressive stoppage of Klick, until his USBA title bout loss to Bass. Carter had reeled off wins in his first 13 career bouts, including a MD over fellow JLW Pete Nebo, but did not fare as well against LW prospects, with losses to Jimmy McNamara and Pedro Amador in his last two. Sammy Vogel won three of four in 1928, dropping down from LW and impressing in his last win, a UD over veteran JLW "Pepper" Martin.

Other Notables: Vincent "Pepper" Martin, with four more losses to run his losing streak to eight, has slipped totally off the radar screen now, not even rated as his PP numbers are negative. Now at End career stage, Martin is unlikely to reverse the tailspin in 1929.

Prospects: Pete Nebo, the lone JLW left in the "prospect" category, succeeded in all his TC bouts, but struggled once things became serious, dropping a MD to Carter and then suffering the indignity of a TKO loss to LW Jimmy McNamara; at this point, his career totals at 11-2 ( 6).

Retirements: None yet, but with two JLWs at End and two others at Post, the next few years should the first for this division.

Looking Ahead: No newcomers or new prospects on the horizon, so this relatively thin division is likely to die out after a few more years. Morgan and Bass are the two likely successors to Wagner as WBA kingpin, while Klick and Carter are likely to continue to improve. FW Dick "Honeyboy" Finnegan, who unsuccessfully challenged for the JLW title, is staying with the lower weight class for now.

[JCWeb]

Titles and Title Bouts

WBA: Three title bouts, and the title changed hands once. Andre Routis started the year with a successful defense against Jose Lombardo (TKO 4). Then, Louis Kaplan defeated Routis (UTD 10) to regain the title belt. Kaplan then defended versus Johnny Cuthbert (UD 15).

NABF: Chick Suggs took the title from Benny Bass (UD 12), and Bass moved up to JLW after the loss. Suggs defended against Danny Kramer (TKO 6) but suffered a stoppage loss against "the Bronx Express," Carl Duane (TKO 9). Duane carries the belt into 1929.

USBA: This title changed hands twice in just two bouts. Joey Sangor took the belt from Steve Smith (MD 12), then Dick "Honeyboy" Finnegan bested Sangor (UD 12) to take the title.

CBU: Johnny Cuthbert took the title in a close bout with Canadian Leo Roy (SD 12), who was making his first defense of the belt won in 1927. Cuthbert defended twice, versus Al Foreman (another SD 12) and Young Johnny Brown (UD 12).

GBU: No defenses during the year by the titleholder, Dom Volante, who was busy pursing the EBU title.

EBU: Vacant at the beginning of the year, this title saw two new Champions in 1928. First, Young Johnny Brown took the measure of veteran Eugene Criqui (UD 12) in the battle for the belt vacated by Criqui's countryman, Andre Routis. Then, the GBU Champ, Volante, added the EBU title by defeating Brown (TKO 11). Volante defended against Criqui later in the year (UD 12) to solidify his hold on the belt.

OPBF: Filipino Young Nationalista continued to dominate in this region, defending the title two more times, versus Ignacio Fernandez (UD 12) and Johnny Hill (UD 12).

Division Profile

Total: 117 RL: 74 TC: 43

RL by Career Stage:
End - 4
Post - 9
Prime - 37
Pre - 17
Beginning - 7 (4 New)

Rated: 54
800+: 6
500+: 27
200+ : 48

Jan 1929 Rankings (Perf Points and Changes from Jan. 1928 in Parens):

Champ: Louis Kaplan 33-6-1 (10) (1209) (+1)
1. Andre Routis 33-8-2 (16) (1173) (-1)
2. Carl Duane 25-8-1 (12) (983) (+4) (NABF Champ)
3. Dick Finnegan 26-9 (8) (994) (+6) (USBA Champ)
4. Chick Suggs 30-10-4 (11) (982) (-2)
5. Young Nationalista 25-5-2 (9) (927) (+5) (OPBF Champ)
6. Joey Sangor 26-6-1 (7) (793) (+11)
7. Mike Dundee 33-12-3 (18) (743) (-3)
8. Jose Lombardo 25-8-3 (16) (718) (+10)
9. Dom Volante 19-5-2 (14) (710) (+11) (EBU, GBU Champ)
10. Eugene Criqui 50-17-6 (21) (709) (-5)

Others: 12. Johnny Cuthbert 22-14-1 (8) (668) (+18) (CBU Champ)

Top Ten: Routis and Duane are set to join Criqui at Post in 1929, others still at Prime. Kaplan regained the WBA crown; he recovered from a early season loss to Finnegan, registered a UD win over Al Foreman, then captured and defended the WBA title. Routis had an eight bout win streak snapped with the title loss to Kaplan. Duane, the "Bronx Express," resurrected his flagging career with three straight wins after a UD loss to Nationalista; his victims included Andy Martin (UD 10) and Criqui (SD 10) leading up to the NABF title win over Suggs. "Honeyboy" Finnegan fashioned a four-bout win streak with a UD over Kaplan, a win over Sangor for the USBA crown, but then stepped up and fell short in his try for Eddie Wagner's JLW title. Suggs won two of three, all for the NABF title. Nationalista scraped through with a pair of SD wins (over Duane and Eddie Shea) to go with the two OPBF title defenses, running his winning streak to 10, which now places him among the top five FW contenders heading into 1929. Sangor zoomed up the ranks when he surprised Steve Smith to capture the USBA title; after falling short in his first defense (versus Finnegan), he continued to progress, blasting out Dundee in five and taking a SD 10 from Al Foreman. Dundee continued to struggle, losing both his 1928 outings (to Sangor and Bass), but he still remains highly rated despite no wins in his last four bouts, going back to 1927. Lombardo won three of four in 1928, his only loss coming in an unsuccessful WBA title challenge; his victims included Smith, Cuthbert (both UDs) plus a TKO over a prospect, Sailor Willie Gordon. Volante extended his winning streak to four with two EBU title bout wins; it was his defeat of Criqui that moved him into top 10 contender status. Criqui was active in 1928 for a Post-Prime fighter, but he won just two of five (most impressive in a UD over Bud Ridley).

Other Notables: Cuthbert's two wins in CBU title contests moved him up the rankings, but losses to Kaplan (for the WBA title) and Lombardo prevented further progress. Three top 10 dropouts from last year include Benny Bass, who moved up to JLW; Leo Roy, who lost the CBU belt and a UD to Eddie Shea and dropped seven spots to #14; and Al Foreman, who slid from #8 to #16 after three straight losses to Cuthbert, Kaplan and Sangor. Santiago Zorilla from Panama is the top newcomer to the rankings this year, debuting at #22 impressing with UDs over Petey Sarron and Danny Edwards before suffering his first career loss (another UD) to Bobby Garcia; his record is now 15-1-1 (6). One spot lower, at #23, is Sarron, who ended up at 15-3-1 (7) with a SD over Frenchman Maurice Holtzer for his best win thus far; however, some carelessness led to a DQ loss to Ignacio Fernandez in his last bout. Holtzer, who was unbeaten heading into 1928, had a rough year, with two SD losses to Sarron and Willie Smith topped off by a TKO defeat at the hands of Danny Edwards; this dropped him to 16-3 (9) overall, and only #34 in his initial appearance in the rankings.

Prospects: Several of the top young FW prospects faced each other during the year, with the result that many of them no longer have clean slates. Abie Israel (13-1, 10 KO) and Battling Battalino (10-1, 7 KO) suffered their initial defeats at the hands of Harry Blitman (both UD 10 results). Blitman (13-0, 3 KO) was stopped by Nel Tarleton. Seaman Tommy Watson (12-1-1, 8 KO) dropped a SD 8 to a TC before battling to a draw with Tarleton. (Tarleton, who is now rated, suffered a defeat at the hands of Al Corbett.) Tommy Paul (9-2, 8 KO) dropped a SD to Blitman after suffering a DQ loss to a TC. Still unbeaten, and looking very impressive thus far, is Mexican Baby Arizmendi (9-0, 6 KO). Cuban Filio Julian Echevarria has also impressed, stopping all eight of his opponents inside the distance, and his countryman Kid Chocolate is just one bout behind, with 7 bouts and 7 KO wins thus far. Also keeping a clean slates is Freddie Miller (8-0, 6 KO). Canadian Pete DeGrasse is 7-1 (5 KO), as he avenged his one DQ loss to a TC with a KO win in 1928. Filipino Varias Milling recovered from a shaky start to his career and is now 5-1 (2 KO). Off to good starts are Lew Massey (4-0, 2 KO); Chalky Wright (1-0, 1 KO); and Claude Varner (1-0, 0 KO).

Retirements: Two 21- year careers came to an end in 1928.

Eddie O'Keefe (USA) 1908-28 52-29-3 (19) No Titles Highest Rank: 2
Jimmy Hill (AUS) 1908-28 42-28-5 (2) CBU, OPBF Champ Highest Rank: 6

Looking Ahead: Look for a shake-up in the rankings soon, given that the top two contenders are now at Post. Look for Finnegan, Suggs, Dundee, and Lombardo position themselves to become top contenders. Volante still faces some stiff competition from his own country, as Foreman and Young Johnny Brown are still dangerous opponents. Zorilla, Sarron, Holtzer and Tarleton may also develop into future top contenders once they hit Prime. Arizmendi, Miller, Echevarria and Kid Chocolate show alot of promise. Chalky Wright is also likely to develop into a strong prospect. Frankie Covelli is the best of the four newcomers set to join the FW ranks in 1929.

[JCWeb]

Titles and Title Bouts

WBA: Panama Al Brown proved to be a very active Champion, making five more title defenses, winning over Bud Taylor (UD 15), Memphis Pal Moore (UD 15), Pancho Villa (UD 15), Tommy Milton (UD 15) and Archie Bell (UD 15).

NABF: Howard Mayberry retained this belt with two successful defenses, versus Bushy Graham (SD 12) and Harold Smith (UD 12).

USBA: Bushy Graham retained the title with two successful defenses, over Davey Adelman (UD 12) and Bobby Green (UD 12).

CBU: More success in title defenses, as Vic Foley kept the title after defending versus Johnny Brown (TKO 9), Teddy Baldock (UD 12) and Nipper Pat Daly (D 12).

GBU: No defenses during the year by the titleholder, Johnny Brown, who keeps the belt but faces a mandatory defense in early 1929.

EBU: This belt actually changed hands during the year, as Tommy Milton upset veteran Charles Ledoux (UD 12) to claim the title. He then defending versus Nipper Pat Daly (UD 12) to retain the title headed into 1929.

OPBF: Pancho Villa moved up from Flyweight to take this title by defeating countryman Pete Sarmiento (DQ 2) for the belt.

