Max Schmeling R.I.P.

We are greatly saddened to learn the news of Max Schmeling’s death at the grand age of ninety-nine years. Max was a great fighter who achieved so much in his career, not the least of which was his sensational win over Joe Louis, a fighter many deemed to be invincible during his prime. As a fighter of German nationality during the Nazi uprising and the outbreak of the second world war, Max Schmeling was subject to enormous social pressures and projected to the public in a certain light in a way he did not endorse. Max fought bravely against the negative stereotypes of which he was given and maintained his dignity throughout a torrid time in history. Max’s courage in life was mirrored by his courage in the boxing ring and it is my great pleasure to announce our tribute to the great man in the form of an article written by our very own Lee Bellfield, detailing Max’s title winning effort against Louis in their first fight. That article is coming next.