Sonny Liston, because he innovated & virtually invented the sport. First held the All World Caveman Unified Title by vanquishing the formerly undefeated Og son of Gog. That was a case of de-evolution, because his son was only "G" & because Og's wife was a full blooded Neanderthal. That occurred in 337,642 B.C.E., when Liston turned 17. Actually he got his nickname from evicting a cave bear from his premises so his family could have a better home. People thought Liston aged prematurely-but given he was the first fully Homo Sapien specimen & is over 1/3 of a million years old, he actually has been aging at an absolutely glacial pace. Oh & 1970 was not the end-he just went underground yet again into Parts Unknown so when he reemerges a century or so later in a completely different context & with a different style, nobody is suspicious. He has been training in remote regions of Siberia, Papau New Guinea, the Tibetan Plateau...plus some small South Pacific Islands, swimming between many of them.
William Abednego Thompson one of a set of triplets named Shadrach, Meshac and Abednego from a family with 21 children. A rock hard bare knuckle champion from Nottingam in the 19th century Also Daniel Mendoza another bare knuckle fighter from an earlier era distantly related to Benjamin Disraeli and Peter Sellers
It was rather irritating to see his portrayal in 'Cinderella Man' He was put over as a surly Clubber Lang type when,by all accounts,he was a very amusing and amiable guy outside of 'Office hours' Apart from that I quite liked the film.
"Last one up's a cissy" he said to da Preem when he knocked Carnera down and followed him to the canvas. He certainly wasn't short of a sense of humour
Bill Richmond 5 August 1763 – 28 December 1829. The strength of character and determination required to not just survive but thrive is amazing. He also had a major influence on the style and technique of the sport too. Think his wife deserves a mention too.
Thought it was appalling how it portrayed him, especially given his actual response to the deaths of Frankie Campbell and Earnie Schaff. They thought they needed a stereotypical bad guy and made Baer into one.
Yes he was a innovative fighter as well, stylish and made a great life for himself which being black in that era and all against him,he really is a great story. Have you read the book 'Richmond Unchained' by Luke G.Williams it's a great read about him and the other bare knuckle boxers of those times, highly recommend it. He has a blue plaque in tribute to him outside the Tom Cribb pub in London, Panton St I have visited it a couple of times when in London. Testament to the man and also a life long friendship he forged with Cribb. There was a good documentary made about him 'Bare knuckle boxer' channel 4 UK, sure it's on youtube about 10 years or so old again if you have not viewed it well worth your time
If I could have heard audio of one fight ever it would have been Baer v Galento lol only God knows what was said in that ring
I have seen that documentary (just checked & it's the one that I thought). Interesting and informative. Have heard about the Richmond Unchained book, not read it as yet, it got some good feedback as I remember. Good to get your recommendation and its now added to the already too long list of to be read books. Thanks for the heads up about the plaque, I will definitely pass by the next time am up there. It's just such a remarkable and quite moving life story. All the way from slavery. So many aspects to it slavery, class, racism, interracial marriage, the whole social context of that the era. Even the later friendship with Tom Cribb and the names he interacted with along the way. That's now reminded me of how much I should read the book.
