Thread: Henry Armstrong vs. Fritzie Zivic 'I' ~ "The Most Vicious Battle"

October 4, 1940

Madison Square Garden

Henry Armstrong vs. Fritzie Zivic

The 'little warrior' Hammerin' Henry Armstrong defends his Welterweight Championship
against one the most vicious battlers in the game, Fritzie Zivic.

Lets Talk .......

What was 'Little Henry' going up against.

October 4, 1940

Fritzie Zivic

The rough bastard from Pittsburg.

Age ...... 27 years, 5 months
Height... 5' 10"
Reach.... 71"
Weight.. 145 lbs.
Record.. 100-24-4 {54 KO's}
Rank..... #1 Welterweight

Fritzie was a 9-Year Pro, and had never fought for a World Championship before.
Though deserving, he was avoided.

Coming into this bout, Fritzie had won a one-sided {W Dec 10} over World Lightweight
Champion - Sammy Agnott on August 29, 1940 {only 5-Weeks earlier}.

Fritzie Zivic>

"I have no qualms about it. I will target the scar-tissue over Henry's eyes and
slice him up. I'll tear him up and blind his vision with blood. This ain't no Tea Party."

History >

Fritzie is and always has been a rough-character, who uses every dirty-trick in the
book.

Oddly, Fritzie had lost '7-Straight' at one time in his career {August 6, 1935 thru
February 24, 1936}.

But Fritzie did turn it around, and went 18-2-0 in 20-Bouts to gain the #3 Welterweight
ranking by December 1937.

A couple of Decision losses had him stumble, but Fritzie then went undefeated {20-0-1}
from June 20, 1938 thru April 20, 1939 - and he moved up to the #2 Welterweight.

Since May 9, 1939 - Fritzie has gone 20-5-0 {9 KO's}. So though he's tough, he can be beat.

And he was cold-cocked {L KO 8} by #3 Welterweight - Milt Aron on December 27, 1939.

Since that loss, Fritzie is riding a 6-Bout {3 KO's} winning streak.

The 9-Year Pro of 128-Bouts has only been 'stopped twice' in his career.

Originally,

This bout was set to be held at Forbes Field in Pittsburg for October 4th.

Promoter - Art Rooney had signed contracts.

Henry Armstrong opened up as a 4-1 Betting-Favorite, and many thought
that this would be another routine Title Defense for Henry.

While many thought that Fritzie Zivic was tough, nobody put him on the
same page as having the 'talent and brains' of Henry.

Fritzie Zivic

Fritzie earned his bout with Welterweight Champion - Henry Armstrong.

On August 29, 1940 @ Forbes Field, Pittsburg.

In front of a crowd of 12,000 - Fritzie Zivic won a one-sided 10-Round Decision
over World Lightweight Champion - Sammy Agnott.

Henry Armstrong was in attendance >

Henry >
"Fritzie looks like a qualified challenger. He's a good fighter. He's stubborn and
tough, and can give anybody a rough night in the Ring. He has a way of tangling
you up, and then he whips in right uppercuts."

October 4, 1940

Henry Armstrong
Age......... 27 years, 10 months
Height..... 5' 5 1/2"
Reach..... 67"
Weight.... 142 lbs.
Record.... 110-12-8 {77 KO's}

'Hammerin Hank' is on an incredible run.

Since March 1936 {4 years, 7 months}, Henry has gone a remarkable 69-2-1,
and with both of the losses being highly controversial.

During that time-span, the 'Little Warrior' has won Titles in '3' different divisions.

And as a Welterweight, Henry has gone 21-0-0 {16 KO's}, including defending
his Title '20-Times' since May 1938.

Also, Henry is coming off a Title Defense {KO 4} over Phil Furr in Washington D.C.
just 11-Days earlier {September 23rd}.

September 28, 1940

While Henry Armstrong was set as a {4-1} Betting-Favorite, there were those
who stated that this would Hammerin Hank's toughest defense.

Fritzie Zivic came into New York on September 26th, and immediately showed
the Boxing Pundits that he was more than capable of handling Henry.

Fritzie was impressive in sparring-sessions, and was labeled 'The Miracle Mauler'.
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Sportswriter - Jack Cuddy {UPI} >

Fritzie Zivic is at his 'peak' as a fighter. This spindle-shanked muscular Croatian
is a seasoned performer. He's fast, smart and will be a tough adversary for Henry.

I'm not so sure that the 'Little Buzz-Saw' can take him so easily. The {4-1}
Betting-Odds are too long. These two are much closer matched than that.

Henry is a 'whirlwind', but Fritzie is bigger and stronger.

Odds

The day of the October 4, 1940 bout.

If you bet on Henry Armstrong, it was {1-3}.

If you bet on Fritzie Zivic, you got {3-1}.

The 'late' Pittsburg money came in on Fritzie, which dropped the Odds
from {4-1} to {3-1}.

Also, there was a 'rematch clause' signed, that gave Henry a rematch on
January 17, 1941 > if he lost.

