In the Ring With Tommy Burns

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So you think it was fixed? Ok, what other fights were " fixed " for Johnson to win?

 

Why? You would still see one of the best 175 pound fighters in history scared shitless of Burns to the point where literally turned his back on him and ran for much of the fight. Even Ketchel couldnt boast of that.

 

Ketchel could boast knocking him flat at the bell and then finishing him off in three during their rematch though. I don't criticize Burns for that performance but obviously many will not be impressed by it.

One also has to admit that the likes of Bill Squires and Gunner Moir were poor opposition, 180+ pounds or not. Squires could not box a lick but he could hype himself like no other to the newspapermen.

 

In hindsight Squires wasnt that good but he came here very highly touted as an extremely powerful puncher and with only one defeat, being a DQ. In those days with no TV, radio, etc. to assess him before hand it was a very risky match and Burns obliterated him like nobody before or since.

Moir was the British HW champion and had won his title with a one round KO. He hadnt lost a fight in four years. Burns was on his world tour at the time with the intention of fighting the best of those countries he was visiting. Moir was as good as you could hope or expect for what was basically the equivalent of Robinsons, or Ali's Euro tours.

 

He was KO'd in 9 of his following 10 fights and ridiculed by the media as arguably the biggest hypejob of all time up to that point, only due to Squires's own unconfirmed boasts of his ability.

Moir too was beaten in 8 of his next 9 fights.

Not that what you say isn't true, but on the other hand we must admit that these fighters were below par as contenders. On film they do not seem to have any ability and their careers went terribly downhill after Burns was done with them.

 

This is really hilarious.
Be honest ,are you really this stupid ,or are you just dyslexic?

It was fixed for Ketchel to make a showing to maximise the movie rights.
Johnson needed no fix to beat Ketchel, he could have put him out anytime he chose .

 

Yes, but thats the very definition of hindsight. You cant judge whether Moir and Squires were bad contenders at the time based on what they did AFTER. At the time Squires was considered a very good contender, and as stated Moir was as good a domestic as you were going to find in Britain which was entirely the point. Unless you could see into the future you couldnt say "Nope, sorry Mr. Burns, you cant fight these guys because while they have impressive records now, over the next few years they will suck." At the time most people couldnt wait for Lennox Lewis to fight Michael Grant and everyone from Ring to HBO to most of the fans on the street were saying Grant was his greatest threat. In hindsight Grant is just a blip on the heavyweight radar but you have to look at everything in context.

 

I have the book and I'm enjoying it in a huge way ... another terrific job by Adam who is creating an archive that will be sort after for generations to come ... he has created his own niche ... A plus job !!!

 

I ordered 'In the Ring with Tommy Burns' a few days ago, am really looking foreward to receiving it this week.

I sure hope a Lil' Arthur book's in the works!

That one may take quite a while, though.

 

I always hoped He made it through Dempsey ... I'd sure he has the formula down to a science but regardless, each book is an undertaking .. I thought and wrote to him that the most strategic route may have been to combine the post Jeffries pre Johnson guys into one volume but he was set on each man getting his own book ... at the same time he said there are no guarantees from one book to the next if there will be another ... as he puts out one a year I sure hope he has it in him as Johnson, Dempsey and Tunney could be classics .. ****, they are all classics ...

 

I got the book and it is terrific ... what amazes me is how these guys come to life ... I am experiencing the trajectory of Burns and his rise and moment in the sun was exceptional ... It also makes me amazed about styles ... even if Johnson got robbed v.s. Hart the fight was somewhat competitive ... Burns completely upset everyone by almost shutting Hart out yet ultimately loses to Johnson ... Burns story and rise is pretty amazing ... the book is terrific ...

 

One of the great things about this series is the way it has shined light on some of the lesser-known champs like Hart or Burns. But even those whose lives and careers have been chronicled in many more traditional biographies have more detail revealed about their careers in these books than has ever been done before to my knowledge.

 

The sixth in Adam Pollack’s wonderful series of books concerning heavyweight champions, beginning with John L. Sullivan, this work concerning the lesser-known Tommy Burns will no doubt hereafter be viewed as the definitive source considering the fighting skills and merit of the smallest of the 20th century heavyweight champions. As has been the case with each of Adam’s books to-date this one on Burns is meticulously researched and it’s difficult to imagine a more thorough analysis of the man’s career as a professional boxer.

I was already fairly well aware of Burn’s place in boxing history but gained a much greater appreciation for him as a fighter as a result of reading this book. I had always been under the impression that Burns did everything possible to avoid facing Jack Johnson. However, I am now convinced that Burns was never really all that reluctant to face Johnson and really only wanted to ensure that he received his desired asking price to face the man he believed represented the greatest challenge to his title. He should be applauded for his willingness to fight Johnson at a time when so many others would have hidden behind the color line. I also wasn’t aware that Burns had defended the title as often as he did, making a total of 13 successful title defenses before ultimately losing to Johnson in December of 1908.

It really is quite remarkable that the 5’7” Burns enjoyed as much success as he did. Many of the men that he defeated during his title reign outweighed him by 10-20 pounds and the fact of the matter was that Burns, who normally weighed in the 170s during his title reign, was really no more than a light-heavyweight.

I can’t help but believe that anyone who reads this book will come away with a much greater appreciation of Tommy Burns as a fighter. Additionally, the reader will gain further insight into the fighting skills and styles of men like Jack “Twin” Sullivan, Hugo Kelly, “Philadelphia” Jack O’Brien, and many, many others.

I was also particularly interested to learn of the controversy concerning one of Tommy’s fights with Jack O’Brien and the claim on the part of not only Burns and the fight’s promoter that O’Brien would only make the fight if Burns would agree to throw it. I hadn’t heard of that story before and the fact that James J. Jeffries then made a similar accusation concerning O’Brien only seemed to substantiate the charges.

I highly recommend the book and commend Adam for producing yet another outstanding resource and welcome addition to my boxing library.