Hey, Henry. I don't think that's boring at all what you said about the Joe Louis Memorial and Bert Sugar. That's great!
Seems to me I read a post yesterday, you said you was ring annoucer at some pro fight yesterday, but I don't remember exactly where ... so how did the fight go?
As for your mention about others sports baseball ... really I don't know why? But since I took up boxing at the gym at age 9, in 1960, could have been late 1959, but I think was in 1960 when I was a kid. Maybe I'm weird ... but I just could never get interested in other sports not even football. It all bored me. It has always be boxing with me. Really its only been the only sport I'd ever cared all that much for. Maybe because my father was a fighter and I am in a certian sense born into the thing, and so close to it even from the day I was born. When I was born my dad's trainer even had given me my name ... that is, my nickname "Butch." I think it must have been a kind of popular nickname when I was born in 1951. I'm not sure.
As for your mention of Holly Smith I have no further information on him. But it maybe be he was amatuer boxer at the time he was a sparring partner for Joe Louis.
But maybe such things as that isn't or wasn't so unusual for I know that a few years before my dad turned pro as a lightweight fighter ... he was Wille Pep's sparring partner here in Texas in the early 1950's when Willie was here preparing for a world title fight. At the time my dad was Willie's sparring partner he was the golden gloves lightweight state champion and before that the golden gloves state featherweight champion several times.
I had always been curious about that too. My dad is now 74 years old, even recently I had asked him about it on Thanksgiving Day ... during our family get togather.
"Hey, dad. Tell me about the time you was a sparring partner for Willie Pep. What was it like to be in the ring with him?" My dad just smiles and says "Oh, you know just sparring just like sparring with anybody else." I say "Oh, come on, pop, Wille was one of the greats!" LOL
And I've never been able to ever get him to say any thing more about it than that. But only to just praise Willie as being one of the greats, and as being a really nice guy.
Any way, I'm wanting to get around to near calling this Marciano-Louis Fight ... near as possible round per round .. for I just love re-living the old fights in a certian sense.
Sometimes I think I was born too late ... I just have been born in 1931 instead of 1951. Because I like that era back in the late 1940s and 1950s ... and boxing especially as it was especially in that era too. Also the fact that things seem to be more innocent back then, and far different than the way things are today.
Just a little more before I get more into this Marciano-Louis fight ... as I saw it (on tape). I just want to say a little more now about Joe Louis .. or at least what I think I know about Joe Louis and about the time too he fought Rocky.
As I understand it Joe Louis always had quick reflexes and one hellavua punch. He had quick reflexes and power. He his prime he was great fighter and he had the killer instinct and could get the knockout with either hand.
But also Louis was like every fighter has a weakness, he did not have all that good a balance, and wasn't all that hard to hit with punches. He'd been knocked out only one time, but knocked down many times.
Max Schmeling, Jersey Joe Walcott, Buddy Baer, Two-ton Tony Galento, and some others that could also be named had floored him.
I had also read something about Joe Louis's amatuerr boxing career that he was once over matched in a bout with an Olymic boxer a guy named Johnny Miller who knocked Louis down 7 times in 2 rounds.
But Louis developed in into being later a really great fighter always moving forward and seem to be invincible. He forced his opponents to fight defensively and alot of them would be afraid of him and paralyzed with fear long before they entered the ring with him.
Its my experience of once being there as an amatuer that boxing is as much mental as physical and even more so mental in certian sense than physical.
As for Rocky Marciano .. no question he had alot of bottom to him, he had the guts of a lion, and that was just his nature just the way he was and he was like bull charging and brawler always, always on the offense.
Going into the fight with Louis ... Rocky had 37 fights and had knocked out all but 5 of his opponents as a professional without having never been beaten by any body.
Rocky was confident of beating Louis going into the fight.
But public bragging and boosting was not Rocky's way. He was proud and confident ... and would always say he'll win to his friends, but he never liked guys who'd going around boasting about how good they are publicly, and his favorite saying was "Do it. Don't talk about it."
I like that!
Kind of like what you said, Henry, why would a guy be fighting guy if he didn't think he'd win.
On the other hand, as I watched Evander Holyfield's first fight here in Dallas on making his recent comeback against the insurance salesman Jermey Bates as I watched how he over all fought in my opinion Bates just gave up and put the gloves to his face due to being over whelmed by Holyfield in the second round ... it became clear to me at least that he was just there for a pay day, and knew he had no chance whatsoever in in beating Holyfield and knew he was way outclassed going into the fight, and much of the fight as short the fight was in which Holyfield won by a TKO in the 2 nd round, and near got it in the 1 st round. It was clear to me at least that Bates was just there for a payday. Hey, for him $ 20,000 was good pay day for what? Just a little more than just a few minutes work.
And what about Holyfield? Three quarters of a million dollars for just a little more than just a few minutes work.
Joe Louis no doubt was even more desperate for money than those two guys were ... but I don't see that his fight with Rocky Marciano had been that kind of deal. I hope you are understanding what I'd trying to say?