Fight Purse Guarantee's
* Henry Armstrong..... $9000 > {Against 40% of the Net Receipts}
* Fritzie Zivic ............. $3000 > {Against 15% of the Net Receipts}

According to New York sources, Fritzie Zivic bet $700 of his purse on
himself, to 'Knockout' Henry Armstrong.

Jack Cuddy stated that Fritzie got 8-1 Odds on scoring a Knockout,
which have netted himself another $5600.

October 4, 1940

Madison Square Garden

* Promoter .......... Mike Jacobs
* Attendance ....... 12,081
* Gate Receipts ... $29,212 {Gross} ~ $24,643 {Net}

"The Fight"

In the Opening Round, Fritzie showed that he could out-muscle Henry, and
started off as the aggressor. Fritzie landed a variety of solid left-hands and
had the Champion staying outside.

But Henry came out with guns blazing in Round 2, and out-boxed the Challenger
with fast-hands. Despite being the smaller man {4 1/2" shorter}, Henry
out-punched Fritzie from the outside with both fists blazing.

But, Fritzie {145 1/2 lbs.} showed that he could take it from the fast-punching
Champion {142 lbs.}

Henry continued with his assault in Round 3, but Fritzie was able to muster up
a few solid 'slashing' left-hands into Henry that appeared to bother the Champion's
left-eye.

Henry gave Fritzie a 'bad-beating' in Rounds 4 and 5 - and slammed Fritzie with
an assortment of blows. Henry was clearly the more polished of the two combatants,
and was the Ring General.

The fighters went 'toe-to-toe' in Round 6, and slammed each other with
hard punches. Henry was showing superior technique and brawn. But Fritzie
was showing that he was the stronger man with youth and size, as he took
Henry's best shots and was still there in front of him. Fritzie edged out Round 6.

In Round 7, Henry started out fast and scored with jabs from mid-range. But
Henry's whirlwind-attack style was not seen. By the {2:00 Mark} of Round 7,
Henry was looking a little worn down by the strength of the Challeger.

Fritzie was using his trademark-style of rough in-fighting, by using his head,
elbows and forearms as weapons to damage the Champion's face.
Round 7 was 'Even'.

In Round 8, it was Fritzie's turn to 'dish-it-out', as he caught Henry with some
solid left-hands, and right-uppercuts. Fritzie 'stunned' Henry, and rained blows
on the 'Little Warrior', and the tide of the bout swung over to the Challenger.

In Round 9, Fritzie and Henry again slugged it out, as each took turns whipping
in hard blows. Henry tried to out-strength Fritzie on the inside by whipping in
bolo-punches, but he found the Challenger surprisingly strong. Henry used his
boxing-skills to edge out the Round.

Fritzie continued to hit Henry with stabbing-and-slashing punches, and targeted
the Champion's brows over his eyes.

Thru 9-Rounds, the Champion had a solid lead on the Scorecards, but he was
taking a rough going by the bigger Challenger.

Jack Cuddy scorecard .... {5-3-1} Henry Armstrong
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In Round 10, Fritize took it to Henry in a 'bad-way'. The Challenger busted up the
brows over Henry's eyes by slashing punches into his face.

Suddenly Henry had 'blurred vision' as blood flowed into both eyes. Fritzie then
wailed away and 'rained' blows on the Champion's head.

Fritize knocked the 'mouthpiece' out of Henry's mouth when he landed a vicious
right uppercut into his jaw. Henry's face was now a 'raspberry mess' as blood
came from his mouth.

Henry teetered on weakened legs, and he was nearly stopped as Fritzie slammed
away in dominating the one-sided Round.

As the Round ended, both of Henry's eyes were nearly closed, but the Champion
would not quit.

Henry Armstrong vs. Fritzie Zivic 'I'

'Round 11'

'Little Henry' came back hard, and again used his superior boxing-skills to
keep Fritzie outside over the first-half of the Round. But Fritzie just kept
roughing the Champion up with left-hands and right-uppercuts.

By now, Henry could barely see out of his closed eyes, and Fritzie just
kept pumping in square-punches on Henry's bruised face.

But Henry refused to give in, and offered up some late attacks of his
own, bringing cheers from the crowd.

Henry did just enough to edge out the Round.

Henry was holding on to a close {6-4-1} lead in Rounds.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

'Round 12'

Fritzie forced the fight, and mauled Henry with his arms and shoulders.
Henry just didn't have the size to out-muscle Fritzie.

Each time that Henry tried to score with a whirlwind-flurry, Fritzie would
tie Henry up and side-step him. Then Fritzie would rip right-hands underneath
that sapped the Champion's strength. Fritzie continued to pump-in left jabs
and just did enough to take the Round.
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In Round 13, Fritzie continued to pump-in left-jabs into Henry's face. By the
mid-way point in the session, Henry began to noticeably tire.

Fritzie was clearly the better conditioned fighter, as he took clear control
of the bout, and slammed in hard left-hands that had the Champion reeling on
tired legs over the last-minute of Round 13.

