John L Knocked Jeffries Down!

One other point is I think it's important not only to read the round by round reports but even more so the storyline. There were no instant replays so I can imagine the blow by blow description could be well off reality. Finding eye witness round by round where they actually provide their assessment of who won each round is rare from those days. Here we have one that does.

However reading the rest of the report you get a better idea of the overall direction this fight went. As follows:

Corbett shows old form.

Corbett tires himself out hammering Jeffries all over the ring for an hour and a half.

Corbett made a ****** of big fellow.

There is no mention that the bout was close by fights end.

So taking everything into account I summarize this fight as being definitely mostly Corbett going into the later rounds when he tired and was then koed. Jeffries made the bout closer over the last 4-5 rounds.

 

I honestly have never read any report of the Johnson Jeffries fight that said anything other than it was a one sided bout. Is it possible that Johnson knowing it was a LONG bout did not go all out the first ten rounds and gave Jeffries a slow beat down over that time. Sure. I would be VERY careful taking round by round summaries from that time and then trying to interpret the winner of a round. I can tell you when you look at films of old bouts and try to match them up with these accounts it never matches up well. This Jeffries Corbett discussion is I think a prime example the more I look at it.

 

There are a few. I can PM you if your are interested. Here's what an old Johnson book had to say of the first 10 rounds.


THE BATTLE BY ROUNDS. taken from the LIFE AND BATTLES OF JACK JOHNSON. Page 67 I'm not going to correct all of the spelling mistakes, but you can judge for yourself if the fight was close until round ten

First Round—Jeff walked in and Johnson gave
ground. Jolinson led a straight left. Then a clincli followed. Jelf hooked a left on tlie ueok and in the clinch sent a left to the body. Johnson responded Avitli a left and they continued to stand breast to breast,trying for inside blows. As they broke Jeff sent a left to Johnson's neck and crossed to the body. The round was tame. As they turned to their corners, Jeff tapped
Johnson on the shoulder and smiled.

- Jeffries slightly the better


Second Round—Jeff assumed liis crouch, but missed
his first attempt. Jack forced the pace and Jeff stepped
nimbly away. Jack sent a left to Jeff's face, and as they clinched ripped a hard uppercut to Jeffs chin. They held together and were unwilling to give each
other any chance. Jeff sent a right to the rilis and
took a left on the face at close quarters. Jeff' crouched
and waited for Johnson, but he was not willing. They came together without a blow and Johnson tried his uppercut but missed. Jeff put a right on Jack's shoulder and pushed him about. AVhen they broke
Jack shot his left hard to Jeffs face and tried his up- percut but missed again. Then there was a lot of wrestling and not much fighting. The gong rang with- out a good blow having been struck.

>>Even round

Third Round—Jolmson fell into a short left to the stomach. Tliey clinched. Jack dashed a left to the nose and they clinched again. Johnson missed with
right and left uppercuts and then Johnson tried a vicious right to the head, but Jeffries ducked and
clinched. Johnson was very cautious in tiie break- aways. Johnson sent two liglit rights to tlu' liead and
liiey clinched. At the bell Jellrics s<'nt a light left to the head. Tne round was even.

Even round

Fourth Round—Johnson sent a left to the head. Jeffries
blocked Jack's right to tlie same place anil aclinch followed. Jeffries sent three hard rights to the stomach. Johnson put a left to the head. Johnson's nose Avas bleeding. Jeffries goes into a clinch. Jolin- son sends a right to the kidneys. In the clinch he sent
a straight left to the head and then took one in return. They clinched. Johnson held in the clinches. Johnson
Avent against the ropes and took three jabs to the stomach. The crowd Avent Avild at Jeffries' shoAving.
Atthe break Johnson sent a right to the ear, without
damage. Jeffries had a shade the better of this round.

Jeffries round. How anyone could say Jeffries was licked after he was slightly the better in the 1st and won the forth with the 2nd and 3rd being even. Not the same guys for sure, but beaten this early?

Fifth Round—They sparred and Johnson kept talk- ing to Jeffries. He kids Jim in the clinches. Jeffries rushed in Avith left to the ribs. Then a clinch. John- son sent a long left to the stomach, but did no damage.
Jack Avorked a left uppercut to jaw, and Jim's mouth
was slightly cut. He dashed in and sent two lefts to face. They sparred and Johnson backed away. He
appeared to be very cautious and played on the defensive.
Jeffries sent a straight left to mouth, and an- other to the nose, increasing the floAV of claret from
that organ. They Avere clinched at the bell. round
even.