Division Profile

Total: 95 RL: 58 TC: 37

RL by Career Stage:
End - 9
Post - 11
Prime - 20
Pre - 10
Beginning - 8 (4 New)

Rated: 43
800+: 11
500+: 28
200+ : 37

Jan 1929 Rankings (Perf Points and Changes from Jan. 1928 in Parens):

Champ: Panama Al Brown 31-3 (13) (1408) (NC)
1. Charley Phil Rosenberg 27-5-2 (12) (1244) (+1)
2. Memphis Pal Moore 47-15-6 (14) (1169) (-1)
3. Bud Taylor 27-10 (9) (1100) (+1)
4. Abe Goldstein 36-10-3 (10) (1008) (-1)
5. Bushy Graham 24-9 (8) (976) (+1) (USBA Champ)
6. Vic Foley 27-9-1 (10) (908) (+7) (CBU Champ)
7. Pete Sarmiento 28-10-5 (20) (889) (NC)
8. Kid Francis 18-3-2 (13) (838) (+15)
9. Howard Mayberry 27-10-1 (13) (837) (-1) (NABF Champ)
10. Archie Bell 22-3-2 (7) (827) (+6)

Others: 15. Tommy Milton 20-9-2 (9) (675) (+12) (EBU Champ)
20. Johnny Brown 24-8-3 (17) (589) (-10) (GBU Champ)

Top Ten: Heading into 1929, all the above at Prime except for Rosenberg and Goldstein who will be at Post-Prime, as are Milton and Brown (the EBU and GCU titleholders). Panama Al has now won nine title bouts in a row, and he added five more wins in 1928 to extend his two-year winning streak to 10 bouts. (Brown's last loss was a split duke to Memphis Pal Moore in late 1926.) Rosenberg dropped a UD to Moore, then rallied for three straight wins over Sarmineto (UD), Goldstein (another UD) and Taylor (TKO). The win over Rosenberg was the high point of Memphis Pal's year, he struggled to a draw with Sarmiento and was on the short end of two UDs versus Brown (for the title) and Taylor. Taylor could not follow up on his win versus Moore, losing to Panama Al and suffering a stoppage loss to Rosenberg; his only other 1928 win came at the expense of the lowly-rated Happy Atherton. The effects of aging did not seem to slow down Goldstein, who suffered the one loss to Rosenberg but registered wins over Johnny Brown (UD) and veteran Joe Lynch (MTD). Graham won two of three, all in title contests. Foley had a good year, very active with four wins and a draw, adding a MD over Harold Smith and a UD over aging vet Packey O'Gatty to his three Commonwealth title clashes. Sarmiento continued to battle well, losing to Rosenberg and to Villa for the OPBF belt, but impressing in a draw with Moore, a UD over Dynamite Murphy plus a stoppage win over the "Little Apache," Charles Ledoux. Kid Francis went unbeaten in his four 1928 outings, starting slowly with a draw against Dixie LaHood and a MD over Amos Carlin, before demonstrating rapid improvement with two successive stoppage wins over Eddie "Cannonball" Martin and Mayberry, the NABF Champion. Other than the loss to Francis, Mayberry had a successful year by virtue of the two successful title defenses, as outlined previously. Rounding out the top group is Archie Bell, who fashioned a five-bout unbeaten streak with a series of UD wins over Tremaine, Rubidoux, Lynch and Baldock before stumbling in his recent outing when thrown into the cauldron against WBA Champ Panama Al Brown and -- like everyone else -- coming up short.

Other Notables: Ledoux slid seven spots to #12, after losing the EBU title clash with Milton and also after the TKO loss to Sarmiento; a bounceback TKO win over Little Jack Sharkey was insufficient to elevate him back into the top 10 group. Veteran Packey O'Gatty dropped from #9 to #13 after UD losses to Foley and Henny Catena, followed by a lackluster draw with Vic Burrone. British Champ Johnny Brown was another top 10 dropout, going down 10 spots all the way to #20 after dropping all three of his 1928 contests. Milton was impressive in his two EBU title wins, but a loss to Harold Smith prevented further progress although he made a large move up the rankings anyway. Bobby Green had an impressive seven-bout winning streak ended when he lost the USBA title tilt with Graham; he ended the year at #22. Top newcomer to the rankings is Brit Dick Corbett, who battled through adversity after his first loss (a UD to countryman Johnny King) to down Joey Scalfaro (TKO) and George Marks (UD) to finish up at #27, sporting a 14-1 (9) career mark thus far. One rung lower is another newcomer, Speedy Dado, who handed Pete Sanstol his first loss en route to compiling a 12-3 (9) career start. Finally, American Joey Scalfaro wound up the year at #31 with a 13-2 (10) career start, the two losses coming to Corbett and Sanstol.

Prospects: Few of the top prospects escaped 1928 with unblemished records. Brit Johnny King lost to the Filipino, Pablo Dano, after having won his first 13 in a row; he stands at 13-1 (8) headed into 1929. Pete Sanstol wound up at 13-1 (7) after splitting a pair of UDs with Speedy Dado, then taking a UD from Huerta Evans. Evans impressed with upset wins over Ad Rubidoux (UD 10) and Alf Pattenden (SD 10) but lost his last two to King and Sanstol to wind up at 12-2 (6) at year's end. Dano, conqueror of King, kept his unbeaten record in tact, ending up at 11-0 (10). Ditto for Canadian Bobby Leitham, who is now 10-0 (5) after feasting on TC opposition. Pattenden, regarded as a top British prospect, stumbled with a SD loss to Evans to go with an earlier loss to King and is now 9-2 (8). Others who have flourished in the comfort of TC competition include Gustave Humery (6-0, 6 KO); Benny Sharkey (4-0, 4 KO); the aptly nicknamed K. O. Morgan (3-0, 3 KO); Lew Farber (1-0, 1 KO); and Little Pancho (1-0, 1 KO).

Retirements: Three BWs hung up the gloves in 1928.

Johnny Ertle (USA) 1913-28 24-26-4 (7) No Titles Highest Rank: 16
Indian Russell (USA) 1916-28 24-22-5 (7) No Titles Highest Rank: 18
Connie Curry (USA) 1922-28 19-8-3 (10) No Titles Highest Rank: 28

Looking Ahead: Unlike most of the other divisions, there was a great deal of continuity as all but one of the BW champions from last year retained their titles for another year, paced by the domination of Panama Al Brown, who has now racked up eight straight title defenses, the most since Pete Herman back in 1922. However, it is a rapidly aging division, as long-time contenders such as Rosenberg, Memphis Pal Moore. Ledoux and Goldstein have seen better days. Kid Francis' rapid rise duing the year makes him a probable EBU title contender in 1929. Dick Corbett joins the ranks of talented British BW hopefuls, including Baldock, Daly and Johnny Brown. Speedy Dado and Pablo Dano are perhaps a year or two away from contending for the OPBF crown, which has not seen much competition in recent times. Another Filipino, Young Tommy, tops the list of newcomers to the division for 1929, along with the first Spaniard, Baltazar Sangchili.

[JCWeb]

Titles and Title Bouts

WBA: Aging veteran Jimmy Wilde survived one more title defense, against Newsboy Brown (TKO 9) before being dethroned by Frankie Genaro (TKO 12). Genaro then defended once more against Fidel LaBarba (UD 15) to close out 1928 title action.

NABF: Black Bill began the year with this belt, defending it versus Jimmy Russo (UD 12). Frankie Genaro then defeated the Cuban (UD 12) to claim the belt before moving up to take the WBA crown. In the battle for the vacant title, Lew Perfetti emerged the victor, also over Black Bill (UD 12), then held onto the title after escaping with a draw in his first defense, versus Willie LaMorte.

USBA: Fidel LaBarba kept the title after a couple of hotly-contested defenses, versus Johhny Buff (SD 12) and Emil Paluso (MD 12).

CBU: Johnny Hill edged Kid Socks in the battle for the belt vacated by Wilde (SD 12), then Elky Clark took the title from Hill in Hill's first defense (UD 12).

GBU: In the first title action for this belt since 1926, Elky Clark took the title from Kid Socks (MD 12).

EBU: Kid Socks retains the EBU title despite no defenses during 1928.

OPBF: Pancho Villa, who moved up to capture the BW OPBF title, retained the Flyweight belt from this region (despite no defenses during 1928).

Division Profile

Total: 59 RL: 33 TC: 26

RL by Career Stage:
End - 1
Post - 7
Prime - 16
Pre - 7
Beginning - 2 (0 New)

Rated: 30
800+: 4
500+: 16
200+ : 28

Jan 1929 Rankings (Perf Points and Changes from Jan. 1928 in Parens):

Champ: Frankie Genaro 30-8 (15) (1095) (+1)
1. Elky Clark 28-7-1 (15) (905) (+1) (CBU, GBU Champ)
2. Newsboy Brown 28-4-1 (10) (878) (NC)
3. Fidel LaBarba 19-2-1 (8) (809) (+1) (USBA Champ)
4. Pancho Villa 32-9-3 (14) (789) (+1) (OPBF Champ)
5. Harry Stein 19-2 (15) (609) (+13)
6. Emil Paluso 20-9-1 (6) (601) (+9)
7. Lew Perfetti 21-8-3 (10) (584) (+6) (NABF Champ)
8. Black Bill 20-9-4 (9) (581) (-2)
9. Johnny Vacca 18-2 (11) (560) (+7)
10. Jackie Brown 14-2 (8) (545) (new)

Others: 17. Kid Socks 21-9-1 (8) (479) (-9) (EBU Champ)

Top Ten: Heading into 1929, all the above at Prime except for Clark (at Post), Villa (at End) and Brown (at Pre-Prime for four more bouts). The retirement of long-time Champ Jimmy Wilde opened up one spot in the top group, and there was a significant shake-up as a result. Genaro succeeded Wilde as the new WBA kingpin, winning all five of his 1928 encounters, including a SD over Buff and a UD against Socks prior to three wins in title contests. Veteran Elky Clark seemed to battle the effects of aging, going 3-0 for the year in some close decisions, including a MD over the rapidly improving Perfetti in addition to taking two CBU and GBU title verdicts. Newsboy Brown recovered from an early season title loss to Wilde with a pair of UD 10 wins over Johnny Buff and Izzy Schwartz. LaBarba kept his name in the mix, running his winning streak to seven with two USBA title defenses before losing the title clash with Genaro. Villa maintained his presence in the Flyweight class, despite an early season loss to Schwartz; his high ranking is a bit misleading as his high PP total is largely based on defeating Pete Sarmiento for the OPBF BW crown. German Harry Stein leapfrogged up the rankings, going four-for-four during the year with impressive KO wins over Georgie Rivers and Midget Wolgast, following by a MD 10 over veteran Pinky Silverberg in his most recent outing. Emil Paluso also moved smartly up the ranks, garnering UDs over Russo and Wolgast, plus a MD over Schwartz to move into the top 10, despite a narrow loss when challenging LaBarba for the USBA title. Perfetti grabbed the NABF title, overcoming a MD loss to Clark earlier in the year. Cuban Black Bill slipped a couple of spots after dropping his last two bouts (both for the NABF title). The Italian, Vacca, finished out the Pre-Prime portion of his career in impressive fashion, taking a pair of UDs from Eugene Huat and a TKO over Young Zulu Kid. Rounding out the top group is Brit Jackie Brown, who recovered from an early season setback (UD loss to Midget Wolgast) with three straight wins, including UDs over Alex Burlie and Johnny Hill.

