A week by week look at the boxing world in 1931 by Andrew Fruman.
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Former 175lb Champion - Tommy Loughran
Loughran Hands Baer Embarrassing Defeat
February 6… Tommy Loughran (183) turned in a masterful performance, handing Max Baer (200 ½) a ten round drubbing before a crowd of just over 12,000 spectators at Madison Square Garden in New York. The former 175lb champion constantly kept the dangerous Californian off balance, bloodying Baer’s nose and mouth with a steady stream of left jabs, while mixing in an assortment of hooks, crosses, and whacks to the body.
Baer was made to look wild and foolish at times, though the heavy-handed youngster did have a few good moments, catching Loughran with some solid shots in a couple early rounds, before almost breaking through in the ninth. In that late session, Baer managed to drive Loughran to the ropes after landing a flush left hook on the point of the chin, though the clever veteran was able to box his way out of trouble.
So comprehensive was Loughran’s victory that the Associated Press scorecard had the Philadelphia fighter winning all ten rounds. The United Press and the New York Times had the battle a little closer, giving Loughran a 7-3 edge, while the International News Service scored the bout 6-3-1.
Max Baer & Ancil Hoffman
The loss left Baer’s handlers with plenty of concern over his future prospects, with San Francisco promoter Ancil Hoffman openly questioning the heavyweight’s ability. Hoffman, acting as Baer’s manager on the two-month New York trip, told the press that Baer was “simply just another heavyweight now with no ambition and entirely lacking in fighting spirit.”
Image Courtesy of Antiquities of the Prize Ring
Back in California, Baer’s manager Hamilton J. Lorimer placed blame for the fighter’s performance squarely on Hoffman’s shoulders, calling his partner out for pushing Baer into a fight he wasn’t ready for. After talking it out, the management team agreed it was best for Baer to return home to California and apply for reinstatement with the local commission in order to build his confidence back up.
As for Loughran, the win helped wipe away memories of his previous New York appearance back in September of 1929, when he was hammered in three rounds by Jack Sharkey. “I’m happy that I won.” Loughran said in his dressing room afterward. “I’ve worked hard for this triumph. I didn’t want New York, of all places , to forget Tommy Loughran. I owe them an unpaid debt. That Sharkey fight. I’ll get him now and he’ll be like Baer.”
Speedy Dado Wins California Bantamweight Crown
February 10… Speedy Dado (115) won the California bantamweight title with a ten round decision victory over Newsboy Brown (114 ½) at the Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles. It was the first state sanctioned championship contest since the CSAC had announced the introduction of state titles at a meeting the previous month.
Speedy Dado
The flashy Filipino, a slight underdog heading into the bout, set a very quick pace as he built up an early lead, before sealing the victory with a knockdown late in the ninth round. Brown had worked his way back into contention over the middle rounds, and finished strongly in the tenth when he tried in vain for the stoppage he needed.
The fighters had previously met back in 1928, with Dado forced to pull out after six rounds due to a shoulder injury. Dado re-injured the troublesome joint again in July of 1930, tearing ligaments and breaking a small bone after slipping to the canvas against Midget Wolgast. Forced to sit out several months after both injuries, Dado had worked his way back to 100% in the months leading up to the rematch with Brown.
More Boxing News For the Week of February 5 – February 11
February 5… Madison Square Garden matchmaker Tom McArdle announced that he’d come to terms with the managers of King Tut and Billy Petrolle for a February 27 meeting. Offers had been pouring in for a return bout between the two Midwest rivals since Tut’s 24 second destruction of Petrolle the previous week. The bout is expected to draw a gate in the neighborhood of $50,000.
*****
February 9… Welterweight champion Tommy Freeman (155 ¼) had little trouble with Al “Kid” Kober (152 ½), stopping the overmatched Texan in the fifth round of a scheduled ten at the Coliseum Arena in New Orleans. It was a clear mismatch from the start, with Kober on shaky legs and bloodied by the end of the opening session. By the time Referee Jimmy Moran called a halt to the contest, Kober’s face was a mask of blood with many in attendance relieved the one-sided slaughter had finally ended.
The win was the fourth in just over four weeks for the title holder, who had taken a few months off after winning the crown the previous September from Young Jack Thompson in Cleveland. As for the former champion, Thompson is said to be back in training after a lengthy vacation. Word out of California is that he will need quite a bit of time in the gym before he’s back in fighting trim.
*****
February 9… With Jack Dempsey overseeing the action as the third man, Sam Bruce (146 ½) held off a fast charging Bucky Lawless (151) of Syracuse to win a ten round split decision at the Broadway Auditorium in Buffalo. The welterweight clash was a hard fought encounter, with local reports calling it one of the best bouts Buffalo fans had seen in recent years.
Having been floored in the opening session, and outfought from long range for many of the early rounds, Lawless came to life down the stretch. He staggered Bruce in the eighth and ninth rounds, and was having much the better of the tenth, only to be dropped for the second time in the bout moments before the final bell. The strong finishing kick won over many of the spectators, but wasn’t quite enough in the eyes of the judges to overcome the hometown fighter’s lead.
Dempsey was a hit with the fans, drawing the crowd’s favor by breaking clinches quickly while chatting it up with ringsiders between rounds. The former heavyweight champion governed the bouts with an intense scowl and at times looked as if he wished he could join in on the action, as he bobbed and weaved with the fighters.
