From 1947 to 1954, heavyweight history received a timeless series of sagas to behold. I’ve seen much coverage (my own none-withstanding) of the Five Kings rivalries (Leonard, Hearns, Hagler, Durán, Benítez) but not much covering the specific four man masterclass of rivalries that headlined and closed the “Black & White Age”.
Some knockouts are simply a joy to watch. Some KO’s, seemingly so effortlessly scored yet in fact cunningly devised and practised over and over in the gym, appear to come from nowhere, often when the man landing the thunderbolt is losing the fight.
This week – September 23 – sees the 70th anniversary of one of the greatest world heavyweight title fights of all time.
Jersey Joe Walcott against today’s best big men? Talk about a fascinating proposition. One thing is sure – guys like Arnold Cream, later Jersey Joe Walcott had it so much unimaginably tougher than today’s fighters have it and will ever have it.
Jersey Joe Walcott and Mike McCallum: two great fighters who had nothing in common with each other, aside from the fact that both tradesmen of the sport – equally unflashy yet at the same time quite brilliant – had to toil and sweat for every inch of forward movement they made in the toughest sport in the world.
How great was Jersey Joe Walcott? It’s like asking how great is great. Arnold Cream, who was born 108 years ago today in New Jersey and became celebrated as Jersey Joe Walcott, once declared how it took him many years in the ring before he earned more than $30.