Sammy Angott's KO of Ike Williams - underrated, overlooked?

Discussion in 'Classic Boxing Forum' started by Rex Tickard, Feb 18, 2013.


  1. Rex Tickard

    Rex Tickard Active Member Full Member

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    Consider the scenario:

    Angott has won only two of his last eight fights, and has just come out of his second retirement to make one final try for a title shot. He has already lost twice to Williams, albeit in very close, competitive fights. Angott has always been known as a tricky, awkward, sometimes ugly fighter, but seldom a big puncher.

    By contrast, Williams has just won a version of the LW title with a quick blowout of Juan Zurita, the man who had relieved Angott of the LW title in the first place, and appears to be at or approaching his very formidable peak. He is at least a 2-1 favorite over the "aging" Angott, and many "experts" expect that he will promptly send Angott back into retirement.

    So what happens?

    Angott drives a crippling right hand to Williams' body in the first round, which apparently either bruises or breaks a rib, and then proceeds to manhandle him for the next 5 rounds until the fight is stopped. Williams is hospitalized as a result of the beating he takes in this fight.

    IMO, this performance should be considered among the very greatest "last hurrahs" of all time, and probably should've secured Angott a spot among the top 15, possibly even top 10 LWs of all time (consider that he also holds wins over Pep, Montgomery, and Jenkins). But it seems to me that neither of these is true today, and little, if anything is ever spoken of this fight.

    Thoughts?
     
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  2. Rex Tickard

    Rex Tickard Active Member Full Member

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    Reading up on Angott's career, it seems to me that he was an underratedly versatile fighter who could come up with whatever gameplan was necessary to win a particular fight. He was, and perhaps still is, often dismissed as just a "clutch artist," but there are a number of reports of him slugging it out toe-to-toe to win certain fights, such as against Montgomery. And as he apparently showed against Williams, and also in his 1st round KO of Leo Rodak (another former conqueror), he was even capable of surprising opponents with some deceptive power as well.

    A very underrated fighter IMO, who has never really escaped from his contemporary reputation to be judged fairly on his career achievements.
     
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  3. mcvey

    mcvey VIP Member Full Member

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    Williams suffered a torn abdominal muscle in that fight. Angott was 4lbs heavier than Williams, and lets not forget that Ike had beaten Angott twice previously.
     
  4. Rex Tickard

    Rex Tickard Active Member Full Member

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    It was a broken rib actually, and the direct result of an Angott right to the body.

    "Williams was hurt by a crushing roundhouse right early in the first round of a scheduled 10-round non-title bout at Forbes Field.

    ...At Mercy hospital, a doctor said one of Williams' ribs was 'badly contused' and probably broken."
    Ellensburg Daily Record, September 20, 1945.


    "Williams was injured by a terrific roundhouse right in the first round and was obviously in pain the rest of the journey.

    Medical authorities, following an X-ray examination, reported the boxer suffering a broken rib and internal bleeding."
    The Afro American, September 29, 1945.


    Does a 4-pound weight advantage outweigh (no pun intended) the fact that he was past his prime and only recently coming out of retirement?

    Not sure what point you are making about their previous two fights. However, the first fight was actually scored a draw, but Pennsylvania rules gave deference to referee's scorecards when judges disagreed. Both decisions in Williams' favor were disputed to some degree.
     
  5. The Funny Man 7

    The Funny Man 7 Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    I love the Williams apologists scrambling to find every excuse for this loss. There's no need to make excuses. Angott is a forgotten great and there's no shame that Williams lost.

    Angott was an amazingly tough, courageous boxer/spoiler, who people forget suffered from horribly fragile hands, which were in awful shape by the time he finally won the title.

    Consider the lineup Angott fought:

    3 times against Sugar Ray Robinson, who was a full division bigger
    3 times against Ike Williams (two losses were razor thin SD's)
    Hank Armstrong (close loss)
    Lew Jenkins
    twice against Beau Jack
    3 times against Bob Montgomery
    Fritzie Zivic

    ...

