What type of an athlete was John L Sullivan?

74" might have been decent in Sullivan's day, but one thing is undeniable. He was a puncher, not a boxer and to be successful at 5'10" with a 74 reach, he would need to be reasonably athletic vs the top opponents 5-30 years after he retired. A good athlete in boxing has their own version of built in defense and counter punching.

I like to hear Pollack ring in, he might know something we don't. For now the only thing I'm sold on is he had reasonably fast hands. While hand speed really decreases in the as a person hits the wrong side of 30, gyms are full of fat boys with fast hands. We have some today. If I can read a report when Sullivan was in the mid 1880's with fast hands, that would mean something.

 

Jeffries had like 7 fights, Choysnki was in his prime. Jeffries says Choysnki was floored three times, Choynski ran.

Jeffries first fight with Fitzsimmons was a pretty easy one for him. In the second fight, both men won two rounds, Fitz who did something to his gloves won two rounds cleanly, Jeffries came on in the 7th winning that round and finished him int he 8.

I can see you have a lot to learn. Here's a detailed round by round report of Fitz vs Jeffries 1. By all means read it, and reply back if you think Jeffries was an oaf, and wasn't winning this fight.


FIGHT BY ROUNDS<BR>
<BR>
CONEY ISLAND SPORTING CLUB (Ringside.) June 9 -- When time was called for the<BR>
first round Bob dances as Jeffries feints. They break instantly, and Jeffries<BR>
is short of a left jab for the head. Jeffries is short with a left again, but<BR>
touches the wind and puts a left on the neck.<BR>
<BR>
Second round -- Jeffries misses a left for the head, and Bob rushes and puts a<BR>
left on the neck and a right over the heart. Jeffries closes into a light<BR>
clinch, then, crouching, pushes a left to the stomach, but his right swing<BR>
only grazes Bob's shoulder. Jeffries rushes two lefts to the wind and then<BR>
jabs the face twice with the left. Fitz swings a right to the shoulder.<BR>
Jeffries shoots a straight left to the jaw and Bob goes down squarely. He is<BR>
soon up and starts to rush, but his left and right drives for the head are<BR>
neatly blocked.<BR>
<BR>
Third round -- A clinch to open. Fitzsimmons missed a left, and Jeffries comes<BR>
back with a left on the nose, and the claret shows on Fitzsimmons' face. Bob<BR>
plants a good right over the heart, and after an exchange of left-handers,<BR>
Fitzsimmons pokes the left to the neck, and Jeffries comes back hard on<BR>
Fitzsimmons' ribs with a left, and a right to the stomach. Jeffries jabs the<BR>
left twice to the face. Jeffries puts a stiff one on the stomach with the left<BR>
and repeats it a little later. Fitzsimmons hooks a left to the ear, and his<BR>
right goes over Jeffries' head, and an instant later Jeffries ducks another<BR>
one. Now Jeffries ducks into a stiff left, catching it on the mouth. The men<BR>
were sparring at the bell.<BR>
<BR>
Fourth round -- Jeffries misses a left, but ducks Fitzsimmons' right swing.<BR>
Fitzsimmons misseds a left for the stomach, and Jeffries puts a good right<BR>
over the heart. His left for the wind is stopped, but he shoots a hard left to<BR>
the neck. Fitzsimmons smiles and hooks a right to the ear: Jeffries planting a<BR>
sledge-hammer right over the heart. Another miss of Fitzsimmons' right draws<BR>
Jeffries' right to his ribs. Fitzsimmons puts a light left to the mouth and<BR>
brings his right to the ear, and Jeffries ducks into a stiff left swing. He<BR>
rushes Bob to the ropes, good footwork carrying Fitzsimmons out of danger.<BR>
<BR>
Fifth round -- Bob puts a left straight on the mouth and Jeffries misses a<BR>
left for the head. Fitz cuts the eye with his right. Both miss lefts. Bob<BR>
shoots a left to the bad eye and swings to the ear with the same glove. Bob<BR>
puts a left straight on the mouth, and Jeffries misses a left for the head.<BR>
Fitz cuts Jeffries' eye with his right. Both miss lefts. Bob shoots a left to<BR>
the bad eye and swings to the ear with the same glove. Jeffries sends a left<BR>
to the wind and a right to the ribs. Fitz rushes and puts a left on the neck,<BR>
and Jeffries misses a savage left swing. Jeffries shoots a straight left to<BR>
Fiz's mouth and Fitz tries a left for the solar plexus. Jeffries plants a left<BR>
on the chin, then jabs the face with a short-arm left. Fitzsimmons misses two<BR>
lefts, and Jeffries hooks the right, sending Bob to his knees. He is up in a<BR>
jiffy, and Jeffries pushes a right on the ribs and a left on the nose, Bob<BR>
replying with a light left on the head. At the close Jeffries jabs.<BR>
Fitzsimmons gets a left on the stomach. Jeffries' work has pleased his<BR>
friends, but Bob's friends feel as confident as ever.<BR>
<BR>
Sixth round -- Fitz was up and ready ten seconds before the gong. He swings a<BR>
right to the back of Jeffries' ear, then jabs the latter's face with the left,<BR>