Even round

Sixth Round—The pace was slow up to this time with- out doing much damage to the men. Johnson shot a left to Jeff's face and closed Jeff's right eye.. Jack missed two rights. Jeff's nose was bleeding when the gong rang. When Jeff took his seat his seconds got busy Avith bis eye, but Jeff told them that it Avas O. K. It Avas Jolmsou's round.

Johnson's round

Seventh Round—Jeff walked right in. Jack led right and left and missed. Jefif's eye was badly swollen and be rubbed it with bis glove. He feinted about and tried to draw Johnson on, but the negro declined to eome in. Jeff stepped in with left to body, but missed it and took a left on the head. Jeff hooked a left to the jaw. Johnson
sent in lefls to Ihe face. Jeff pulled his way into another
clinch, but failed to land. He drew Jack into a lead and
shot a left to tiie face. In a close quarter mi.x;;p Jack
sent his left to the face.

Johnson's round

Eighth Round—Thej' sparred at the opening and Johnson
feinted. They rushed into a clinch and Jack hooked
to the ear with a left. Johnson scut two rights to the head and repeated a moment later. Johnson 'blocked
beautifully. In a half clinch Jeffries pounded the stomach.
Jeffries ducked a left and took a right on chest. They clinched again. Johnson sent a left to the stomach. Johnson held in the clinciies and referee breaks them. Johnson forced a clinch, hanmieiing the kidneys. Johnson
tried a terrific right hook to the jaw but missed. Johnson sent a h'fc to the head. Jeffries dashed in with
a right, but it was blocked. They clinched and Jack
tried rijiht to head, but was short. They were clinched
at the bell. Johnsons round by a slight margin.

Johnson's round

Ninth Roimd—Jeff stood up and walked into a left to the chest. "Make him fight," yelled C'orbett. "Never
mind, just wait," said Johnson. Johnson walked in and
tried left for body. Jeff got inside of it and put his head
against Jack's chest and shoved the black fellow back to the ropes. Jeff took it all in calmly and seemed to be
waiting the opportunity to land a good one. Jeff walkedinto two left jabs on the face. They did no damage. His
wrist landed hard on the ribs and Johnson did not appear
to like it. It was Jeff's round.

Jeffries round

Tenth Round—They came up slowly. Jack shot a left to the face, but Jeff brushed it away and responded with
a left to the body. Jack again missed a lightning right
to the jaw. Jeflf put his shoulder against Johnson's body
and shoved him back. At close range Johnson sent a left uppercut to Jiff's face. Jeflf got under a left lead and
seemed to want to wear Jack out by bearing his weight
and shoving him. Jeff struck out two lefts to face from
a clinch and got one of the same kind. Jeff took two
lefts on the face when they broke. He stepped in quickly
and shot a left to the body as gong rang.

Even round.

>>>Summary I have it 3-3 with 4 rounds even after 10 rounds on THIS SOURCE. I am not going to debate others sources in this thread, just showing why I think the fight could have been ruled a draw when you consider the times based on this book.

 

Here is the problem. Read the storyline of every major eye witness. What you read is it was a miss match.....a one sided fight. I don't think anyone should ignore the storyline and instead just look at these round by round scenarios to form an opinion. I've read many newspapers of the day and they all state it was a one sided fight.

Looking over Jeffries Corbett I interpret all the information that this was a Corbett fight up until the last 4-5 rounds. "Corbett beat Jeffries all over the ring for an hour and a half."

 

So as typical past history has to be interpreted by looking at all the evidence. Looking at all the evidence and then sorting through it to form a realistic opinion.

 

Jeez.. Now we have punch stats!!!! So at fights end Corbett outhit Jeffries by the count of 404 to 140. I am sure these number are not 100% accurate but they certainly do give a level of credibility that Corbett did indeed "beat Jeff all over the ring".

 

Punch stats indicate Corbett won the vast majority if not all the first 16 rounds. After the 16th rounds things changed. I am thinking judging a round "even" was very different then vs today. Just coming forward but not landing was thought of as enough to even up a round where you were out hit 5 to one or more. B

 

"Had Corbett evaded the knockout blow referee White could have hardly done otherwise but to declare him the victor"

"That Corbett completely outclassed Jeffries is shown by the accompanying table complied by the New York herald. The blows were compiled by an expert and according to the count Corbett landed 440 blows vs 140 by Jeffries".

Really this closes the book on this debate. Just looking at the round by round summaries are very misleading. Corbett had clearly the better of the fight up until the 19th round. The punch numbers are just overwhelming in Corbetts favor in every round up until that time.