Forgotten contenders

[ShoulderRoll]

I'll throw out Joe Lipsey.

When I was a kid he was destined for greatness according to the boxing magazines and I was so excited to follow his development and pursuit of a title.

Then he ran into Bernard Hopkins, got stopped, and never fought again.


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[Willie Pep 229]

I'll throw out Joe Lipsey.

When I was a kid he was destined for greatness according to the boxing magazines and I was so excited to follow his development and pursuit of a title.

Then he ran into Bernard Hopkins, got stopped, and never fought again.


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I mean 'come on' look at that guy's name; with a name like that, had he become champion, would have hurt the fight game.

P.S. Seriously, what's Brown's Magazine all about?

[ShoulderRoll]

I mean 'come on' look at that guy's name; with a name like that, had he become champion, would have hurt the fight game.

P.S. Seriously, what's Brown's Magazine all about?

His nickname was The Sledgehammer. He looked the part and had a high KO ratio to match.

[Willie Pep 229]

His nickname was The Sledgehammer. He looked the part and had a high KO ratio to match.

Yea but the name became a 19th century derogatory term for ***s in London after a guy named Lipsey poisoned his wife and then tried to hide under his bed from Scotland Yard, literally. Kind of the way white supremacist call all Mexicans 'Pedro.'

Actually I remember the guy.

But what was Brown's ?

[ShoulderRoll]

I think Brown's were sports cards.

[Anthony342]

Georgie Benton deserves some mention

I used to get him mixed with singer/actor George Benson: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Benson

[edgarg]

I believe he was a west coast based fighter he has a few New York fights under his belt, even at least one at MSG, but most are out west or even Canada.

You had to make a splash in the NYC papers if you wanted the big fights.

Joe Gans was going to fight him - there was a period where everyone was calling for a Nelson-McFarland-Gans box off, but Gans became ill and had to pull out. Then there was a year of negotiations but they never put together the Nelson fight.

MAYBE, just maybe we should put him in the 'poor mangement' thread.

P.S. regarding West Coast fighters: Besides being Black, both Burley and Holman Williams suffered from not enough New York exposure. Certainly it didn't help being Black but there was no 'color line' at the time and there were several popular Black champions at the time.

Both never established themselves in the East - and neither had a reputation for putting as*es in the seats.

Williams (Ring #1) should have gotten first shot at Tony Zale after the war (he earned it by dominating Burley [Ring #2] in their last fight) but Garizano sold out MSG for five consecutive non-title fights between late '44 and 1945.

Zale-Garizano therefore was a no brainer when Zale got discharged, but Williams got unlucky that it turned into a trilogy that spanned two and a half years. He tried to bump up to LHW but ran into the Old Mongoose who got that title shot.

Burley was at his best when the titles were 'on hold' and was at the end in '45 and '46 - he was out of the rankings by '47.

But I feel at that time, (considering all the Black champions in play) it wasn't outright racism that held them back as much as systemic racism (as in not enough paying customers) added to limited New York exposure is why they got passed over.

What about the best forgotten man.....Marcel Cerdan........Hmmm!!

[edgarg]

- - Good find.

Moderns like to ream out current champs and contenders not realizing by modern standards some of those older champs and contenders didn't have modern glossy records the moderns insist fruitlessly on. Joe Louis bum of the month club was mostly against Ring contender types, it's just that he was so prolific that he would knock em out of contender status whereby they become bums.

In my day that continues to this very day, hvy contenders I loved starting with Quarry, Shavers, Lyle, the last two I thought well whooped Ali, especially egregious when Lyle was ropadoping Ali he gets stopped! Also Tex Cobb who always came to fight.

Today I'd say Derek Chisora, Carlos Takam, Tomasz Adamek who was LH/Cruiser champ, and most especially Tony Thompson, an epic throwback southpaw that would beat most heavy champs in history save most back then wouldn't fight lefties.

Tony Tompson, 6'6" 81 "reach,..you were right about him, nobody would fight him because he was a lefty, ....except 47 fighters who DID.....HMMM maybe they were only a mirage.

[edgarg]

Yeah Choynski had a solid reputation.

Waddabout Young Stribling....??

[edgarg]

Georgie Benton deserves some mention

He was good but not that good. He made a great trainer though.