Other Notables: Willie LaMorte, who went unbeaten during the year with three wins and a draw, fell one spot short of the top group; his wins came at the expense of Young Zulu Kid (UD 10), Georgie Rivers (UD 10) and Pinky Silverberg (DQ 3), enabling him to run his record to 22-7-4 (10). Among the top 10 dropouts (in addition to Wilde, who retired) were Corporal Izzy Schwartz, loser of his last two (MD to Paluso and a UD to Newsboy Brown) after a strong start with an UD win over Villa early in the year; he dropped five spots to #12; veteran Johnny Buff struggled, with only one win in four bouts, two losses to higher rated opponents (LaBarba and Brown) and a disappointing draw with lower-ranked Ruby Bradley; this left him at #16, seven spots lower than last year; Socks, the EBU Champ, slipped from #8 to #17, after losing all three of his 1928 encounters, albeit by some close decisions against tough opponents; Johnny McCoy, at #20, fell all the way from #10 after successive losses to Buff and Stein ruined his 1928 campaign (a late-season win over Filipino Young Dencio did not enable McCoy to regain much of the lost ground). 1928 was a good year for newcomers to the rankings list, with Jackie Brown cracking the top 10 while his countryman, Johnny Hill, wound up at #13, despite a pair of UD losses to Brown and Elky Clark; he did register a win over Canadian Albert Belanger to end the year at 18-3 (11). Midget Wolgast, who checks in at 16-2 (10), had won his first 16 in a row before successive losses to Stein (KO 10) and Paluso (UD 10) may cause him to re-evaluate the situation.

Prospects: Not much to report -- French hopeful Valentin Angelmann has compiled an impressive 11-0 (9) career start, all against TCs. Two newcomers to the Fly ranks made successful debuts late in the year -- Mickey McGuire and Young Perez are both 1-0 (1) after stopping their TC opponents inside the distance.

Retirements: Two retirements in 1928, both WBA Champions, including all-time great Jimmy Wilde.

Joe Symonds (UK) 1911-28 32-26-5 (20) WBA Champ 1921-22
Jimmy Wilde (UK) 1910-28 54-12-4 (46) WBA Champ 1914-17, 1918-21, 1927-28

Looking Ahead: A big changing of the guard at the top of the division, with guys like Wilde, Villa, Silverberg, Buff et al. giving way to younger fighters like Genaro, LaBarba, Stein, Paluso, Perfetti, Vacca, Brown, Hill and Wolgast. Despite a couple of recent setbacks, Wolgast may have the best long-term prospects of all the younger fighters. There could also be a nice rivalry develop between the two US-based Olympic Champions, Genaro and LaBarba. Angelmann could develop into a good prospect. For 1929, however, no newcomers so the focus will be on the continued development of the younger fighters whose careers are already underway.

[JCWeb]

Here's a list of all of the Champions in my Uni as of Jan. 1, 1929. (Date of first title win in parens along with number of successful defenses).

HW

WBA: Jack Sharkey (May 1928) (2)
NABF: Lanky Ralph Smith (Nov. 1928) (0)
USBA: Pat Lester (May 1928) (0)
CBU: Jack Doyle (Mar. 1928) (0)
GBU: Phil Scott (Apr. 1928) (0)
EBU: Paulino Uzcudan (Oct. 1928) (0)
OPBF: Tom Heeney (Feb. 1928) (1)

LH

WBA: Tommy Loughran (Aug. 1926) (9)
NABF: Maxie Rosenbloom (Dec. 1928) (0)
USBA: Ad Stone (Nov. 1928) (0)
CBU: Len Harvey (Apr. 1924) (6)
GBU: Gypsy Daniels (Dec. 1927) (0)
EBU: Len Harvey (Oct. 1925) (1)

MW

WBA: Mickey Walker (Apr. 1925) (12)
NABF: Tiger Flowers (Nov. 1928) (0)
USBA: Tiger Flowers (Sep. 1928) (0)
CBU: Frank Moody (Nov. 1928) (0)
GBU: Frank Moody (Jul. 1928) (0)
EBU: Len Johnson (May 1928) (1)
OPBF: Ceferino Garcia (Jul. 1927) (1)

WW

WBA: Benny Leonard (Nov. 1928) (0)
NABF: Joe Dundee (Oct. 1928) (0)
USBA: Jack Sparr (Dec. 1928) (0)
CBU: Jimmy McLarnin (Jul. 1928) (1)
GBU: Ted Kid Lewis (Jul. 1928) (0)
EBU: Bermondsey Billy Wells (Jan. 1925) (4)
OPBF: Lope Tenorio (Dec. 1926) (3)

JWW

WBA: Jack Kid Berg (Jan. 1928) (1)
USBA: Harry Wallach (May 1928) (1)

LW

WBA: Ever Hammer (Aug. 1928) (0)
NABF: Billy Petrolle (Nov. 1928) (0)
USBA: Ray Miller (Sep. 1928) (2)
CBU: Billy Grime (Feb. 1928) (4)
GBU: Ernie Rice (Jul. 1922) (3)
EBU: Benny Valgar (Jun. 1928) (0)

JLW

WBA: Eddie Wagner (Jul. 1928) (1)
USBA: Benny Bass (Oct. 1928) (1)

FW

WBA: Louis Kaplan (Sep. 1928) (1)
NABF: Carl Duane (Oct. 1928) (0)
USBA: Dick Finnegan (Jul. 1928) (0)
CBU: Johnny Cuthbert (Feb. 1928) (2)
GBU: Dom Volante (Jul. 1926) (1)
EBU: Dom Volante (Mar. 1928) (1)
OPBF: Young Nationalista (Jan. 1927) (5)

BW

WBA: Panama Al Brown (Feb. 1927) (8)
NABF: Howard Mayberry (Mar. 1927) (4)
USBA: Bushy Graham (Oct. 1927) (2)
CBU: Vic Foley (Sep. 1927) (3)
GBU: Johnny Brown (Jul. 1927) (1)
EBU: Tommy Milton (Feb. 1928) (1)
OPBF: Pancho Villa (Mar. 1928) (0)

FLY

WBA: Frankie Genaro (Aug. 1928) (1)
NABF: Lew Perfetti (Sep. 1928) (1)
USBA: Fidel LaBarba (May 1927) (3)
CBU: Elky Clark (Aug. 1928) (0)
GBU: Elky Clark (Nov. 1928) (0)
EBU: Kid Socks (Dec. 1927) (0)
OPBF: Pancho Villa (Sep. 1926) (2)

Comments: Less than one third (19 of 58) of these titles have been held for more than one year. Walker (12), Loughran (9) and Brown (8) have made the most successful defenses, while GBU LW king Ernie Rice has held onto his title for the longest time period, since 1922.

Next up, the always popular pound-for-pound rankings.

[JCWeb]

Year-End 1928 Pound for Pound Rankings
(with PP points, changes from last year in parens)

1. Mickey Walker, MW, WBA Champ (1815) (+1)
2. Benny Leonard, WW, WBA Champ (1650) (+3)
3. Tommy Loughran, LH, WBA Champ (1606) (+1)
4. Young Stribling, HW, no title (1524) (+5)
5. Panama Al Brown, BW, WBA Champ (1408) (new)
6. Larry Gains, HW, no title (1408) (+2)
7. Jack Sharkey, HW, WBA Champ (1395) (new)
8. Joe Dundee, WW, NABF Champ (1333) (new)
9. Ad Stone, LH, USBA Champ (1318) (new)
10. Benny Valgar, LW, EBU Champ (1262) (-5)

Dropping out from last year:
Gene Tunney, HW (was #1)
George Godfrey, HW (was #3)
Memphis Pal Moore, BW (was #7)
Harry Wills, HW (was #10)

Most of the turnover in the PFP list was HWs, which is continues to be the only division represented in the top 10 PFP list more than twice, and the LHs and HWs are the only ones there more than once. Senior member of the top 10 PFP list remains to be "the Great Bennah" Leonard, who is making his 12th appearance on the list. Walker is appearing for the sixth successive year, and Loughran is the only other fighter to appear for more than two times. Thus, there has been a bit of a changing of the guard among the top echelon fighters in the Uni.

After a bit of a break, it will be onto 1929 action.

[JCWeb]

Pleased to report that January 1929 action is underway, with a couple of title bouts and a rematch of a very memorable HW encounter as a co-feature on the Los Angeles fight card (the last one listed).

Jan. 4, 1929: Friday night fights series begins the year in Buffalo, at the Memorial Auditorium. Featured is a 10-round, non-title bout between former JWW king Pinkey Mitchell and up-and-comer Tony Canzoneri, who has moved up from LW to try his hand in a proverbial "crossroads" fight. Canzoneri gets off to a strong chart, but Mitchell does well enough to keep the bout reasonably close for the first five rounds. Canzoneri gradually gains the upper hand in the second half of the bout, as the older Mitchell starts to tire. Canzoneri then coasts to an impressive UD 10 win (97-93, 98-93, 98-94) as he withstands a late rally from Mitchell. The win lifts Canzoneri to 17-1 (11) while Mitchell, whose best days are definitely behind him, is now 31-13-4 (13).

Jan. 5, 1929: Scene of the action shifts to Ullevi Stadium, in Gothenburg, Sweden. Headline bout is for the EBU HW title, now held by "Basque Woodchopper" Paulino Uzcudan. Challenger is former Champ, Italian Erminio Spalla. Since Spalla is ranked in the top 10 (ahead of Uzcudan), the Spaniard has a big incentive to win this one to move up in the rankings, plus he will be seeking to avenge his most recent loss (a UD 10, won by Spalla) in 1928. The Italian gets off to a strong start, dominating the opening three rounds. By the end of round three, Uzcudan's left eye starts to puff up, and a round later things get even worse as a cut is opened over the Basque's left eye. Uzcudan battles back with a strong effort in round six, but he will still need to make up even more lost ground in the second half of the bout to keep the title. Round eight, Spalla's right eye starts to swell. Undaunted, the Italian rebounds with a strong round nine. Then, in the final round of the bout, a short, clean combination catches an overly-aggressive Uzcudan; the KD seals a UD 12 win for Spalla (116-111, 116-111, 115-113). Spalla regains the EBU crown and moves to 30-11 (21) while Uzcudan drops to 23-4-1 (11). Tough loss for the Spaniard, as it stalls his career just when things were looking promising.

