Corbett McCoy, fixed fight, or Corbett's last big win?

I've gone through more papers, and there are a lot more questions in the next days reports than I believed. From what I've gone through, I see 6 saying it was legit, plus 3 with not explicit comment (which I'd take to mean it was legit), versus 4 calling it a fix or questionable.

Perhaps the best conclusion is that if George Siler couldn't tell watching it at the time, how are we going to tell over 100 years later.

Says the fight did not look like a fake
The sun., August 31, 1900, Page 2, Image 2
http://nyshistoricnewspapers.org/lccn/sn83030272/1900-08-31/ed-1/seq-2/

The referee says Corbett won legitimately.
The evening world., August 31, 1900, Page 6, Image 6
http://nyshistoricnewspapers.org/lccn/sn83030193/1900-08-31/ed-1/seq-6/#date1=08/31/1900&city=&date2=08/31/1900&searchType=advanced&SearchType=prox5&sequence=0&lccn=&index=4&words=Corbett+CORBETT&proxdistance=5&county=&to_year=1900&rows=20&ortext=&from_year=1900&proxtext=corbett&phrasetext=&andtext=&dateFilterType=range&page=1

"Fighting was on the level"
The Brooklyn Daily Eagle., August 31, 1900, Page 10, Image 10
http://nyshistoricnewspapers.org/lccn/sn83031151/1900-08-31/ed-1/seq-10/#date1=08/31/1900&city=&date2=08/31/1900&searchType=advanced&SearchType=prox5&sequence=0&lccn=&index=6&words=Corbett&proxdistance=5&county=&to_year=1900&rows=20&ortext=&from_year=1900&proxtext=corbett&phrasetext=&andtext=&dateFilterType=range&page=1

The New York Times, August 31 1900
Against [it being a fix] it may be said that McCoy took a needlessly severe punishment, if all was prearranged. As to his condition, there is no question that he entered the ring heavier than he has ever fought before. The weights were not announced officially, but Corbett looked to be about 190, and McCoy was hardly less than 175 pounds.

The Cincinati Enquirer says Referee Charley White didn't doubt it was legitimate and they say no reason to disagree with him.
The Buffalo times said it did not look like a fake. I've looked at a few of the Buffalo papers, and they seem to be the same report.

Not explicit comment (unless I missed it)
I don't see any explicit comments in The Standard Union, but it says that after "McCoy's face was puffed and swollen, and his right eye was discolored"
It also said "At the ring side there were men from Chicago, and Cincinnati, San Francisco and Denver, Stl Louis and Salt Lake City, Buffalo and Atlanta."
I don't see any explicit comment about it being a fix in The Atlanta Constitution.

The Salt Lake herald., August 31, 1900, Image 1
https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/...ccoy&y=18&x=6&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1

For it being a fake or questionable
The New York Tribune called it a fake
The Brooklyn Citizen commented on peculiar betting and said "A great many seem to be of the opinion that the fight was not on the level"
Brooklyn Times Union "Corbett Won a Very Shady Looking Bout"
In the San Francisco Cali L. M. Houseman says it was a blatant fake (you can find that paper here, but the site isn't loading for me ATM https://cdnc.ucr.edu/ )
George Siler wrote for the Chicago Tribune, he said it looked suspicious, but said it was hard to tell if it was fixed or on the level, and suggested the final blow was hard enough to put McCoy out for the count, but had little doubt of Corbett's superiority.

 

So one of Corbett's best wins is against a light heavy he outweighed by nearly 20lbs?

Corbett is massively overrated.

 

The referee Charley White, fighters Gus Ruhlin,Tom Sharkey,Jim Jeffries,and Bob Fitzsimmons, all thought it was genuine.
So did The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, The New York Sun, and The Police Gazette. After the fight Corbett sailed for the UK with another woman so his then wife certainly had a motive for claiming the fight was fixed.

 

Everything I read seems like the fight was on the level.

MCCoy was a pound for pound talent of the times.

 

One of the reports estimated McCoy's weight at 175 and Corbett's at 190. McCoy was described as the heaviest he'd been at, but in good condition.

 

Neither man weighed in ,McCoy was estimated in one report to be 170lbs, and Corbett around188/190lbs,rather heavy for him.

 

Holyfield was 217lbs, that's a heavyweight.
Heavier than
Sullivan
Corbett
Fitzsimmons
Some of Jeffries fights
Hart
Burns
Johnson
Dempsey
Tunney
Schmeling
Sharkey
Baer
Braddock
Louis
Charles
Walcott
Marciano
Patterson
Johansson
Liston
Ali
Frazier
Spinks
Holmes
Spinks M

One hundred and seventy pounds is NOT a heavyweight!

 

His best win was over prime Vitali imo, regardless of the fact it was from a cut.

 

I have to admit I’m not too familiar with the whole backstory around this fight, but from what has been posted here, the wives’ stories definitely don’t seem to add up. What’s that saying about a woman scorned?

 

But he by and large he couldn't . Corbett beat the **** out of him.Choynski was a super middle at best. his wins over heavies of class were Goddard,Ruhlin ,and Maher
Holyfield was 47lbs heavier than McCoy,no comparison.
Holyfield was heavier than 24 of the other heavyweight champions.How many was McCoy heavier than, or even around the same weight as?