definitely the most durable and toughest of any fighter of any era. a horrible win loss record(almost all losses) this guy soaked up punishment like a sponge. jack johnson dropped him several times and when he got up johnson said "this guy aint human".was he the toughest ever? could lamotta of taken what he took?he would lose but was never beat.
Many years ago, I read an article about him in Ring Magazine. I'm guessing this was around 1990 or so. Jack Johnson dropped him more than several times, I believe it was more like 20. Anyway, his face was apparently disfigured permantely by the end of his career. When asked why he was so durable, his trainer said that he believed it was the makeup of Joe's skin. He described it as being unusually oilly, and attributed his resilliance to punches sliding off, and not cutting or reaping their full impact.... Joe and his wife spent the rest of their days owning a general store or some sort of similar business. That's all I remember from reading that article nearly 20 years ago.
His name was Joe Grim; and no man could knock him out!* *Well one did, thus proving the rule! http://www.eastsideboxing.com/joegrim.html
Mmmm false. Grimm was dropped numerous times during his career and the only thing that prevented him from getting stopped was the liberal referees. With refs now days he'd be stopped in a few rounds by any decent heavyweight. Wlad has never been counted out either, but no one considers him the most durable fighter of all time. Stupid, stupid thread.
ture but grimm was a sideshow he was there to take it all in the ass for money against anyone at anytime. he was joe grimm and he feared no man about funnymans comment. yeah i can see your point but the guy had a chin no doubt. there was still a count you had to make....very few men can make it. to me it was just bigger guys wacking him down through sheer pressure and force not becuase he was fragile but had enough heart to get up as many time as he pleased. but due to a bit of both cases hard chin killer heart...not much desire to win staying in there was a win enough. the koes on his record were supposivly words at the time meaning disqualification. for example there was a bout of his getting stopped when the police "intervened". why would that be called a ko? a TD or DQ would be more appropriate.
Yes, I do consider his persistance remarkable, but I maintain that he was clearly overrated in terms of durability. Since he took so much pride in simply not getting stopped, he probably wasn't trying that hard to win, which means he wasn't taking as many chances, meaning he probably wasn't getting wacked with nasty countershots. Also, its a lot easier to last the distance when your mind is only on lasting and not winning. Plenty of fighters could finish slaughters if the had liberal refs and were content just to survive. For me at least, Joe Grimm is clearly less tough that someone like Basilio, LaMotta, and Chuvalo, or even guys like Israel Vazquez or Tony Zale.
The Johnson-Grim fight as reported by The Washington Times on July 25th, 1905; "PHILADELPHIA, July 25--The bell clanged last night at the National Athletic Club in the sixth round amid the wildest excitement ever seen at a fight. Joe Grim, the sturdy Italian who has faced the greatest men in the world without being counted out, had met Jack Johnson, and it looked as though he had met his Waterloo. He was down for the tenth time in that round, and lay there writhing in pain, hundreds around the ring hatless and coatless, yelling like mad, his seconds running around throwing water and begging him to try and get up, and the referee counting eight, just as the bell sounded, and saved Grim from what looked to be certain defeat. He stayed the limit with the giant black man, but every speck of gameness was brought to play to land him on his feet. LIKE HAMBURGER STEAK It was a sight that one seldom sees, and one that will linger long in the memory of the people. Grim had fought gamely for five rounds. He took terrible lefts on the body, nose, and mouth without flinching, and went to his corner round after round looking more like a hamburger steak than a human being. He came up smiling for the sixth, and as he shook hands with his powerful opponent, said; 'Joe Grim is still here and you can't put him out.' Big Johnson, looming up like a mountain of ebony, smiled, but in back of that smile was a desire to get action out of the Italian wonder. As they squared off the big black giant rushed and drove a crushing right on Grim's jaw. Joe's head rolled back, he went down slowly, and then rolled over on his back. The crowd howled and howled as Referee McGuigan counted, but Grim gamely arose, only to be crushed again. Nine different times he had gone to the floor in that round from the pile-driving smashes of the giant negro, and as he rolled over from the last one every man in the house thought that his time had come. Grim had been beaten almost to a pulp in this round, and as he he stopped the last uppercut on the jaw and rolled over on his back without the slightest sign of life, it did really look as though he was out for good. SAVED BY GONG He fell over on his back, his head almost out of the ring, and there he lay, the referee getting closer to the fatal 'ten' and the excitement getting wilder and wilder, just as the gong came to his rescue. Four seconds carried the disabled fighter to his corner, where he was worked on until he came to and then he got up smiling, looked for Johnson, and shook hands with him. Johnson's eyes were sticking out and he was as rattled as any man in the house, seeing how near he had come to putting the Italian down for the limit. They say that Kid Carter, Dave Holly and Fitzsimmons had the son of Italy almost as bad, but it hardly seems possible. Even as he left the ring his legs were wobbly and he was still dazed from the terrible punishment. If there is a man in the world who can put the brave Italian out, he is yet to be seen. His list now includes Maher, Holly, Fitzsimmons, Walcott, Buddy Ryan, Gans, Johnson, Carter, and a few other less notables all of whom failed to put him out." The mention of Grim being saved by the bell is mentioned in every other source of the fight I've read, as well as more than a few mentions in other sources of Grim being down "more than a dozen times", and things of that nature.
No it is true, and Grim in this era would not be allowed out his padded cell let alone into a ring. He was a freak show.
Joe Grim was knocked out in 2nd round on January 22, 1900, at the Broadway A.C. in Philadelphia, by Ed Smith. Also, contrary to what the article, a link to which is given above, says, he started boxing no later than 1899. I have a clipping of him losing to Spike Coan on July 3, 1899, and it is also mentioned by later sources that he fought Jim Hall to a 6-round draw in Texas some time in 1899. "Grim came up very gallus in the second round, but he soon dropped the air as Smith landed a few hard blows on his face and body that had the delegate from League Island fighting in a wild state. After a few more moments of fiddling on the part of Smith, which caused an anxious look to appear upon Grim's face, the big black ended the agony by catching Joe on the stomach, which sent Grim down for good and out." -- The Philadelphia Inquirer, Jan 23, 1900. Added them to his boxrec record just now.