Jan. 5, 1929: Next fight card is in Montreal, Canada. Featured both pits the top two HW contenders, ex-Champ Young Stribling and Canadian hopeful Larry Gains. No titles at stake in this one, but it's no secret that both men are angling for a shot at Jack Sharkey's WBA title later in the year. No prior meetings, but the action heats up early as Gains surprises Stribling with a barrage of blows and a surprise knockdown in the opening round. The Canadian challenger cannot follow up on his success, however, and Stribling battles back to seize control by the midpoint of the 10-round bout. Gains tires badly in the later rounds, and the "King of the Canebrakes" continues to pile up a large points lead. By the end of round six, Gains' left eye starts to swell and, in the seventh, he is decked as Stribling catches him with a strong shot. The bout goes the distance without further excitement, and it goes as a lopsided UD 10 win for Stribling (98-90, 98-90, 98-90). The win raises Stribling to 30-5-1 (18) while Gains ends up the bout at 23-5 (14).

Jan. 11, 1929: Another fight night in the UK, this time at the Stadium in Liverpool. In the main support bout, two top British MW prospects put their unbeaten career records on the line as Jock McAvoy ("the Rochdale Thunderbolt") takes on Jack "Cast Iron" Casey. The first strong blow of the fight occurs in round three, when Casey lets loose with a solid uppercut that puts McAvoy on his back for a six-count. Two rounds later, McAvoy is cut over the right eye. Halfway through the bout, both men are noticeably tiring, and it appears to be Casey's fight to lose. The cut over McAvoy's eye is reopened. Yet, he somehow manages to break through and keep the bout close to the final bell. End result, a draw (96-95 McAvoy, 95-95, 94-96 Casey) and both men keep their unbeaten marks, with McAvoy now at 12-0-1 (11) and Casey at 10-0-1 (7) -- fans are clamoring for a rematch. The final bout of the evening, the main event, sees UK crowd favorite Len Harvey defend the EBU LH belt against an aging vet, former Champ Battling Siki. It is Harvey's first title defense of the EBU belt since late 1926, but Siki -- whose career has been in a precipitous decline over the past four years -- is in trouble right away. He takes a pounding from Harvey's very accurate punching in round one, and the Senegalese's left eye starts swelling as a result. Harvey continues to pile up points in rounds two through four, as Siki's eye worsens. In round five, Harvey launches a ferocious attack, raining one unanswered blow after another on the hapless challenger. The ref steps in to call a halt; TKO 5 win for Harvey. He runs his career totals to 30-4-1 (13) while Siki, who has announced his next fight will be his last, dips to 32-24-3 (18).

Jan. 12, 1929: Miami is the scene of the next fight card, and it's a packed one headlined by a WBA Flyweight title bout between defending Champ Frankie Genaro and top-rated challenger Elky Clark. The two are familiar foes, having meet three times before for the WBA crown, all three having gone the distance with Genaro having won two of the three, including a UD 15 in their most recent contest in 1927. Clark starts the bout as the aggressor, but midway through round four he is stunned by a nice uppercut to the chin from the Champ. A round later, Genaro suffers a split lip. After five, the unofficial card has the challenger ahead by a narrow one-point margin (47-46). The pace of the bout continues to ebb and flow in round six, with Genaro getting the best of it as Clark's left eye starts to swell. Then, in round seven, the bout comes to an abrupt conclusion when Genaro hits below the belt. In a controversial call, the low blows are ruled flagrant and Clark is awarded the title via a DQ 7 win. It is the third time Genaro has dropped a WBA title bout via a DQ. The controversial call moves Clark, who is now WBA Champ for the second time, to 29-7-1 (15) while Genaro is 30-9 (15).

Jan. 12, 1929: Huge fight card in Los Angeles, featuring one WBA title on the line, two famous HWs in a memorable matchup (simulating one of the great action bouts in history) in the main support bout, but first up is an unbeaten WW prospect who has rapidly been making a name for himself. Jackie Fields is his name, and he's matched with another young prospect, King Tut, in the first of two main support bouts on this evening's packed fight card. Fields starts in right away, non-stop action in the opening round. Tut suffers a swollen left eye plus a gash over the eye that is later determined to be the result of an accidental butt. Fields continues to press the action, piling up a nice points lead through the first four rounds. Tut battles back to take round five, but the cut is reopened and remains an issue for the duration of the bout. The cut leads to an eventual stoppage in round eight, and the bout goes to the scorecards after the prior round, resulting in a UTD 8 for Fields (69-65 on all three cards), running his record to 15-0-1 (11) which should be enough to slip him into the top 20 when the new rankings come out; King Tut drops to 12-4-1 (11) after the loss.

Next up, the long-awaited matchup between the "Manassa Mauler," Jack Dempsey, and the "Wild Bull of the Pampas," Luis Angel Firpo, is the bout that many have come to see. Only question here is whether or not the effect of aging on the Post-Prime Dempsey will limit his effectiveness against the wild-swinging Argentine, who is also noted for his very weak chin (having been stopped nine times already in his pro career). Like the real-life bout, there is plenty of action from the opening bell, and an early finish. Dempsey nails Firpo with a huge uppercut, then sends Firpo to the deck with a strong shot. This time, one knockdown is all it takes as Firpo is counted out at 1:40 of round one -- KO 1 for Dempsey who seems like his old self as he registers his 48th KO win of his illustrious career. Dempsey moves to 53-9-1 (48) after the bout, while Firpo is now 30-15-2 (24).

Final bout of the evening sees Ever Hammer defending his WBA LW crown against veteran Lew Tendler. Tendler, a long-time top contender had fallen short in three prior trys against the great Benny Leonard. Having defeated Hammer twice (both UD 10s) in prior meetings, he has high hopes this time around, except for the fact that he is now on the downside (Post-Prime) of his career. After a close pair of opening rounds, Tendler pulls ahead to a narrow points lead. Both men proceed cautiously, preferring to box outside for most of the fight. Tendler tires badly in the middle rounds and finds it hard to keep pace with the more energetic Hammer. No KDs, cuts or bruises as the bout, a close one, heads into the later rounds. In the final round, against the run of the action (or lack thereof) for most of the contest, all of a sudden Hammer puts Tendler down with a big uppercut. Seems like the knockdown is enough to seal the win for Hammer and, while the Champ retains his bout with a MD 15 win, the scores (146-140, 143-143, 148-138) indicate two of the three judges had the Champ winning most if not all the close rounds anyway. Hammer moves to 42-15-5 (17) as a result, while Tendler, who may have squandered his final chance at a world title, emerges at 45-17-3 (14).

[JCWeb]

Jan. 18, 1929: Friday night fights "Down Under" for the first time in 1929, feature bout is for the 12-round Commonwealth LW title, with Aussie Billy Grime defending versus Brit Harry Mason. This is the third meeting for this title between these two, with Grime winning by UD in both prior encounters. The Aussie defending Champ starts well, stunning Mason with a big hook in round one. The Brit hangs tough, however, and proves to be an elusive target for the rest of the way. Grime tries to get more aggressive, but he just gets more and more frustrated as his blows land on nothing but air. The bout goes the distance, and the result is a resounding UD 12 win for Mason (119-109, 119-109, 116-113) with the margin of victory coming as a huge surprise. Aussie fans go home disappointed, with the win lifting Mason's career totals to 25-10-2 (4) while Grime winds up at 22-12-1 (14).

Jan. 19, 1929: More action on the European continent, this time at the Sports Palace in Rome, Italy. Featured bout has two Italians, Tommy Milton and challenger Kid Francis, matched for Milton's EBU title belt. The two battled to a draw in late 1927, but Milton has just hit Post-Prime so a tough defense is anticipated. After an uneventful opening round, Francis uses his jab to set up a strong shot that puts Milton on the canvas for an eight-count. Milton remains on the defense for much of the bout, and his left eye is starting to swell up by the end of round four. With a strong round eight, Francis appears to be in command of the bout. For good measure, he sends Milton to the canvas again in the final round. Milton by UD 12 (118-108, 118-109, 118-108) to take the belt. Post fight records: Francis, 19-3-2 (13) and Milton, 20-10-2 (9).

Jan. 19, 1929: Next fight card is set for New Orleans's Coliseum Arena. After a long series of preliminary bouts, the feature matchup pits Ad Stone against Leo Lomski for Stone's USBA LH title. It is Lomski's first title contest, and many think he may be in over his head. However, Lomski's two earlier losses to Stone were back in 1924, when he was still at Pre-Prime, and now, for this bout, Stone is at Post while Lomski is at Prime. Things get off to a bad start for Lomski when he suffers a cut over his left eye in round two. The cut is patched up but reopened a couple of rounds later. In round five, the game Lomski, ignoring some blood streaming from the cut, nails Stone with a sharp combination that forces the Champion to cover up. In the end, it is the cut that does Lomski in, leading to a late stoppage. TKO 9 for Stone on the cuts stoppage, enabling him to keep the belt. Too bad, for Lomski was putting in a very serious challenge, as a peek at the judges' cards showed two of the three had it a one-point bout at the time of the stoppage. The win moves Stone to 30-3 (19) while Lomski winds up at 21-8-3 (6).

Jan. 25, 1929: Final Friday night fight card from January 1929 will be at Gran Stadium in Havana, Cuba. Feature bout has Carl Duane, the "Bronx Express," defending his NABF FW title against Eddie Shea. Shea, who enters the bout as a decided underdog, works quietly to build a points lead over the first four rounds. Then, all of a sudden, in the middle of round five, Duane lands a right hand but comes away wincing in pain. Turns out the hand is broken, and the belt changes hands as Duane cannot continue, TKO 5 win for Shea. Shea runs his career totals to 22-6-1 (14) while Duane, who is now at Post-Prime, dips to 25-9-1 (12). Tough break for Duane (literally as well as figuratively) and, while there may be a rematch, Shea can be comforted by the fact that he was ahead on points on all three cards at the time of the stoppage.