At the end of 13-Rounds >

Henry Armstrong still lead on 2 of the 3 Scorecards.

* Referee - Art Donovan ....... 7-6-0 > {Henry Armstrong}
* Judge - Marty Monroe ........ 7-6-0 > {Henry Armstrong}
* Judge - John Peters ........... 6-5-2 > {Fritzie Zivic}

Henry, who got staggered in Round 8, and battered in Round 10, was
still clinging to a slim points lead, thanks to his early bout domination.

Despite getting slammed around in Round 10, Henry still was able to
'muster up' his own attack in Round 11, as to not let his Championship
to slip away.

On the other hand, Fritzie looked fresh and was easily scoring with 'snappy'
left-jabs each time that Henry moved in. Fritzie's size and strength had taken
over, and Henry's whipping punches had not bothered Fritzie.

Henry had started to fade in the second-half of Round 12, and was visibly
tired in Round 13, as Fritzie scored with repeated left-jabs and right-hand
'Bolo' punches to the body.

If Henry could 'scrape by' and hold Fritzie 'even' for one more Round, he could
quite possibly hold on to his Title by a Draw.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

'Round 14'

Fritzie came out with left-jabs, and quickly forced Henry to cover up. Henry was
looking through swollen eye-lids, and his face was a 'Raspberry' mess.

Fritzie added in assortment of right-uppercuts, which took everything out of Henry.

The Champion was battered and tired at the end of Round 14, after absorbing
a series of steady punches.

'Round 15'

Coming out for the 'Final Round', the bout was still up for grabs, as '2'
of the Scorecards had the bout 'Even'.

At the bell, Fritzie came out fast and immediately battered the tired and weary
Champion. By the end of the first-minute, it was obvious that Henry had
nothing left, as Fritzie was walking through the Champion's weak punches.

Fritzie then slammed Henry with hard left-jabs, and solid right-crosses. Fritzie
then drove Henry all over the Ring, and had the fading Champion reeling on
wobbling legs.

By the {1:30 Mark}, the hand-writing was on the wall for Henry.

At the {2:40 Mark}, Fritzie stung Henry with a hard combination, and then
drove Henry sputtering with a series of lefts-and-rights to the head.

At the {2:57 Mark}, Fritzie unloaded and caught Henry on the side of the
head with a hard right-hand, driving Henry to his right. Fritzie moved in
and push/punched with another right-hand and Henry went down to the
canvas and landed on his right ear as the bell sounded ending the bout.


Scorecards
* Referee - Art Donovan ....... 8-7-0 > {Fritzie Zivic}
* Judge - Marty Monroe ........ 8-7-0 > {Fritzie Zivic}
* Judge - John Peters ........... 8-5-2 > {Fritzie Zivic}

* New York Times ................ 8-7-0 > {Fritzie Zivic}

Henry Armstrong

Took a bad beating from Fritzie Zivic.

Henry suffered a 'knockdown' just before the Bell ending Round 15, and
the Champion was on the verge of getting knocked out as Fritzie Zivic had
battered him with series of savage-blows to the head over the last
30-Seconds.

The bout ended with Henry getting both is his eyes closed, and his face
liked 'oozing' Hamburger, as he suffered gashes on both eye-brows, a badly
bloodied nose, and a sliced mouth.

Henry spent 4-Hours getting sewn up by his Physician after the bout.

General Fact >

Henry had a 'rematch clause' in his contract had he lost, with the rematch set
in 15-Weeks on January 17, 1941 @ Madison Square Garden.

But Henry was so battered, that Fritzie Zivic stated;

"Henry is the gamest fighter that I have ever seen. But he will never be able
to get ready for a rematch so quickly after taking such a beating. I think he
should take 4-Months off and rest first, before he starts back in Training Camp.

October 5, 1940

"Hammerin' Hank Pleads For Rematch"

Sitting in his dressing room while his personal Physician was sewing him up,
the former Champion Henry Armstrong was 'pleading' for a rematch with
his conqueror Fritzie Zivic.

Henry, who had his left-eye closed in Round 3, and his right-eye partially
closed in Round 9, and then battered in Round 10 - was still charging forward
in Rounds 11, 12 and 13.

The 'little buzzsaw' admitted to seeing {5} Zivic's in the Ring last night, and
fought nearly blind for the last 6 Rounds.

The Champion fought on 'heart alone' in the last 2-Rounds, as he was repeatedly
tagged with straight left-hands and short-snappy right uppercuts from the
Pittsburg Mauler - Fritzie Zivic.

The New York Times had scored the bout very close {8-7-0} in favor of Fritzie Zivic.

The Associated Press also scored it for Fritzie, but at {9-6-0} in Rounds.

E-Gore,

Dr. Alexander Schiff was Henry Armstrong's personal physician.

Henry was busted up pretty good by Fritzie's knifing punches, as he had
'bad' gashes above both eyes, a deep gash inside his mouth, a battered nose
and swollen eyes.

Fritzie had knocked Henry's mouthpiece out '10-Times' in the bout.