Rethinking Reno, Rickard, Dempsey and Wills ...

There was no such issue with Johnson vs. Moran, or Willard.

Rickard and Dempsey could have fought in the UK, Australia, or some other location.

The simply did not want to risk the title vs Wills. If Wills was in his prime and white, I'm not 100% sure Dempsey would have been eager to meet him.

We never saw Dempsey vs Greb either.

 

A great professor once told me, "Don't watch their tears; watch their hands going for your wallet."

 

The Moran fight was in France, the Willard one in Cuba and Willard won that so there would have been no problem anyway.
Rickard promoting in the UK ,Australia or some other location. Get realatsch

 

Of course there was "more to it". The reason blacks did not fight for the hwt championship is very complicated. Far more complicated than Jeffries or Dempsey not wanting to fight a black man. If the American culture at that time was all for it there is no doubt both fights would have occurred. Unfortunately they were not all for it and in the end that is why the fights never occurred. The simpleton reasoning is Jeffries and Dempsey were afraid to fight Johnson and Wills. I am very sure neither man was afraid to fight anyone. It was the American culture that was afraid of the repercussions to American society if a black man would have become worlds hwt champion.

 

It's hard to deny that the racial politics of the time would have been playing on everyone's mind over the prospect of this Dempsey-Wills "Fight of the Century".
It baffles me how people manage to deny it.

 

That was my point. The fight did not have to be in the USA if there were concerns with riots. Had Willard lost in Cuba, I doubt there are riots in the USA.

Rickard was about the money too. Are you saying is a large purse was out there in a non-USA location, he would not be interested?

You sure like heavyweights who avoid meeting their top competition as champion.

 

It did not matter where the fight occurred. All the particulars lived in the US and all faced reprocussions from American society for going against American cultural desires and precedent.

 

You mean like Jeffries, fighting,Kennedy, Finnegan, and Munroe instead of Johnson, McVey and Martin?

 

M, why would Dempsey and Rickard have to go anywhere? The money was and is even now here in the U.S. What million dollar gate did they achieve during that time anywhere else?
Comparing what Johnson made purse-wise to what Dempsey made is just plain silly.
Once and for all Dempsey didn't fight Greb and the reason was stated in many articles at the time, Greb was a MW, people didn't want to pay good money to see another Dempsey - Carp. massacre. People in those days were smarter then some people who are trying to sell books, or Dempsey haters cos the fact is Greb was too small and it was mentioned in many articles. Talking about Greb beating all the HW's is like saying Roy Jones is the one of the ATG HW's cos he beat John Ruiz. Both Jones and Greb were too small. Greb wouldn't have stood a chance against Dempsey and people of that time knew that unlike some now who use sparring sessions as proof of Grebs ability to handle Dempsey. That is just too funny even then Greb in the sparring session head butted Dempsey. What many cant seem to grasp is that Dempsey worked the body and no matter how fast you move your hands, head or legs your body is there to be hit. Greb NEVER fought a fighter who had Dempsey's speed or power, or to put it another way Greb never fought someone like Dempsey and with the tiny mitts they used in those days, please. And don't come back with Greb beat everybody, incuding Tunney. Greb didn't fight Dempsey cos he was too small, many articles written at that time say the same thing, Greb was a MW, which some on here choose to ignore. Dempsey was not afraid to fight either Greb nor Wills.

 

Dempsey didn't avoid Greb or Wills PERSONALLY and wasn't scared to fight either one.

 

Its documented that Rickard wouldnt promote it cause of his dealing when Johnson fought Jeffries.
No way in hell Dempsey was afraid of Wills. Not with the life he led.

 

All this was a complex American society/culture issue. White America wanted Blacks to be kept in the background not as the worlds hwt boxing champion...the physical master of all men. The people around boxing and who controled boxing during Jeffries and Dempsey's era went along with the vast majority. They would have to live with the reprocussions if they were to go against American society norms. No other option was really open to them even if they wanted to go with the minority.

 

I believe it was a major factor.