Jan. 26, 1929: London's Harringay Arena is the scene of the next fight card, and popular British FW Dom Volante, who now holds both the EBU and GBU crown, is putting the European title on the line tonight against a former World Champ, Andre Routis. Routis, who took a UD 12 from Volante in a 1926 EBU title encounter, is now at Post-Prime but considered a threat to win the title. After a close opening few rounds, Volante's right eye shows signs of swelling from the repeated blows landed by the Frenchman. Round five, lots of action as both men work inside, and Volante connects with a big right to the head of the challenger. A cut is opened over the right eye of Volante, causing concern for the Champ's corner. Volante battles his way through the cut, dishing out more punishment to Routis, who has both eyes starting to puff up in round eight. That same round, the cut over Volante's eye is reopened, but good cornerwork patches things up before further damage is done. A late surge by the Champ (taking the last three rounds from all three judges) proves to be the difference; MD 12 for Volante (116-112, 114-114, 115-113) to keep the belt. The win moves Volante 20-5-2 (14) while Routis drops to 33-9-2 (16).

Jan. 26, 1929: Final fight card of the month at the Madison Square Garden in New York City, topped by the MW title bout featuring long-time WBA king Mickey "Toy Bulldog" Walker who takes on EBU Champ Len Johnson. First up, in two preliminary bouts, two young prospects attempt to bounce back from some recent setbacks -- both are paired with TCs and hope for easy wins. FW hopeful "Bat" Battalino comes through, taking a UD 10 decision to move to 11-1 (7). But, popular HW Jimmy Braddock suffers a second straight defeat, as a result of a broken hand that causes a TKO loss and will put Braddock out of action for four months. Another tough reversal for Jimmy, who stands at 13-3-1 (6) and has a PP total of negative 18. Ouch!

On to the main event. Walker is hoping to repeat his earlier success against Johnson, whom he defeated via a stoppage in 1926. This time, it looks like Johnson is better prepared to offer Mickey a tough challenge. After a close opening round, Johnson lets loose with a series of blows to surprise the Champ and take round two. The "Toy Bulldog" bounces back with a strong round three, then he nails Johnson with a big cross midway through the fourth. Johnson scrambles to stay in the bout, and it's even (48-all) after five, according to the unofficial card. Walker presses forward in the middle rounds, probing for a weakness in Johnson's defenses, but he finds none. By the end of round seven, Johnson's left eye is beginning to swell. The British challenger rebounds with a strong round eight to keep the bout close. Walker nails Johnson with a hard shot to the top of the head, taking round nine. With five rounds to go, Walker has pulled ahead (97-94) on the unofficial scorecard. Johnson hangs in there until round 13, when Walker decks him with a powerful uppercut. Johnson is up quickly, at the count of two, but Walker's killer instinct serves him well, and he pummels Johnson against the ropes until the ref calls a halt. Walker by TKO 13 for another successful title defense to run his record to 39-1 (30). Johnson, who is now 22-9-1 (14) won many fans with his game effort. It's worth noting that all three judges had it just a two-point difference at the time of the stoppage.

[JCWeb]

Feb. 1, 1929: Friday night fights series resumes at Kiel Auditorium in St. Louis, with a series of bouts leading to the featured event, a 12-rounder for the USBA LW title held by Roy Miller. Miller's opponent is the rapidly-rising Sammy Fuller, winner of his last six and only once beaten in his 24 previous bouts. It will be Fuller's first try for a title. Fuller seems to recover after a slow start to make the bout competitive, but in round five he is decked for a five-count by a huge shot from Miller that seems to come out of nowhere. Miller suffers a cut over his left eye in round nine, and he manages to hang on for a UD 12 win (114-113, 115-112, 117-110), as the judges appeared to be more impressed with the KD and his championship credentials than with a consistent overall performance from the challenger. As a result, Miller keeps the belt and moves to 27-3 (13) overall, while Fuller is now 23-2 (8).

Feb. 2, 1929: Scene of the action shifts back to Europe, once again at the Amor Bahn in Munich. No titles at stake on an abbreviated fight card, but the feature bout has generated much interest, as German HW contender Max Schmeling takes on the current British Champ, "Fainting Phil" Scott. Big shock for Schmeling fans in the opening stanza, as Scott landws a big left that puts Max on the defensive. Schmeling is forced to cover up and returns to his corner with a mouse under his right eye. Schmeling battles back, however, taking the next four rounds on the unofficial scorecard to build a solid points lead (49-46) at the midway point of the 10-round bout. In round seven, Max finally breaks through with a strong shot that decks Scott for a four-count. Scott is also suffering from a swollen right eye as well. Schmeling eases up a bit in the final two rounds, coasting to a UD 10 win (96-93. 95-94, 97-93). Post fight records: Schemeling, 19-1 (16) and Scott, 24-16-2 (6). What's next for Schmeling? Many are expecting him to challenge for the EBU title, while others are predicting a WBA title match with Jack Sharkey may be in the offing before the year is out.

Feb. 2, 1929: Next fight card is in Boston, at the Garden. Main event is for the NABF BW title, with Bushy Graham defending versus Charley Phil Rosenberg. Graham holds a prior win over Rosenberg (a SD 10 back in 1924), and the crafty former WBA Champ is now at Post-Prime. Things get off to a poor start for Rosenberg, who sustains a bad cut over his left eye in the opening stanza. The cut is in a bad location, and it proves difficult for his corner to control. Rosenberg offers little in the way of resistance, and the bout comes to an early end -- TKO 4 for Graham on the cuts stoppage, and Graham retains the USBA title in addition to receiving a boost in the BW rankings. The win moves Graham to 25-9 (9) while Rosenberg slips to 27-6-2 (12).

Feb. 8, 1929: Back in Miami for the next Friday night fight card. Featured main event is a JLW WBA title affair, with Benny Bass completing his move up from FW to challenge veteran Eddie Wagner. Bass gets off to a good start, but in round four he is slowed by a cut over the left eye. Later that same round, Wagner also sustains a cut over his left eye. Bass continues to build on his early advantage, applying pressure throughout the middle rounds. The cut over Bass' eye is reopened in round nine and, with a renewed sense of urgency, he unleashes a barrage of blows that put Wagner on the deck in round 10. The cut is reopened in round 12, and Wagner's efforts to target the cut come for naught. The bout goes the distance and, when the scorecards are read, it's a UD 15 win for Bass (146-140, 144-142, 145-140) who becomes the JLW king after falling a bit short in the FW division. Bass runs his career totals to 31-7-3 (11) while Wagner falls to 38-17-1 (17).

Feb. 9, 1929: Another fight card in Liverpool, with the headliner for the GBU FW belt. This title, which has been held by Dom Volante, was recently vacated after Volante decided to concentrate on the EBU title instead. Two veterans, Al Foreman and Young Johnny Brown, are paired together for the vacant belt, with Foreman having the confidence from a prior win over Brown. Action heats up right away as Foreman nails Brown with a wicked hook to the head, putting him down for a five-count. By the end of round two, Young Johnny's left eye is starting to swell, and later he suffers a cut over his right eye. Foreman struggles with his timing in the middle rounds, and midway through the bout he's ahead by just one (57-56) on the unofficial card. Then, in round eight, Foreman breaks through, decking Brown with an uppercut. This time he keeps up the pressure, following up with a hook for another KD. This time Brown does not beat the count. Foreman by KO 8 to take the belt for the second time in his career (he held it from 1924 through 1926). The win moves Foreman to 23-12 (19) while Brown is now 25-10-1 (13).

Feb. 9, 1929: Scene of the action shifts to Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto, and the main event has Brit Johnny Brown matched with local favorite Albert Belanger for the Commonweath Flyweight title previously held by Elky Clark, who has since captured the WBA title. The two appear to be evenly matched and, as the battle approaches the midway point, in round six, Belanger is called for persistent head-butting. As a result, to the dismay of the Canadian fans, the referee declares Brown the winner via a DQ 6. Brown's record moves to 15-2 (8) while Belanger ends the bout at 16-5-1 (9). Given the controversial end to the fight, there is talk of a rematch.

[JCWeb]

On to the second half of the results summary for February, 1929.

Feb. 15, 1929: Friday night fights goes "Down Under" once again, to Melbourne, Australia. Featured bout is for the Commonwealth HW title, and it is reigning OPBF Champ Tom Heeney's second try for the belt, this time against Jack "Gorgeous Gael" Doyle. Heeney, the "Hard Rock Down Under," gets off to a strong start, then in the middle rounds Doyle becomes more aggressive, doing enough to keep the bout close. Then, in round nine, Doyle suffers a cut on his forehead. The cut continues to ooze blood into the later rounds of the bout, but Doyle continues to press forward. In round 11, with the bout in the balance, Heeney starts pushing and shoving on the inside, using his shoulders and his elbows and repeatedly fouling his opponent. The ref steps in and, in a very controversial call, disqualifies Heeney for the repeated fouls. The partisan crowd boos lustily. A check of the scorecards after 10 rounds indicates the bout was very close. Doyle keeps the title via the DQ 11, moving to 21-7-2 (15) overall, while Heeney is now 29-11-1 (8).

Feb. 16, 1929: Once again, another exciting fight card on the European continent, leading to the featured bout for the WBA FW crown, with Louis Kaplan defending against Jose Lombardo. It's the first meeting of the two, and Lombardo's third try for a title after coming up short in two prior efforts to wrest the lesser NABF FW crown. Early in the bout, Lombardo is the aggressor, and in round three he falls victim to some kidney punching from Kaplan that draws a warning from the referee. With time running out in round five, Lombardo nails Kaplan with a strong shot that causes the Champ to take a seat on the canvas for a brief three-count. Lombardo is unable to follow up, and soon the smooth-boxing Kaplan seems back in control of the bout. In round nine, the pendulum once again swings in the challenger's direction, and the accumulated impact of Lombardo's punches causes the right eye of the Champ to puff up. In the later rounds, Kaplan steps up the pace and Lombardo starts to tire from his tremendous effort with a world title on the line. By the end of round 12, both of Lombardo's eyes have started to swell, and it's beginning to look like Kaplan may escape with another successful title defense. Then, in round 13, the bout takes another surprising turn -- Kaplan is called for more flagrant kidney punching, and this time the ref takes the extreme step of DQing Kaplan, thus awarding the title to Lombardo via a DQ 13 win. Post fight, Lombardo is 26-8-3 (16) and Kaplan, 33-7-1 (10). A peek at the judges' cards showed Lombardo with a narrow lead on all three cards, so the ultimate outcome -- a surprise win for the Panamian challenger -- seems justified.

Feb. 16, 1929: Another strong fight card at the Cow Palace in San Francisco -- the main event has Vince Dundee matched with Larry Estridge for the vacant USBA MW title (the belt was vacated by Tiger Flowers who had since won the NABF title). It is the first title fight for either man, although it looks like an uphill climb for Estridge, who is at Post-Prime for the first time. Not much happening, other than Dundee quietly building a solid points lead, until round five, when a nasty cut is opened on the forehead of Estridge. The cut is reopened a couple of rounds later, and eventually it leads to a late stoppage. Not much protest from the corner of Estridge, as the bout and the title go to Dundee via a TKO 10 (cuts stoppage). The win moves Dundee, who must now be regarded as a serious contender for top MW honors, to 22-3-1 (13) while Estridge slips to 19-7-2 (17).