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February 9… Max Schmeling made his first appearance in an American ring since becoming heavyweight champion the previous summer, boxing three exhibition rounds with sparring partners on the undercard of a show in Baltimore. Schmeling’s ring work was the first of a planned two month tour that will take the German through fourteen states and forty-eight cities.
The latest word on Schmeling’s summer clash with Young Stribling, has Cleveland as the favorite to land the title bout. According to a report in the Cleveland Plain Dealer, the city’s modern new stadium should be ready just in time to host the contest.
*****
Light-Heavyweight Contender - Leo Lomski
February 11… Leo Lomski (180) survived some anxious early moments, battling through the final six rounds with his left eye cut and badly swollen to earn a ten round draw with George Manley (174) at the Auditorium in Portland. It was a grueling, hard fought struggle, with Lomski using a persistent body attack to crowd and back his lanky opponent up, with Manley landing the heavier blows from long range, countering the pressure with a number of flush right hands.
Image Courtesy of Antiquities of the Prize Ring
At the close of hostilities, the officials were split across the board, with one voting for Lomski, one for Manley, and the other calling it a draw. The verdict didn’t sit well with everyone. Lomski’s manager Eddie Eicher was furious, insisting that his fighter took eight of the ten rounds. Naturally, the other side was just as burned up, with Manley’s manager Dutch Schwemler, angrily claiming his fighter had been short changed, calling the decision a robbery.
*****
February 11… An aging Harry Wills (217) made a rare start, knocking out Jack Rose (194 ½) in the sixth round of a scheduled ten at the Coliseum Arena in New Orleans. The 41-year-old Wills (he told the local press he was only 38) had originally been slated to oppose Jack Johnson, but the former heavyweight champion pulled out of his planned comeback bout the previous week.
Rose offered few problems for Wills, though he did shake the bigger man up with a right hand in the fourth round, but was unable to follow-up and was on the receiving end of some heavy body work by the close of the session. Rose was in full retreat in the fifth, and was flattened by a right hand in the following round.
Quotes of the Week…
Tags: al kober, billy petrolle, bucky lawless, george manley, harry wills, Jack Dempsey, Jack Johnson, jack rose, king tut, leo lomski, MAX BAER, MAX SCHMELING, newsboy brown, sam bruce, speedy dado, tommy freeman, tommy loughran, young jack thompson, Young Stribling“Baer’s greatest asset was his fighting spirit and his tiger-like style in tearing into an opponent when he had him hurt. He has lost all that now and simply can’t fight. In the Loughran bout last night we tried to stir him out of his lethargic attitude. We insulted him between rounds and Gus Wilson, one of his seconds, even slapped his face. The old Max Baer would have become fighting mad at this kind of treatment, but the Baer of today is meek as a lamb and absolutely refuses to become aroused.”
– Ancil Hoffman
“I was so ashamed of myself. I could hardly hold my head up. I did my best; but I knew it ought to have been a lot better. I knew what that crowd must be thinking about me, and whatever it was, I couldn’t blame ‘em. I deserved to have my nose punched off, and I almost did. But I’m still not discouraged. I know now how much I have to learn and I’m going to learn it if I can. I may be a lot of things, but I’m not a quitter. I only hope I never look so foolish again in the ring.”
– Max Baer
“Max is the greatest prospect I ever saw. In another year he should be the equal of any heavyweight in the game. He’s a hard puncher, a clean, game fighter and a likable fellow.”
– Tommy Loughran
“There is only one Leo Lomski, and it will be a long, long time before Pacific coast boxing sees another like him, more’s the pity. What I so like about Leo isn’t just his sparkling personality, his colourful fighting manner, his relentless crowding nor his thumping punches, but this: that whenever Leo battles you know it will be a great fight. You always are safe in predicting wild eyed action in the main event. Not once in all his years in the ring has Leo “thrown down” the public or the newspapers. He never fought a bad fight, nor an uninteresting one.”
- L. H. Gregory, The Oregonian
FanSided
Cage Pages
Hi Carlos,
I'm afraid my knowledge of Tommy Freeman is quite limited as well. I had read about his bouts with Young Jack Thompson, but knew very little of his years leading up to his title chance. Anyway, I've been looking up some of his early bouts in New Orleans when he was just establishing himself as a coming talent. The Times-Picayune reports indicate he had the required attributes to eventually rise to the top... quick, durable and willing to mix it up. Here's a snippet of one of his first good wins as a 19 year old...
"Courage of a bull dog carried Tommy Freeman of Memphis to a real glorious victory over "Red" Hill, the iron man, last night at the Coliseum arena. Outweighed nearly ten pounds, Freeman won a fight which several times seemed lost to him entirely and while he really showed ring judgment of a "sap", his grit overshadowed his foolishness and Referee Joe Martin made a popular decision when he elevated Freeman's hand at the end of the gruelling, fifteen-round scrap which topped one of the most enjoyable boxing shows ever seen here." - Times-Picayune, November 17, 1923
Regarding Leo Lomski, in that era, simply putting up a good show was arguably as important as winning or losing, maybe more so. There were so many boxing markets capable of drawing good crowds, and guys willing to grind it out were always in demand. Today, it's all about safe match-making, with actual entertainment nearly always a distant afterthought.
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