Harry Greb in 1919

[BattlingNelson]

Excellent piece by boxingscenes own Cliff Rold:

https://www.boxingscene.com/boxing-without-boxing-smokestack-lightning-harry-greb-1919--147680

[billeau2]

Excellent piece by boxingscenes own Cliff Rold:

https://www.boxingscene.com/boxing-w...b-1919--147680

Nice read! Cliff said he would try to get more info on Greb and I sent him the following post:

So in Pittsburgh there was a trunk discovered, sitting on a ledge dangerously close to falling into the ocean forever...In this trunk were documents detailing the existence of aliens, and how they came to the Earth, including many photos... Unfortunately someone yelled out that another trunk had film of Greb's fights, and the person going to grab the first trunk knocked it over trying to get to the second trunk.

[Rusty Tromboni]

Nice read! Cliff said he would try to get more info on Greb and I sent him the following post:

So in Pittsburgh there was a trunk discovered, sitting on a ledge dangerously close to falling into the ocean forever...In this trunk were documents detailing the existence of aliens, and how they came to the Earth, including many photos... Unfortunately someone yelled out that another trunk had film of Greb's fights, and the person going to grab the first trunk knocked it over trying to get to the second trunk.

Best. Post. Ever.

[Bundana]

Nice read! Cliff said he would try to get more info on Greb and I sent him the following post:

So in Pittsburgh there was a trunk discovered, sitting on a ledge dangerously close to falling into the ocean forever...In this trunk were documents detailing the existence of aliens, and how they came to the Earth, including many photos... Unfortunately someone yelled out that another trunk had film of Greb's fights, and the person going to grab the first trunk knocked it over trying to get to the second trunk.

Thanks… I really enjoyed that!

[shootingcrew]

What makes him incredible is that he fought despite being blind in one eye.

[Rusty Tromboni]

What makes him incredibles is that he fought despite being blind in one eye.

And his schedule.

No one even comes close in accomplishment.

People call Robinson GOAT and he got hot flashes against Maxim.

Dempsey wouldn't even fight Greb.

[QueensburyRules]

Dempsey wouldn't even fight Greb.

- -U told us Greb wasn't in the hvy landscape in another thread.

U the first ever case of a bipolar jello rassler boxing commentator ever known?

[Rusty Tromboni]

- -U told us Greb wasn't in the hvy landscape in another thread.

U the first ever case of a bipolar jello rassler boxing commentator ever known?

If you weren't a senile old showgirl you'd have realized that i don't hold that against Jack when comparing him to his Heavyweight colleagues.

[Willie Pep 229]

And his schedule.

No one even comes close in accomplishment.

People call Robinson GOAT and he got hot flashes against Maxim.

Dempsey wouldn't even fight Greb.

Dempsey never intended to fight the MW Greb. They had several high profile sparing sessions (for spectator money), but Dempsey intended to fight Greb at the same level of intention he had to fight-wrestle Strangler Lewis. Not at all.

He always, never said no to a challenge and would let the press run with it even when he never had any intention of taking the fight.

Dempsey was always willing to lend his popularity to other athletes. Grantland Rice was once quoted as saying, "Dempsey is the only true gentleman in sports today."

In 1922 NYSAC was pushing for a Harry Wills fight (that Tex Rickard wanted no part of) and stated that they would not sanction any title fight for Dempsey except Wills. When Rickard wouldn't act they, the NYSAC, then threatened to strip Dempsey of their title recognition.

Reacting to that threat Doc Kearns then started promotion talks with Greb's people down in Philadelphia.

New York panic, realizing that Kearns could easily take the very popular Dempsey south to Phily and make great money fighting the MW Greb. (Which of course is what happened in '26 with Tunney. New York screwed itself out of a payday.)

The threatened date (to strip Dempsey) came and went and Kearns then cut off talks with Greb.

(Of course Kearns then totally screwed the pooch and took the Shelby Montana fight and soured his relationship with Dempsey.)

[Rusty Tromboni]

Dempsey never intended to fight the MW Greb. They had several high profile sparing sessions (for spectator money), but Dempsey intended to fight Greb at the same level of intention he had to fight-wrestle Strangler Lewis. Not at all.

He always, never said no to a challenge and would let the press run with it even when he never had any intention of taking the fight.

Dempsey was always willing to lend his popularity to other athletes. Grantland Rice was once quoted as saying, "Dempsey is the only true gentleman in sports today."

In 1922 NYSAC was pushing for a Harry Wills fight (that Tex Rickard wanted no part of) and stated that they would not sanction any title fight for Dempsey except Wills. When Rickard wouldn't act they, the NYSAC, then threatened to strip Dempsey of their title recognition.

Reacting to that threat Doc Kearns then started promotion talks with Greb's people down in Philadelphia.

New York panic, realizing that Kearns could easily take the very popular Dempsey south to Phily and make great money fighting the MW Greb. (Which of course is what happened in '26 with Tunney. New York screwed itself out of a payday.)

The threatened date (to strip Dempsey) came and went and Kearns then cut off talks with Greb.

(Of course Kearns then totally screwed the pooch and took the Shelby Montana fight and soured his relationship with Dempsey.)

Thanks for the breakdown.

Even if that's not the entirety of the story, it's hard to make a case for Greb as challenger for the belt.

Again, it would have been one of history's greatest fights. But it sounds more like a "Super Fight" than a legitimate title defense.