Feb. 22, 1929: The next Friday night fight card takes place at Pittsburgh, and featured is a USBA HW title affair -- Pat Lester defends versus Bearcat Wright. First up, a couple of interesting preliminary bouts. In the main support, two top 10 LHs do battle, and Lou Bogash turns the tables on Jack Reeves, avenging an earlier loss in his career with a TKO 8 win; Bogash was aided by the fact that Reeves had just hit Post-Prime career stage. Next up, in the co-main event, was the man that many fight fans had come to see, "Roman Warrior" Tony Canzoneri, now campaigning at JWW. This time he faced a stern test in veteran Mickey Cohen, who gave Canzoneri fits for most of the early rounds. In round 7, a cut over Cohen's right eye spelled trouble, followed by a swollen left eye that developed late in the fight. Nonetheless, the bout went the distance with a razor-thin margin for the favored Canzoneri, who escaped with a MD 10 (96-94, 95-95, 96-94) to run his record to 18-1 (11) overall compared to 14-7 (8) post-fight for Cohen. Then, in what many expected to be a cakewalk for the much higher rated Lester, the main event proved to be a competitive and entertaining bout. In round three, Wright had a strong round, landing at will. Lester bounced back with a strong round four, nailing the challenger with a vicious cross that put the Bearcat down for a nine-count. Undaunted, Wright came back in the fifth round, catching Lester with a combination that put the champion down and out. Wright by a KO 5 to dethrone Lester in a huge upset. The result may have been aided by the fact that Lester had just hit Post-Prime career stage. Anyway, Wright runs his career totals to 24-10-2 (15) while Lester falls to 28-6 (20).

Feb. 23, 1929: Next fight card is set for the venerable Earls Court in London, England. Feature bout is a non-title affair between the upcoming Jack Kid Berg, the "Whitechapel Whirlwind" who is a crowd favorite and also the new WBA JWW king, against long-time top WW and current EBU Champ, Bermondsey Billy Wells. It's the "old" versus the "new" in a very interesting matchup. Early edge in the bout to Wells, who boxes consistently for the first few rounds. In round six, he stuns Berg with a quick hook to the head that staggers the "Whitechapel Whirlwind." Berg recovers quickly, digging for body shots to keep the bout close while trying to wear down his more experienced opponent. Bermondsey adopts a defensive posture in the later rounds, and by the end of the eight Berg's right eye is showing signs of swelling. A round later, though, it is Wells who sustains a cut over his right eye. The bout goes to the scorecards and the end result, a majority draw (96-94 Wells, 95-95, 95-95) seems fully justified. It is the second career draw for both men, leaving Berg at 20-1-2 (10) and Wells at 44-11-2 (16). Fans of both are clamoring for a rematch, but both men are also awaiting title challenges within their own divisions.

Feb. 23, 1929: Two titles are at stake in the final fight card of February, this time at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Co-feature tonight has Fidel LaBarba defending his USBA Fly title against "Corporal Izzy" Schwartz, a local fan favorite. Bout turns into a real chess match, with neither man gaining much advantage until round six, when LaBarba manages to open a nasty looking cut over Schwartz's right eye. Izzy's corner and cut men try their best to control the bleeding, but things go from bad to worse when the cut is reopened again in round eight. Finally, in round nine, once the bleeding gets worse, the ref steps in to call a halt. LaBarba, a TKO 9 winner on the cuts stoppage, moves his record to an excellent 20-2-1 (9) overall, perhaps putting him in line for another crack at the WBA Flyweight title soon. Schwartz is 20-10-1 (5) after the disappointing loss.
The final bout of the evening is a long-awaited matchup of two of the best LHs, defending WBA Champ Tommy Loughran and the challenger and current NABF Champ, "Slapsie Maxie" Rosenbloom. The rise of both these talented fighters through the LH ranks over the past decade has been well-documented. For the first three or four rounds, the two exchange jabs, slight edge to Loughran. While both men elect to stay outside most of the time, in the middle rounds Rosenbloom, urged on by his corner, begins to take a more aggressive stance. Trouble for Maxie in round nine, however, as he sustains a cut over his left eye. The cut proves to be difficult for his corner to control, and it is reopened a few rounds later. This time, after a brief consult with the ring doctor, the bout is called to a halt. TKO 13 for Loughran on the cuts stoppage. Loughran's record post-fight is now 36-4-2 (13). The loss is just Rosenbloom's second, and he still maintains an excellent 22-2-4 (10) career mark. Given the circumstances, talk of a rematch is in the air.

[JCWeb]

First half of the report for March 1929, which is a packed month with five weekends worth of bouts.

Mar. 1, 1929: Friday night fights is back at the "Aud" (aka Memorial Auditorium) in Buffalo, and the main event has USBA FW king Dick Finnegan facing the challenge of veteran Johnny Kilbane; this fight is likely to be Kilbane's swansong after a lengthy and memorable 23-year career. Finnegan, who already owns a pair of UD 10 wins over Kilbane in the past, builds a huge early points advantage and continues to pressure the former Champ, whom he drops with a strong cross in round five. Kilbane winds up taking a real beating, as his left eye swells in the later rounds. Kilbane manages to last the distance as Finnegan eases up some in the later rounds. The result is a lopsided UD 12 win for Finnegan (119-108, 117-110, 118-109). Finnegan moves to 27-9 (8) overall, while Kilbane closes out his stellar career at 57-23-6 (15).

Mar. 2, 1929: It's back to Miami for another strong card of pugilistic action. Harry Wallach defends the USBA JWW title in the feature bout, taking on Mushy Callahan. After some relatively uneventful and close opening rounds, Callahan takes charge with a strong round five. Wallach battles back in an effort to keep his belt. Wallach's left eye is badly swollen by the end of the bout, which goes the distance. It's a fairly solid UD 12 win for Mushy Callahan (117-111, 117-111, 118-110), a surprising result perhaps because of the decisive margin. Post fight, Callahan is now 19-6 (8) and Wallach, 16-9 (9).

Mar. 8, 1929: Back at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto for some more Friday night action. The main event has the talented Canadian WW, Jimmy McLarnin, in action defending his recently won Commonwealth title against British veteran Ted "Kid" Lewis. McLarnin gains the early edge, but he has to overcome a late rally by the aging vet, Lewis, who takes rounds eight and nine to keep the outcome in doubt. However, McLarnin does not disappoint his hometown fans, taking rounds 10 and 11 as Lewis' right eye balloon up as a result. The strong finish seals a solid UD 12 win for McLarnin (116-112, 117-112, 118-111). McLarnin, who moves to 25-2 (18) after the win, has emerged as a legitimate WBA title threat, while Lewis is now 52-19-4 (22).

Mar. 9, 1929: Back to the Stadium at Liverpool in the UK for an abbreviated fight card. Main event sees Johnny Brown, the defending Champ, squaring off against Nipper Pat Daly, the challenger, for the GBU BW title. Brown, who has not defending in over a year, holds an earlier UD win over Daly but has lost his last three. Action is slow to develop, but Brown gains the upper hand in round seven when a nasty cut is opened above Daly's right eye. Near the end of round 10, Brown decks Daly with a nice combination. The bout lasts until the final round, when the cut becomes an issue and leads to a stoppage with just over a minute remaining until the final bell. Despite being at Post-Prime, Brown wins a TKO 12 via the cuts stoppage to retain the belt. Brown is now 25-8-3 (18) while Nipper Pat slips to 22-9-2 (11).

Mar. 9, 1929: Comiskey Park in Chicago is the venue for the next fight card. Featured bout is for the vacant USBA JLW title (vacated by new WBA JLW Champ Benny Bass), matching aging veteran Steve Sullivan with Jack Bernstein. Sullivan suffers a nick under his eye in round four, and then later on in the fight, both eyes start to puff up. Bernstein, the younger and quicker man, is much more active and builds a points lead and takes a fairly comfortable UD 12 win (118-109, 116-111, 116-111) to capture the belt. Bernstein emerges from the win with a 23-14-1 (6) career record, and Sullivan, who is now at End career stage, is at 36-26-7 (9).

Mar. 15, 1929: More "Friday Night Down Under" action, as Frank Moody defends the Commonwealth MW title versus Aussie challenger Alf Stewart. Both are at Post-Prime and, having split two prior bouts (each registering a KO win), this one should prove interesting. After just three rounds, Moody's left eye is starting to puff up. However, the defending Champ grits his teeth in the middle rounds and, by the end of round six, both Stewart's eyes are starting to swell. Stewart becomes the aggressor in the later rounds, finally finding the range with a nice combination that puts Moody down and out in round 11. Stewart takes the title with a KO 11; post-fight, he moves to 22-12-3 (17), while Moody is now 37-17-4 (13).

Mar. 16, 1929: Rome, Italy is once again the scene of top-flight European competition, and this time no titles are on the line. Featured main event is a 10-round non-title tilt between two top 10 MWs, top-rated Frankie Schoell and long-time top contender. #8 ranked Dave Shade. Schoell is confident of repeating two prior wins over Shade (both by UDs). Schoell quietly builds an early lead, and a gash over the left eye in round six further slows Shade's progress. Near the end of round eight, Schoell puts Shade down briefly with a nice combination. Shade is then cut over the other eye, and the bout is halted. Because the second cut is ruled the result of an accidental butt, it goes to the scorecards after seven, all of which favor Schoell. Schoell takes a UTD 8 (69-63, 67-65, 68-64) to retain his status as #1 contender to Mickey Walker's WBA crown. Schoell's record post-fight is now 34-11-3 (11). The loss leaves Shade at 28-13-5 (9).

[JCWeb]

Wrapping up the month of March 1929 ...

Mar. 16, 1929: Action moves to the Mammoth Gardens in Denver. One young HW making a successful debut is Max Adabelbert Baer, the "Livermore Larruper," who takes out his TC opponent, Harvey Weston, via a second round TKO after having put his opponent on the deck twice in the scheduled four-rounder. The co-feature has two unbeaten MW prospects, "Tacoma Assassin" Freddie Steele and Roy "Showboat" McQuillan. Steele wastes little time, dropping "Showboat" with a vicious hook near the end of round one. Steele follows up with another strong shot for a second KD in round two. No more interesting developments until round six, when McQuillan gets careless and runs into a combination from Steele for knockdown #3. This time, Steele takes full advantage and finishes the job with a fourth KD that puts "Showboat" down for the count. Steele by KO 6 to move his overall career totals to 14-0 (13) while McQuillan is now 10-1 (8). With one more win, a debut spot in the top 20 of MW ranks looms as a likely reward for Steele, who seems destined for a really great career.

