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Bob Fitzsimmons did something nobody else has ever duplicated,he won the Middleweight,Heavyweight and Light heavyweight titles,and he did it at a time when the titles were not disputed.
He beat the great Non Pareil Jack Dempsey for his middleweight title, and kod Dan Creedon in2 rds when defending it.
Beat Peter Maher in12 rds.
Drew with Joe Choynski when police stopped the fight.
Lost by DSQ to Tom Sharkey in8 rds when a legitimate body blow was ruled low.
Ko'd a prime Jim Corbett in14 rds for his heavyweight title , with a single bodyshot.
Came out of 2 years retirement when 2 weeks short of his 37th birthday to concede39 lbs and 12 years to Jim Jeffries and was overpowered and ko'd in8 rounds.
In1900 age 37 he gave Gus Ruhlin a merciless beating koing him in 6 rounds.
Jeffries for the title
Two weeks later Fitz ko'd Tom Sharkey in 2 rounds thus knocking out the other two leading contenders
for Jeffries title in the space of a fortnight!
Unable to secure a rematch with Jeffries for the heavyweight title Fitz retired for 2 years,coming back at the age of 39.
Finally he got another chance at his old title giving away a whopping 47pounds to Champion Jeffries,he smashed his face to bits.
Jeffries had cuts above and below both eyes and a broken nose,but age and the huge weight discrepancy proved too much of a handicap for Fitz to overcome and he was eventually beaten down and stopped,his hands rendered useless ,from punching Jeffries face and granite jaw.
Reporters stated he hit Jeffries when and where he pleased and it was only Jeffries tremendous size and age advantage that enabled Jeffries to win and keep his crown.
At the age of 40 Fitz won the Light Heavyweight title,from George Gardner on points over 20 rds ,and successfully defended it against Philadelphia Jack O Brien when the 6th round was cut short to save O Brien who was on the verge of being ko'd.
A rematch saw Fitz now 41 , bow to Father Time retiring in13 rounds and losing his last title.
Fitz, old and with badly damaged hands ,fought on, he was broke,but his subsequent losses to Jack Johnson,and Bill Lang are meaningless he was finished as a fighter.
Johnson himself said he was bemused so much attention was given to his quick ko over the now 46 years old Fitz,Johnson didn't think it was a noteworthy feat and it wasn't .
Rating the heavyweight champions who came before him, Johnson gave the nod to Fitz as the best of them,stating Corbett was the Father of scientific boxing, and Jeffries the toughest,he did not think much of Sullivan calling him a crude slugger.
Comparative results between Fitzsimmons and Jeffries
Fitz v Prime Corbett Fitz Won 14 rds ko.
Fitzsimmons v Sharkey Sharkey Won by Dsq Robbery 8 rds
Fitzsimmons v Sharkey Fitz Won by 2 rds ko
Fitzsimmons v Ruhlin Fitzsimmons Won by 6 rds ko giving Ruhlin a bad beating
Jeffries v Past Prime Corbett Jeffries 30 lbs heavier won by 23 rds ko.Corbett was leading on points at the time of the stoppage according to the Referee.
Jeffries v Three Years Retired 36 years old Corbett Jeffries 27lbs heavier won10rds tko.Easy win for Jeffries,over the totally washed up Corbett.
Jeffries v Sharkey. Jeffries 20lbs heavier won 20rds floors Sharkey but can't finish him.
Jeffries V Sharkey.Jeffries 27lbs heavier won over 25 rds from Sharkey flooring him, but Sharkey is still there at the end.A close fight and some thought Sharkey worthy of a draw.
Jeffries v Ruhlin. Jeffres won by corner retirement between the 5th and 6th rds Ruhlin gets a body shot that takes all the fight out of him ,floored in the 4th and 5th rounds,his manager refuses to send him out for the 6th.
These are the relevant results imo.
He beat the great Non Pareil Jack Dempsey for his middleweight title, and kod Dan Creedon in2 rds when defending it.
Beat Peter Maher in12 rds.
Drew with Joe Choynski when police stopped the fight.
Lost by DSQ to Tom Sharkey in8 rds when a legitimate body blow was ruled low.
Ko'd a prime Jim Corbett in14 rds for his heavyweight title , with a single bodyshot.
Came out of 2 years retirement when 2 weeks short of his 37th birthday to concede39 lbs and 12 years to Jim Jeffries and was overpowered and ko'd in8 rounds.
In1900 age 37 he gave Gus Ruhlin a merciless beating koing him in 6 rounds.
Jeffries for the title
Two weeks later Fitz ko'd Tom Sharkey in 2 rounds thus knocking out the other two leading contenders
for Jeffries title in the space of a fortnight!
Unable to secure a rematch with Jeffries for the heavyweight title Fitz retired for 2 years,coming back at the age of 39.
Finally he got another chance at his old title giving away a whopping 47pounds to Champion Jeffries,he smashed his face to bits.
Jeffries had cuts above and below both eyes and a broken nose,but age and the huge weight discrepancy proved too much of a handicap for Fitz to overcome and he was eventually beaten down and stopped,his hands rendered useless ,from punching Jeffries face and granite jaw.
Reporters stated he hit Jeffries when and where he pleased and it was only Jeffries tremendous size and age advantage that enabled Jeffries to win and keep his crown.
At the age of 40 Fitz won the Light Heavyweight title,from George Gardner on points over 20 rds ,and successfully defended it against Philadelphia Jack O Brien when the 6th round was cut short to save O Brien who was on the verge of being ko'd.
A rematch saw Fitz now 41 , bow to Father Time retiring in13 rounds and losing his last title.
Fitz, old and with badly damaged hands ,fought on, he was broke,but his subsequent losses to Jack Johnson,and Bill Lang are meaningless he was finished as a fighter.
Johnson himself said he was bemused so much attention was given to his quick ko over the now 46 years old Fitz,Johnson didn't think it was a noteworthy feat and it wasn't .
Rating the heavyweight champions who came before him, Johnson gave the nod to Fitz as the best of them,stating Corbett was the Father of scientific boxing, and Jeffries the toughest,he did not think much of Sullivan calling him a crude slugger.
Comparative results between Fitzsimmons and Jeffries
Fitz v Prime Corbett Fitz Won 14 rds ko.
Fitzsimmons v Sharkey Sharkey Won by Dsq Robbery 8 rds
Fitzsimmons v Sharkey Fitz Won by 2 rds ko
Fitzsimmons v Ruhlin Fitzsimmons Won by 6 rds ko giving Ruhlin a bad beating
Jeffries v Past Prime Corbett Jeffries 30 lbs heavier won by 23 rds ko.Corbett was leading on points at the time of the stoppage according to the Referee.
Jeffries v Three Years Retired 36 years old Corbett Jeffries 27lbs heavier won10rds tko.Easy win for Jeffries,over the totally washed up Corbett.
Jeffries v Sharkey. Jeffries 20lbs heavier won 20rds floors Sharkey but can't finish him.
Jeffries V Sharkey.Jeffries 27lbs heavier won over 25 rds from Sharkey flooring him, but Sharkey is still there at the end.A close fight and some thought Sharkey worthy of a draw.
Jeffries v Ruhlin. Jeffres won by corner retirement between the 5th and 6th rds Ruhlin gets a body shot that takes all the fight out of him ,floored in the 4th and 5th rounds,his manager refuses to send him out for the 6th.
These are the relevant results imo.
Mr Mitts
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