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On September 17, Mexico’s Saul “Canelo” Alvarez and Kazakhstan’s Gennady Golovkin, GGG, will meet in what will complete the trilogy of bouts between them, an attractive bout long expected by the world’s fans in which the World Boxing Association (WBA), WBC, IBF and WBO belts will be at stake, and that will define who is the best of two of the most notable fighters of the moment, with the Aztec in advantage of a victory achieved after the draw in the first fight.
On a future occasion, we will approach in greater detail our personal point of view about what could happen in that third fight, scheduled for the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
For the time being, we believe this is a good opportunity to bring to mind three other memorable fights featured by six (6) brilliant and notable stars, all of them recorded in the history of boxing and all six in the International Hall of Fame of Canastota, NY, whose fights also took place in September 99, 41 and 40 years ago.
These matches had these stars as protagonists: the first one between the American Jack Dempsey and the Argentine Luis Angel Firpo on 9/14/1923 for the heavyweight belt; Ray “Sugar” Leonard against the lethal puncher Thomas “Hit Man” Hearns, for the WBA and WBC belt in possession of the former, in 1981; and the third, on the 9/9/1982 between super lightweight world champion Aaron “The Hawk” Pryor and Nicaraguan Alexis Arguello, who was seeking revenge on the man who had defeated him by technical knockout in the 14th round during the first clash in Miami a year earlier in what many consider the best fight in history at 140 pounds.
FIRPO WAS A LITTLE BIT SHORT
The fight between Dempsey-an idol without equal by then in the eyes of his countrymen-and challenger Firpo (aka “El Toro Salvaje de La Pampa”), the first Latin American to seek the heavyweight crown, was staged at the Polo Grounds in New York. Seconds after the first bell Firpo knocked the champion down with a powerful and seemingly withering right hand, but Manassa’s “Magullador” got up and after receiving the protective count attacked the challenger to knock him down up to 7 times. Still dizzy Firpo went on a valiant and tenacious offensive, topped off with a hard right hand that knocked the monarch out of the ring, who landed on a reporter and a typewriter. Dempsey climbed precariously into the ring, assisted by reporters and referee Jack Gallagher, in violation of the Marquis of Queensberry rules, established at the end of the 19th century. It has been assured that Dempsey remained between 14 and 17 seconds out of the ring, which in fact made him the loser by KOT. As soon as the action of the second round began Dempsey knocked Firpo down 4 times. Gallagher, not without some reprehensible haste, decreed the knockout at 57 seconds.
LEONARD CAME BACK
The collision between Leonard and Hearns had a full house at the renowned Cesar Palace Hotel in Las Vegas in a fight that put “Sugar” Leonard in defense of the WBC and WBO welterweight crowns against the feared puncher that was “Hit Man”, who took the first five chapters supported by his persistent and fast jab and even when in the following rounds Leonard discounted, the challenger was ahead when they went to the center of the ring to cover the penultimate chapter, the 14th (by the time it was 15). In that round Leonard unleashed a two-handed offensive and with Hearns totally helpless and wobbling the referee stopped the action at 1’45”.
AARON DEMOLISHED “EL FLACO”.
On 12/11/82 at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Aaron Pryor had knocked out in 14 to the Nicaraguan Alexis Arguello, who was going for his fourth crown after reigning in feather, super feather and lightweight. Pryor finished him in 14 in one of the best fights of all time at super lightweight. The rematch took place on 9/9/83 at the Caesar’s Palace open-air hall. But “El Flaco Explosivo” was again crushed by “El Halcón”, WBA king, in 10 rounds, in a resounding demonstration of superiority. He knocked him down in the first, in the fourth and in the tenth at 1’48”, when referee Richard Steele stopped it.
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