Speaking of fighters who have had great careers, ex-HW king and all-time great Jack Dempsey, the "Manassa Mauler," is returning to his roots in Colorado and taking on a much, younger top-flight HW, Floyd Johnson, in the main event. After a couple of so-so rounds, Dempsey begins to stalk his man in earnest in round three, seizing control on the inside. Johnson offers up little in the way of defense, and soon blow after unanswered blow from the fists of the former Champ causes both Johnson's eyes to swell up. Finally, the ref steps in to save Johnson from further punishment. It goes down as a TKO 3 for Dempsey, and it is the second strong performance in a row for the former Champ, who -- even though at Post-Prime -- may still be a serious title threat. It also puts Dempsey within one of the 50 KO career mark, a milestone that has been achieved by only two other HWs. Post-fight records: Dempsey, 54-9-1 (49); Johnson, 26-7-1 (21).

Mar. 22, 1929: Atlantic City's Convention is the scene for the next "Friday night" card. A series of bouts leads up to the main event, a USBA LH title clash featuring the defending Champ, Ad Stone, taking on up-and-comer Young Firpo. Stone, who is battling the effects of aging in his second bout at Post-Prime, finds Young Firpo to be a tough opponent. After a close five opening rounds, Stone delivers a nice uppercut that sends Firpo crashing to the canvas in round six. A game Firpo battles back, however, and Stone begins to feel the effect of the accumulated blows as his right eye starts to swell in round ten. Then, in round 11, Firpo finds the range with an wicked uppercut to the head. A groggy Stone barely manages to beat the count. After an action-packed final round that sees both men going for the knockout, the bout goes to the scorecards. The result, a MD 12 win for Young Firpo (115-111, 114-114, 114-112) to become the new USBA LH Champ. The win moves Firpo's career totals to 19-2-2 (14) while Stone winds up the bout at 30-4 (19).

Mar. 23, 1929: Palais du Sport in Cannes, France is the scene of the next fight card, featuring a fan favorite, EBU LW Champ "French Flash" Benny Valgar, who is matched with Chilean Stanislaus Loayza in a 10-round LW non-title bout. Loayza starts well against a subpar Valgar. Benny rallies a bit in the middle rounds, opening a cut under the right eye of the Chilean. Late in the bout, swelling appears around the cut eye, but it doesn't seem to slow down Loayza who goes on to score an upset UD 10 win (97-94, 96-94, 97-95). With the win, Loayza, now 20-9-2 (10), moves into a top 10 position while Valgar, who is 39-13-2 (13) post-fight, still has the EBU title but, tonight, fans of the Frenchman went home disappointed.

Mar. 23, 1929: More action at the Gran Stadium in Havana, Cuba. Feature bout has two US HWs, Lanky Ralph Smith and Young Stribling, matched together for the NABF title now held by Smith. In round three, an aggressive Smith has caused a cut to open under Stribling's left eye. A lap later, though, it is the "King of the Canebrakes" who dominates the action, decking Smith for an eight-count with a strong shot. Stribling gradually wears Smith down, taking a points lead into the later rounds. By the end of round 10, Smith is bleeding from a cut lip. Lanky Ralph does not give up, and his persistence is rewarded when he sends Stribling to the canvas in round 11 with a strong shot of his own. The bout goes the distance, and Stribling takes a UD 12 (115-111, 114-112, 115-111), overcoming Smith's late surge. Stribling moves to 31-5-1 (18) while Smith is now 20-7-1 (7).

Mar. 29, 1929: Into the final fight weekend, and it's Friday night fights at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Mickey Walker is making another WBA MW title defense, and this time his challenger is the impressive Theodore "Tiger" Flowers, who has done well recently, capturing the USBA and then the NABF MW belts in quick succession. While Flowers has won his last six in a row (remarkable for a fighter who is at Post-Prime), this will be Walker's 14th title defense, and the last six have ended with Walker winning inside the distance. Nonetheless, Flowers seizes the initiative and takes advantage of an opening in round five, when he nails "the Toy Bulldog" with a sharp combination that causes Mickey to take a seat on the canvas. However, later in the round, Flowers sustains a cut over his left eye that could spell trouble. The cut is patched up but reopened by a Walker blow in round seven. The end comes a couple of rounds later when Walker stuns "the Georgia Deacon" with a vicious hook and, after Flowers covers up, reopens the cut a second time. The ref, Abe Goldstein, calls a halt and it goes down as a TKO 9 win for Walker. Another successful defense and Walker is 40-1 (31); Flowers, who gave a good accounting of himself, is now 36-13-1 (17).

Mar. 30, 1929: Back to London, England, this time at the Olympia. Headlining this packed fight card are a couple of bouts showcasing some talented British fighters. First, in the co-main event, it's Len Harvey, the current EBU and Commonwealth LH Champ, against former World Champ, grizzled veteran Harry "the Human Windmill" Greb; the two are going 10 rounds in a non-title affair. Harvey establishes his superior boxing skills in the early rounds, repeatedly beating Greb to the punch. By the middle rounds, Greb is carrying his hands low as a result of being on the receiving end of the accumulated blows from Harvey. In round nine, Harvey picks off a Greb jab and then drops the veteran with a nice shot. Greb pops back up, but the damage is done, and for the rest of the bout he looks like a shell of his former great self. The bout goes the distance, and it's a UD 10 win for Harvey, as expected, but the margin (96-93, 96-93, 97-92) is a bit closer than many ringside observers expected.

The ring is then cleared for the featured bout of the evening, a 12-rounder for the vacant British Flyweight title (vacated by Elky Clark who once again went on to claim the WBA crown). Matched together are Johnny Hill and Kid Socks. Hill, who won a narrow SD 12 over Socks for the Commonwealth belt in 1928, is now at Post-Prime, and Socks is primed to avenge that loss. Socks is more active in the early rounds of what proves to be a bit of a boring contest. Both men tire badly in the later rounds, and Socks hangs on for a MD 12 win (117-111, 114-114, 117-111) to capture the vacant belt. Post-fight, Socks is 22-9-1 (8), with Hill at 17-4 (11).

Mar. 30, 1929: Final fight card of the month, an abbreviated one, takes place at the Rizal Arena in the Philippines. Only one bout of note, for the OPBF FW title, a rematch between the defending Champion, Young Nationalista and the challenger, his countryman Ignacio Fernandez. This one turns out to be an exciting bout, as Fernandez comes out aggressively in the early rounds. However, this leaves him open to the strong counterpunching from Nationalista, and the challenger's left eye starts to puff up near the end of the third round as a result. Nationalista connects with a big uppercut, and Fernandez goes down as a result. Strong performance through the middle rounds by the Champ, who staggers Fernandez with a straight right but cannot follow up. Fernandez starts carrying his hands low as a result. Fernandez survives into the later rounds, and he is seeking to land a big shot to get back into the fight. In round 11, Nationalista gets a bit overconfident, leaving himself open for a big hook from Fernandez that lands flush on the jaw, stunning the Champion. The fans are on their feet as the challenger follows up with a knockdown right before the bell. The frenzied activity continues into the final round as the two Filipinos battle away. Fernandez gets in the final shot, a hard uppercut at the bell and raises his hands in triumph. The late surge is enough to give Fernandez a well deserved UD 12 win (115-114, 115-113, 116-112) to turn the tables on Nationalista and capture the belt. Fernandez moves to 19-3 (11) with the win, while Nationalista slips to 25-6-2 (9).

[JCWeb]

Moving on to bouts from the first half of April, 1929.

Apr. 5, 1929: April action gets under way with Friday night fights moving to Vancouver's Exhibition Gardens. Main event is for the NABF Flyweight title, featuring Lew Perfetti defending against the higher rated challenger, Newsboy Brown. Brown, who won a UD 10 over Perfetti in 1927, enters the title tilt as a slight favorite. The two are evenly matched for the first four rounds, then Brown seems to gain the upper hand in the middle rounds. Into the later rounds, all of a sudden a clash of heads in the ninth round causes a cut to be sliced open over Perfetti's left eye. Good cornerwork stops the bleeding, and Perfetti manages to hang on to the title with a draw (114-113 Perfetti, 114-115 Brown, 114-114). It's the second draw in succession in two title defenses for Perfetti, who stands at 21-8-4 (10) after the bout. Post-fight, Brown is 29-4-2 (10), retaining a higher ranking but does not come away with a title belt.

Apr. 6, 1929: More fistic action at the Stadium in Liverpool. The GBU LW title is on the line, with Ernie Rice defending for the first time in over two years (since early 1927) against challenger "Leeds" Harry Mason. Rice has two prior wins over Mason (both inside the distance) but is now at Post-Prime. Both men chooses to work on the outside, taking a conservative approach, for much of the first half of the bout. Mason pulls ahead to a slight points lead. In round seven, the challenger suffers a cut over his left eye. The cut is reopened a couple of round later, and Mason shrugs it off and manages to last the distance. He is rewarded with a MD 12 verdict (115-112, 114--14, 115-113) to lift the belt off Rice, who had held it since 1922. Post fight, Mason is 26-10-2 (4) and Rice, 27-16-1 (15).

Apr. 6, 1929: The action moves to Soldier Field in Chicago, where an outdoor ring is set up for a series of bouts leading to the main event, a WW title bout with Benny Leonard defending the title against the top-rated challenger, Joe Dundee. Dundee, the NABF Champ, gets off to a good start and is actually leading according to one ringside observer (48-47) after the first five rounds. But, in the middle rounds, an unruffled Benny Leonard calmly goes to work and puts on his usual superior boxing display, turning the bout around in his favor. After 10 rounds, Dundee's right eye is swelling up and the unofficial scorer now has Leonard up by four (97-93) after having won all of rounds four through 10. Benny eases up a bit in the later rounds, focusing on defense, but Dundee is too tired to mount a comeback. Thus, another solid UD 15 win for Leonard (146-139, 146-139, 145-140) who now appears to be dominating the WW class as well as he did in the LW ranks. Leonard moves to 73-3-1 (41) after the win, while Dundee is now 30-8-4 (12).