    Oh, and he was the first to beat Willie Pep

    Maybe he didn't have the most beautiful record, but his matter of fact willingness to fight ANYONE has to rank with Greg, Charles, and Gavilan.
     
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  6. mcvey

    mcvey VIP Member Full Member

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    I love the Angott apologists scrambling to find excuses for his two losses to Williams.:lol:
     
  7. mcvey

    mcvey VIP Member Full Member

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    Angott had gone ten rounds with Gene Burton just a month earlier. His prior inactivity had lasted just 9 months.Williams conceded 4lbs in one of his wins against him, and 6 lbs in the other.

    "Williams suffered torn abdominal muscles, and Angott stopped him in the 6th"



    "Williams suffered a torn abdominal muscle from Angott's body blows in the first round and took a bad beating until the fight was stopped"

    Angott was 34, past his best . Williams was 22, not yet prime.
    Both great fighters.
     
  8. The Funny Man 7

    The Funny Man 7 Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    What? The two losses were both split decisions. I'm not scrambled for anything except actual fact. I'm not arguing that Angott is even greater than Williams. My post was a general observation on Angott's willingness to take on the elite of his day and his competence against that caliber of opposition.
     
  9. mcvey

    mcvey VIP Member Full Member

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    Williams was 20 and 21 years old in the two fights he beat Angott.
    1st fight
    "The official scoring was 4-4-2 (draw), 6-4 for Angott, and 5-3-2 for Williams. The referee voted for Williams and under the rules this gave the decision to Ike. It was Angott's mauling, swarming style against the cleaner boxing and sharper hitting of Williams. Attendance was 15,500 and the gross gate was $46,025."

    2nd fight
    "Official scorecards: 6-4 (Adgie) and 6-3-1 (Loughran) for Williams; 5-4-1 for Angott (Tress). The decision was well-received by the audience. Williams appeared to be the clear winner, although Angott won the second, seventh, and eighth rounds, and the third was even. Williams was busier and hit more clean".

    Angott had a 4.25lbs advantage in the 2nd fight.

    A 5.75lbs advantage in the 1st fight.

    Williams was pre-prime.

    I'm not scrambling either I was responding directly to your comments about }

    "Williams apologists scrambling to find every excuse for the loss".
     
  10. The Funny Man 7

    The Funny Man 7 Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    Ah, I see. i guess those are all fair points. I remember a few years back there was a real 'Ike Williams' infatuation on this forum. There's always at least one fighter who completely obsesses Classic before he's swept aside in favor of someone else. This tends to exhaust my patience.
     
  11. mcvey

    mcvey VIP Member Full Member

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    No harm done , most of them get their turn in the barrel.
     
  12. albinored

    albinored Active Member Full Member

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    ..........i have nothing to had to this discussion....reasonable arguments by both sides......but....i'm trying to visualize a "roundhouse " right to the body.
     
  13. The Funny Man 7

    The Funny Man 7 Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    Fair enough. I can't wait for 'Clutch Fever' to break out sometime in the next few days, with people picking Angott to ice Duran in three and Chavez in five.
     
  14. Rex Tickard

    Rex Tickard Active Member Full Member

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    I don't know what source you are citing for this, but I posted a report on X-ray results which confirmed a broken rib.


    When exactly would you say Williams was in his prime? By the time he was 26/27, he was generally considered on the decline.


    It should be be noted that the Associated Press scored this fight 7-2-1 for Angott.


    Again, I don't know what source you are citing for the underlined part, but that claim is contradicted by other reports.

    According to the United Press:

    "The fans booed the verdict, many believing that Angott's strong attack to the head and body had entitled him to the decision."

    The UP scored it 5-4-1 for Angott.
     
  15. mcvey

    mcvey VIP Member Full Member

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    .
    The AP and UP are psuedonyms they are not newspapers ,they are wire services for those too lazy/ impoverished to attend fights /sporting events.As such they should be treated with a large degree of caution. Ike Williams said he was prime in 1949, he also said he fought his greatest fight that year ,against Enrique Bolanos thats 4 years after Ike lost to Angott and makes him 26.