This content is protected 1. Oddly, Norkus seemed more cautious, yet Brion landed more blows. Norkus developed a nosebleed in the opener, and Brion developed a cut over the right eye. Brion landed a decent right hand at the bell. Brion. 2. Both were attempting to protect their cuts. Whereas Norkus was protecting himself by not leaving himself open, by barely throwing at all, Brion guarded his right eye with an open right hand high up, the way Ken Norton did. Even. 3. Norkus was hurt by a right hand, although it was not a biggie. Brion kept the heat on though, and another right hand injured Norkus. A third big right hand dropped Norkus, but Brion aided in Norkus' going to the floor, wrestling him to the floor after the right hand, thus insuring a KD. Brion. 4. Brion had Norkus on the retreat early on. Norkus had been slightly injured and staggered back into the ropes. An over-eager Brion rushed in, landing a right to the body. Norkus ducked and came up with a left hook. What followed was some of the sloppiest brawling I ever saw. For the next minute and a half at least they wailed away, missing 75% of the time and the other 25% landing grazing, light shots. And in between all the flailing going on, they would clinch and tug and sway back and forth trying to get free of the clinch. Brion. I would have hated to see these two go the 10-round distance, they were so sloppy. Brion in particular annoyed me. He had Norkus hurt several times in the last two rounds, yet could not land cleanly on him, despite clear advantages. Verdict: The sloppiest fight I've seen in my life up to this point. If ALL of the punches they threw landed, this would be a legendary fight, but since they missed so much, it wasn't. How do you describe a fight like this? I guess I would say it was okay. Both tried real hard and at times the fight was a shade entertaining, but they were just too sloppy. The commentator said it was "a heavyweight go you'll well remember". I would prefer to think of it as a heavyweight go you'll well forget.
This one is worth watching for me just for the Pabst Blue Ribbon commercial. It has been decades and decades since I heard that song--"What'll you have? Pabst Blue Ribbon. What'll you have? Pabst Blue Ribbon. Pabst Blue Ribbon beer." Much of it might be nostalgia, having not heard it since I was a kid, but I still find it a catchy ditty. One problem is we are too close to these fighters. We can't see the footwork. I don't know if this was actually the picture that was originally broadcast as I noticed the commercial also had the camera too close, cutting off the writing about the product. This is, I think, the earliest surviving TV broadcast I have seen. Earlier films may be of fights broadcast on TV but I think we are now watching those fights from ringside films. As I said, the angle is terrible, in my opinion. As for the fight, I wouldn't be as critical. Once we get into the fifties, and the TV era, a lot of ordinary fights survive. It is not like we are watching Louis or Ike Williams or Billy Conn. These are just two trial horse heavyweights. Brion was a fringe contender type who could beat pretty good contenders but always lost to the top men. Norkus was a notch lower with an odd career. He didn't do much of anything against even fairly good men except in 1954 when he beat Nardico, a slipping Brion, Powell, and LaStarza, and so broke into the top ten for a few months. As for action, I thought it was entertaining. Brion was better in fundamentals, holding his hands high for defense. He had a good left jab and right cross. The announcer said he was 6' 2", but he looked taller to me and over at fightsrec is listed as 6' 3". The announcer noted that Norkus carried his left hand low. He seemed to have decent torso and head movement, but relied totally on that, and he just wasn't quick enough to get away with that style without blocking punches. Brion missing a lot? He was no Joe Louis for accuracy, but he also landed quite a few. This is the only fight I can think of in which both men were bleeding within the first minute of the fight. Thanks for posting.
Yeah, I think the Pabst Blue Ribbon commercials are funny. I do think the fight was fairly entertaining.