Apr. 12, 1929: Friday night fights action returns to the Amor Bahn in Munich, Germany, where the featured action is not, as previously announced, German HW Max Schmeling, who is resting up as negotiations broke down on a possible EBU title clash. Instead, the featured main event has veteran German HW Hans Breitenstrater, now at Post-Prime, taking on French Canadian star Elzear Rioux in a 10-round, non-title matchup. Rioux appears determined to make the most of the opportunity, seizing the initiative from the opening bell and causing Breitenstrater's left eye to start swelling up by the end of round one. Rioux continues to press his advantage, piling up a points lead and dominating most of the action into the middle rounds. As the bout enters the later rounds, Breitenstrater tries to step up the pace and become more aggressive. In round nine, the crowd comes to life as the Gerrman tags Rioux with a straight right; the Canadian wisely elects to cover up and avoids a knockdown or worse. The swelling around his eye has worsen, and a tired Breitenstrater is vulnerable to a strong shot from Rioux that puts him on the deck for an eight-count in the final round. Breitenstrater struggles to regain his footing and manges to last the distance. The end result, a UD 10 for Rioux (97-91, 96-92, 96-92) comes as no surprise. Rioux is now 19-8 (14) while Breitenstrater dips to 24-11-3 (19).

Apr. 13, 1929: More fight action is set for Boston Garden, and the fans have gathered to see the "Boston Gob," Jack Sharkey, defend his WBA HW crown against challenger George Godfrey, aka "the Leiperville Shadow." First up, though, is the main support or co-feature bout, with two rising young HWs -- Jim Maloney and Tuffy Griffith -- matched in one of the proverbial "crossroads" bouts. It is Griffith's first bout at Prime, and he starts off well, ripping open a cut over Maloney's right eye in the opening round. A few rounds later, the other eye starts to swell up, and then finally Griffith breaks down Maloney's defenses with three KDs in round seven, leading to an early end. Griffith by TKO 7; the win moves Tuffy to 19-2 (13) while Maloney is now 18-5-1 (16).

Then, in the WBA title affair, Sharkey starts well, outboxing Godfrey in the first two rounds. In round three, however, the challenger steps up the pace, and Sharkey walks into an uppercut. The Champ tumbles to the deck and scrambles back up to beat the count. He tries to cover up to survive the round, but Godfrey is quick to take advantage, putting Sharkey to the canvas a second time. This time the Champ does not arise, and the belt changes hands via a KO 3 for Godfrey. Godfrey, the new Champ, now sports a 38-8-1 (27) career record, while questions remain about Sharkey (now 21-3, 14 KO) and his ability to take a punch.

Apr. 13, 1929: Next fight card is in the warm weather at the Dodge Theatre in Phoenix, Arizona. First, in one of the preliminary bouts, an exciting young HW, Max Baer, scores his second KO in as many pro bouts, impressing the fight fans. Then, a few bouts later, it is unbeaten WW prospect Jackie Fields in a matchup with Freddie Polo. Turns out to be a stern test for Fields, who gets nailed with a big uppercut from Polo in round six, but recovers to turn the fight around and claim a TKO win a round later. The TKO 7 win moves Fields to 16-0-1 (12) overall, possibly good enough for a top 15 ranking. After several other preliminary bouts, it is on to the main event, for the NABF LW crown, where Billy Petrolle defends versus Maxie Strub. Strub is able to keep up with Petrolle for the first four rounds, but in round five he falls victim to an overhand right from Petrolle that lands flush. Knockdown #1. Petrolle cannot follow up, and Strub is able to weather the storm, taking a couple of rounds to clear his head. The bout goes into the later rounds, and once again Petrolle, billed as "the Fargo Express," strikes again with a combination for knockdown #2. At this point, Strub's right eye is beginning to swell up. Then, in the final round, knockdown #3 is recorded as a big hook connects for Petrolle. Strub is fortunate to last the distance but, as expected, the UD 12 goes to Petrolle (114-110, 116-108, 116-108) although a four-point margin seemed way too narrow. Post-fight, Petrolle moves to 27-3-2 (17) and is clearly a top contender for the WBA crown, while Strub, now 19-3-1 (9), head back to the gym to work on eliminating some defensive shortcomings.

[JCWeb]

Wrapping up action for the month of April, 1929 ...

Apr. 19, 1929: Another Friday night fight card "Down Under," this time in Melbourne, Australia. Feature bout has two Filipinos matched together for the OPBF WW title, with Lope Tenorio making his first defense in over a year. The challenger, Irineo Flores, is making his second bid for this title after falling short in his first try six years earlier. After a strong start by the challenger, Tenorio seems to be really flat -- having a bad off-night. Flores gradually wears down the Champ, and Tenorio is unable to mount a comeback. Flores by UD 12 (116-112, 116-112, 115-113) in an impressive performance to lift the belt from the underperforming Tenorio. Post-fight records: Irineo Flores, 28-10-2 (7); Tenorio, 22-5-5 (6).

Apr. 20, 1929: The Sports Palazzo in Rome, Italy is the scene for the next fight card. First, in one of the preliminary bouts, Primo Carnera struggles to a draw in a six-round bout with a TC; the hiccup leaves his record at 3-0-1 (2). Then, after a series of preliminary bouts, it's time for the main event. The EBU BW title is up for grabs, with Kid Francis defending on home soil against British challenger Teddy Baldock. Baldock is seeking to regain the belt, and he starts off very aggressively, keeping Francis off balance throughout the first four rounds. It isn't until round nine when Francis finally gets on track, landing a big right. However, his comeback is short-lived as, one round later, a cut is opened over his right eye. Francis' comeback falls short, as Baldock collects a UD 12 (117-112, 117-112, 118-112) to regain the belt. The win moves Baldock's career totals to 23-10-1 (11) while Kid Francis winds up the bout at 19-4-2 (13).

Apr. 20, 1929: Back to US soil, Roosevelt Stadium in Jersey City, for a somewhat "lesser" fight card. No titles at stake, and the main event is a 10-round LH clash between Lou Scozza and George Nichols, two rated boxers seeking to build up their records and crack the top ten. Nichols, boxing well, builds an early points lead. Then, in the later rounds, Scozza starts applying more pressure and puts his opponent on the defensive. Nichols' left eye starts to puff up and, in round nine, Scozza nails him with a hard cross. Nichols covers up, hoping to stay on his feet until the bell, but Scozza's killer instinct kicks in, and another strong cross leads to a knockdown. Nichols cannot beat the count. KO 9 to Scozza, moving him to 21-1 (17) and a top 10 spot in the LH rankings. The loss drops Nichols to 22-9-2 (8).

Apr. 26, 1929: The final Friday night fight card of the month is at Coliseum Arena in New Orleans, and ref Harry Ertle oversees the action. A series of bouts leads up to the feature, a WBA LH title clash between the defending Champ, Ever Hammer, and the #1 challenger, Roy Miller. The bout is expected to be a tough one for the Champ, who suffered a UD 10 loss to Miller in late 1926. Action is slow to develop, with Hammer beginning to get on target from long range in the early going. This causes Miller's left eye to start puffing up by the end of round three, making it an inviting target for Hammer, who builds a solid lead (49-46) on the unofficial card after five. In the middle rounds, Miller also begins to find the range, and Hammer's left eye starts to swell up as well. Both men seems to tire badly as the bout heads into the later rounds, with Miller making inroads as the unofficial scorer has Hammer's lead cut to just two (96-94) after 10 rounds. The challenger's late surge is halted when Hammer rebounds with a strong performance in round 13. In the following round, the bout comes to an unexpected and surprising finish as Miller complains of a hand injury. This leads to his retirement, and the bout goes into the books as a TKO 14 win for Hammer. A peek at the judges' scorecards showed a slight lead for the Champ on all three cards, so no real complaint from the challenger's corner. Too soon to say if a rematch is in the offing, as it will take awhile for Miller's injured hand to heal. Hammer moves to 43-15-5 (18) after the win, while Miller is now 27-4 (13).

Apr. 27, 1929: Britain's Harringay Arena is the scene of the next fight card as action returns to London. First up, in one of the preliminary bouts, veteran WW Bermondsey Billy Wells, the current EBU WW titleholder, is matched with American WW contender Pete Latzo; Wells eked out a SD 10 win an earlier bout, four years ago. Trouble for the hometown fighter right from the start, as Wells suffers a cut under his left eye in the third round. The eye starts to swell midway through the bout, as Wells is on the receiving end of numerous blows from Latzo. This time, Bermondsey is unable to mount a comeback, as he is thoroughly outboxed and outhustled by Latzo, who takes a UD 10 (98-92 on all three cards). Latzo moves to 30-10-1 (11) with the win; Wells slips to 44-12-2 (16).

All of this is preliminary to the main event, a JWW title bout where Jack Kid Berg defends his WBA belt against top-ranked contender, Tony Canzoneri. Canzoneri, the popular "Roman Warrior" is taking the bout despite being one bout short of hitting his career Prime. Berg starts well, dominating the early action. Canzoneri moves to the inside in round three, with better results. In round four, he is warned by ref Hugh McIntosh for leaning on Berg in the inside exchanges. After five rounds, Canzoneri has a narrow 48-47 edge on the unofficial ringdside observer's card. The middle rounds of the bout are all very close and could go either way. Berg, the "Whitechapel Whirlwind," opens a cut under Canzoneri's right eye in round six. In round 10, it is Berg who suffers a cut over his left eye. Canzoneri still has a narrow lead on the unofficial card (96-94) as the bout heads into the final rounds. Berg battles back, staggering Canzoneri with a big uppercut in round 11. Canzoneri is bothered by the cut, which is reopened twice, finally leading to a stoppage in round 12. Berg by TKO 12 on the cuts stoppage -- a look at the judges' cards showed Berg, the defending Champion, holding a narrow lead on two of the three cards. The successful defense means Berg is now 21-1-2 (11), while Canzoneri finishes up the Pre-Prime stage of his career at 18-2 (11). As both men are still quite young and appear to have bright futures ahead of them, this bout could serve as the beginning of a long-lived rivalry surviving well into the next decade.

Apr. 27, 1929: Final fight card of the month is at the Polo Grounds in New York City. Featured is the final bout of the evening, the main event, for the WBA LH crown that has been held for the past three years by Tommy Loughran. This time Loughran's opponent is the hard-hitting Paul Berlenbach, setting up a classic boxer versus puncher confrontation that has drawn the interest of fight fans everyewhere. Loughran, who has not lost since 1925, receives a rude awakening in the opening round when Berlenbach unleashes a powerful uppercut, then follows up and puts Loughran down in a barrage of punches. Loughran arises at the count of seven, then covers up to survive the onslaught. A few rounds later, in the fourth, a big right hook from Berlenbach stuns the Champ. After this, however, the bout takes a predictable pattern, as the slick-boxing Loughran patiently and deliberately builds a points lead by working from the outside and -- most importantly -- staying out of trouble. By the end of round 11, Berlenbach's punches lack sting, plus the challenger is bothered by a swollen left eye that is gradually worsening. The bout goes the distance, and -- despite the early knockdown -- it's another UD 15 win for Loughran (145-139, 145-139, 144-140) to move Tommy to 37-4-2 (13) overall compared to 21-5 (16) for Berlenbach.