Jeffries countering with his left on the mouth. Bob jabs a left to the chin,<BR>
but misses a right, and Jeffries swings a left to the forehead. Jeffries ducks<BR>
with a right hook on the ear. They swap left-facers and Bob misses a right<BR>
swing, Jeffries smashing the wind with the right. Bob puts Jeffries across the<BR>
ring.<BR>
<BR>
Seventh round -- Fitzsimmons runs Jeffries across the ring, but is short with<BR>
the left, and Jeffries sends a hot left to the face. They come together,<BR>
Jeffries' right slapping Bob's side, sounding like a drum. Jeffries barely<BR>
touches the chin, Bob stopping handsomely. Jeffries clinches against the next<BR>
two leads, but Bob puts a right on the ear. Jeffries answering with a right on<BR>
the ribs. Fitzsimmons lands a light left on the neck, then a straight left to<BR>
the mouth. Both miss lefts, then swap rights on the head. Fitzsimmons stops<BR>
Jeffries' swing, and puts two lefts on the mouth and neck, cutting the mouth<BR>
severely. Jeffries' left goes over the shoulder and Bob digs a right<BR>
wickededly under the heart. The gong then sounds.<BR>
<BR>
Eighth round -- Jeffries' legs are worked upon vigorously by his attendant.<BR>
Bob puts a left to the neck, but misses a right swing. Jeffries sends a left<BR>
to the ribs. He missed a right swing. Jeffries put a left to the ribs, Bob<BR>
putting a straight one on the mouth. Bob put a left to the neck, but misses a<BR>
right swing. Bob misses a right, and Fitz jolts Jeffries with the left; then<BR>
shoots to the mouth and follows again to the jaw. There are two clinches, and<BR>
Jeffries shoves a right to the ribs, Fitz reaching the chin with his left.<BR>
Fitz sent a straight left to the eye, Jeffries touching to the stomach with<BR>
his left. Bob sent a left over Jeffries' shoulder, and Jeffries swings his<BR>
left a foot over Bob's head. A straight left on the jaw sends Fitz reeling to<BR>
the ropes. Out in the center he clinches, then swings a hard left to Jeffries'<BR>
head. The bell rings.<BR>
<BR>
Ninth round -- Jeffries jabs a left on the mouth. Another left from Jeffries<BR>
to the mouth, and then he hits to the neck. The men swap rights. Jeffries'<BR>
left draws more blood from Bob's nose. Bob misses a right, and Jeffries puts a<BR>
right on the ribs. Jeffries' left finds the chin and Jeffries pokes a left to<BR>
the face. Bob comes back with a straight left on the mouth. Jeffries swings<BR>
twice with the left on the head. Fitz hooks a left to the neck. They swap<BR>
lefts on the head. Bob plants a left on the neck.<BR>
<BR>
Tenth round -- Jeff springs in and hugs Bob. After the break he pokes a left<BR>
to Bob's chest, then a left to the jaw, Bob replying with a left on the eye.<BR>
Fitz misses a left hook, ducking nicely Jeff's right, and is stopped by Bob's<BR>
elbow. Bob puts a left on the cheek, Jeffries missing his answer. Fitz misses<BR>
a left and a right swing, and Jeffries jabs a left to the mouth. Fitz crowds<BR>
him to the corner. Jeffries shoots a straight to the jaw. Bob falls flat on<BR>
his back and takes eight seconds to arise. When he gets up Jeffries swung a<BR>
right to the neck, and again Bob is down. He gets up, but is sent to his knees<BR>
by a left, when he arises he clinches and the bell is heard. Just as the bell<BR>
sounds Fitz swings a wild left. Fitz is very groggy.<BR>
<BR>
Eleventh round -- Fitz was up briskly for this round. He misses a left for the<BR>
head. Jeffries clinches. Fitz misses a right jab, Jeffries jolting the neck<BR>
with a left. Fitz uses a left on the stomach and a right on the chest. Fitz<BR>
misses a right, and Jeffries plants a right over the heart. Jeffries sent a<BR>
straight left to the mouth, sending Bob's head back, but Bob is still there.<BR>
He puts a left on the shoulder. Jeffries puts a right on the wind and a left<BR>
to the eye. Two more lefts from Jeffries on Bob's head, then Jeffries jabs the<BR>
left twice like lightning. Now two left swings go to the neck and jaw, and a<BR>
right swing is sent to the point of the jaw and the Cornishman falls prone.<BR>
<BR>
He falls on his side and rolls over on his back. The referee counts 1, 2, 3,<BR>
4, 5, 6. Bob rolls over. Then 7, 8, 9, 10. Fitzsimmons is out, and Jeffries is<BR>
champion of the world. The referee waves his hands to the seconds to carry<BR>
Fitzsimmons to his corner. They lift him, still unconscious, and sit him in<BR>
his chair. He revives rapidly.<BR>
<BR>
Meanwhile, a shouting, cheering crowd surrounds Jeffries in his corner. Fitz<BR>
sits disconsolate in his chair, and the Californian crosses the ring and<BR>
shakes hands. Jeffries leaves the ring in the center of a shouting, howling<BR>
mob.<BR>
<BR>
It was a great fight, and was fought on its merits. It is another illustration<BR>
that youth and strength are too big handicaps for age to encounter. Fitz left<BR>
the platform a few moments after the battle.<BR>
<BR>