Sullivan, was less experienced than Gans in early '06, but he did have vast resources of top flight experience to draw upon. The twelve round ND newspaper win over Elbows McFadden, the fifteen round draw against Jack Blackburn, the twenty round defeat of Jimmy Gardner he had managed to squeeze in between bouts with Gans, and not least the 15 round draw with the Old Master himself. Just like almost everyone else on the planet, Sullivan fell short of Gans in terms of true top-line experience, but he was certainly mixing in the great champion's class. Gans was the favourite going in to the world welterweight title fight: "As the hour of the mill approaches the Balltimore negro is favourite at odds of 10-8...At present Sullivan is undoubetedly the white welter-weight title holder, adn he has the better claim to the real title than Gans [who was seen as having a claim by virtue of his 15 round draw with Walcott. I think Gans got the **** end of that decision]. The fight between the two will settle the issue. "Sullivan is a peculiar fighter. He is tall and lanky. His legs are thinner than Fitzsimmons. He is bald as an eagle. In general make up he looks more like a preacher than a fighter. He is game and willing. Sullivan fought Gans at Herford's Baltimore club last September in a fifteen round fight. Although he whipped [Gans] he was given only a draw. It is claimed by Gans supporters that Joe was holding back in that fight, hoping to get another match with a bigger purse attached. Sullivan believes he can repeat the trick." The Evening World, January 18 1906 Tommy West: "I consider Sullivan the best man of his weight in the country and I expect to see him defeat Gans before the end of the 20th round." "The contest is between two boxers who are are rated the cleverest in their proffession adn yet their styles are widely different. Sullivan is the boxer of the two and he is wonderfully clever in placing the left punches to the face and in smothering and blocking wicked blows that do much damage if one of tehm landed. Besides being a boxer, Gans is a fighter of marked class and he either fights his or boxes his opponent as the occasion may demand." The San Fransisco Call, January 18 1906. So the papers at the time were all a flutter concerning "drastic changes" that might result in the boxing landscape at the back of this fight, it really was a big even pitting two pound for pounders against one another. I don't think it is extreme to compare it to Duran coming up to meet Sugar Ray. Anyway - Gans turned in a great, great performance against the bigger man. Outweiged by around 6lbs, he settled the score: "Joe gans, the wonderful lightweight champion boxer from Baltimore, went out of his class last night...and in a decisive manner defeated Mike Sullivan who has been hailed as the WW champion. The men fought until one minute and forty-five seconds of the fifteenth round when Gans right suddenly shot out and caught Sullivan flush. [He] was knocked to his haunches, his head supported by the lower rope of the ring. He lay there with wide-open, staring eyes, watching George Haring toll of the fateful ten seconds. He seemed to realise what was gong about him, but he did not have the power to move a single muscle of his body. From first to last Gans showed his mastery over his opponent and throughout the fight gave an exhibition of boxing seldom if ever equaled in the ring. He was handicapped by both reach and weight. After they got ggoing the later did not bother him whilst he at once found a means to offset Sullivan's reach. The coloured wonder fought in close to his oppoonent. They had not gone two rounds before Gans had his man tied up in all sorts of knots, he could not use his cleverness or his ability to hit. ... There was never a time when Gans seemed in any danger. He stood up and caught Sullivan's blows as a juggler would catch biliard balls. No matter how fast the blows nor from what direction, Gans gloes were always there to recieve them...he changed tactics nearly every round so that Sullivan never knew what was coming." The San Fransisco Call, January 20 1906 Sounds like a tactical masterclass, and an exhibition of defensive genius of the very highest class. Gans out-swarmed and in-fought his bigger opponent. It seems to have been one of Gans most brilliant performances against one of his best opponents at an age when most fighters in this era were starting to struggle. I wonder if he ever had a better win.
Thanks for that a very impressive win for Gans. Whats your take on Gans? How do you rate him from the film we have on him? I find him an enigma to place as he was a brilliant boxer but I dont see the crossover skills to a different era that say Fitzsimmons or Jeffries had. I think he is abit like Jack Johnson for me, a manwho mastered his boxing under his ruleset.
I think it was Jack Sullivan that Ryan had as the number 1 middleweight. His brother Mike was more of a welterweight, but still an able fighter.
This would be a treat to see. Is there anything of Gans' known to be available other than Nelson, McGovern, and Herman?
Yea, you are right. What is the crack with that other place? Posting there is crazy. Those guys all hate each other
It used to be good but the forum has went downhill badly. Basically 50% of the people posting there are just trying to get a rise out of people. I've all but given up on the History section there.
This content is protected : Great thread-opener, McGrain. Replace the name "Gans" with "Duran" and the name "Sullivan" with "Leonard" in the excerpts above and the parallels are a bit unnerving.
