Who are your favorite bare knuckled boxers?

fvck John L Sullivan....he was a coward...you cant be world champion when you bar an entire group from fighting you Yea, but all those race and social issues aside, he was still a badass from all accounts i've read. I mean, I get your point, especially being a fellow minority, but I can't cling to stuff like that all the time, I'm not going to add a disclaimer to every champ out there because he may/may not have faced the best at the time mainly to circumstances out of their control. Jack Johnson and John Sullivan were both bad mofos in my book, nevermind anything else other than the fact that they were two fighers, tough as nails, courageous. All I see are fighters, the rest doesn't matter to me.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CiCHoU6WMAICJMs.jpg My fave is Lenny though Honourable mention to Roy shaw

My friend LoadsofWraps inspired me to make this thread after seeing his about Jefferies and then I started thinking of John L Sullivan and it snowballed. So thanks for that. Alright who are your favorite old school bare knuckled boxers? That bare knuckled John L Sullivan led era is my favorite in boxing history. Along with John L Sullivan here's some of my other favorites. John L. Sullivan http://www.thefightcity.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/JohnLSullivan111.jpg James J. Corbett http://images.fineartamerica.com/images-medium-large/james-j-corbett-granger.jpg Peter Jackson http://www.cyberboxingzone.com/images/PeterJackson-Pose.jpg Jack Dempsey https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/find-a-grave-prod/photos/2006/196/14954727_115310689419.jpg john l sullivan was good but he ducked peter jackson and barred fighting blacks......thats shows a yellow streak.....Corbett was a G...he'd fight anyone and was so innovative to the game. i cant call any fighter a "world champion" who drew the color line....thats weak AF

Sullivan was an absolute savage. He's my early pick without putting too much thought about it. we need my dude therealpugilist and realpugilist in here. fvck John L Sullivan....he was a coward...you cant be world champion when you bar an entire group from fighting you

Looks like a badass. The baddest of all asses

Good stuff, thanks for the links. No problem. Try and order Bartley Gorman's autobiography too.

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/43/b9/d3/43b9d3fa169729a19d73d7f3d82f5223.jpg Looks like a badass.

Joe Savage David Haye Mike Tyson

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/43/b9/d3/43b9d3fa169729a19d73d7f3d82f5223.jpg

I am not 100% clued up on this era of boxing.... But i have read half a book chronicling the life and times of "Jem Mace", and its probably the 2nd best book i have read so far in my entire life! the theme of the book kind of reminds me of the film gangs of New-York.

http://www.jpbean.co.uk/BoldAsaLion.html https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bold-Lion-Bendigo-Champion-England/dp/0950764523 Good stuff, thanks for the links.

Yes. I LOVE that movie! Think it's on netflix. That's what came to mind when I saw this thread. Thanks for this. Really awesome stuff. Going to look this guy up. x2. I will be looking for this biography as well. I was also an avid reader at one point but got turned off by it having to read more books for work than pleasure. Now I am actively trying to stimulate my brain that way and read more often. http://www.jpbean.co.uk/BoldAsaLion.html https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bold-Lion-Bendigo-Champion-England/dp/0950764523

Thanks for the heads up. I didn't know he had a biography. Whats it called? Did a quick search & not seeing anything. Hope its not super rare or something like that. I've been trying to transition to reading more after a long hiatus & this will be right in my wheelhouse. http://www.jpbean.co.uk/BoldAsaLion.html https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bold-Lion-Bendigo-Champion-England/dp/0950764523

Yeah it's really good. Charles Bronson was a beast. https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/13/e8/86/13e886c2e42030cf20c612b5abe71344.jpg That's a different Charles Bronson. http://i4.mirror.co.uk/incoming/article6275134.ece/ALTERNATES/s615/Charles-Bronson.jpg

Charles Bronson......"Hard Times" the original "open hand" (nothing in hand, wraps, coins, gloves etc..) and "Full Contact" (front kick above waist, no sweeps, no head kicks) spinning back fist was ok! I know a little bit about this style and form. This was illegal from it's inception in the early 1920's and was a cross between bare knuckle stand up and toe the line off drops and Savate moves but above the waist only. It has more boxing elements but the legs work can be very damaging just like any leg contact could be. If your dropped you must toe the line no one jumps on a defenseless fighter like in mma. Check out the movie and you'll see that old Charlie had some serious hands! Ray http://www.beyondstrong.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/Charles-Bronson-1.jpg https://www.filmonpaper.com/site/media/2011/08/HardTimes_onesheet-5-500x345.jpg

Has anyone seen that Tom Hardy movie about a bareknuckle fighter?, Bronson or something like that. Yeah it's really good. Charles Bronson was a beast. https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/13/e8/86/13e886c2e42030cf20c612b5abe71344.jpg

Charles Bronson......"Hard Times" the original "open hand" (nothing in hand, wraps, coins, gloves etc..) and "Full Contact" (front kick above waist, no sweeps, no head kicks) spinning back fist was ok! I know a little bit about this style and form. This was illegal from it's inception in the early 1920's and was a cross between bare knuckle stand up and toe the line off drops and Savate moves but above the waist only. It has more boxing elements but the legs work can be very damaging just like any leg contact could be. If your dropped you must toe the line no one jumps on a defenseless fighter like in mma. Check out the movie and you'll see that old Charlie had some serious hands! Ray

Jem Mace Tom Cribb Tom Molineaux Daniel Mendoza Boston Tom McMustache Lenny Maclean Bartley Gorman Decca Heggie

Stanley Ketchell and James Corbett? What the **** are some of you guys talking about. They wasn't bare knuckle lmfao. Corbett fought both, I don't know about ketchell. This article by Cox, as well as the other stuff I read does not describe when he made the transition, though when he fought Fitz it was with gloves. When he Ko'ed Sullivan I believe (I could be wrong here) it was the last Bare knuckles fights! http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/corbett.htm http://coxscorner.tripod.com/corbett.html

Jem Mace Tom Cribb Tom Molineaux Daniel Mendoza Boston Tom McMustache Lenny Maclean Bartley Gorman Decca Heggie