Tom Sharkey's Heavyweight Title Claim

I don't think so, Sharkey was never considered champ.

 

I think his claim was generally ignored, as it was clear he had lost to Fitzsimmons and the "official" result was nonsense.

Sharkey himself pursued his claim though, he issued this challenge in March 1897 shortly after the Corbett-Fitzsimmons fight:

“I claim the championship of the world. It is mine and I intend to claim and hold it until my colours are lowered. Fitzsimmons tells the world that he has retired from the ring, but whether he has or not I am the champion. I will fight him at any time or place. I have $2,500 deposited with W.W. Naughton as a forfeit for a bet of $10,000. Money talks, and if Fitzsimmons, Maher, Goddard or any one else wants to cover it they can do so at any time and I will be greatly pleased. I whipped Corbett before 10,000 people and he had plenty of training and was in as good condition as he was when he met the Cornishman. As for Fitzsimmons, I got the decision over him and would have knocked him out had I not been fouled. Who has any better claim on the world’s championship than I?” Thomas J Sharkey, Champion of the World.

 

He got the better of Corbett in the 4 rounder they had shortly before Corbett’s fight with Fitzsimmons, but it wasn’t a title fight nor was it even really a victory on Sharkey’s part. I’m pretty sure the official result is a draw.

While not many recognized Sharkey’s ‘claim’, it did sour many’s opinions of Corbett and how he would perform against Fitzsimmons.

 

No, I've never seen anything indicating Jeffries accepted Sharkey's claim, or tried to inherit it. Fitz was seen as the champion, and Jeffries as the leading contender.

 

Tom Sharkey took over the Maher lineage after Fitz was DQd.

He then took over Joe Goddards title claim when he beat him.

He took both these claims into the first fight with Jeffries.

 

I think Tom Sharkey was a Title Claimant but that was about the extent of it. The Lineage as far as I am concerned was Sullivan - Corbett - Fitzsimmons - Jeffries, as accepted by the old Ring Magazine. While I have my doubts about Hart, I will defer to the old Ring Record Book as to the validity of his claim. Then Burns. Then Johnson.

 

Wyatt Earp the Life Behind the Legend by Casey Tefertiller devotes a 24 page chapter on the Fitz-Sharkey fight.
It has contemporary accounts from the San Francisco Chronicle amongst other sources.
Sharkey fouled frequently and gained great acclaim for his acting abilities!
The result wasn’t taken seriously, evidenced by the fact Fitz got a crack at the title in his next fight.

 

At this time there weren't recognition bodies for world titles except the Police Gazette which I think they stopped after Peter Jackson v Slavin. Whatever official recognition existed was in places where the sport was legal hence why most of the official titles at this time are various regional titles of the British Empire. In terms of journalists and anecdotes I'm fairly certain there are many referring to Jeffries as champ as he had a claim to the Maher lineage. And not acknowledging the Maher lineage is a more modern thing. Whatever people had acknowledged Goddard and Sharkey would have naturally recognized Jeffries. Jeffries also had beaten Peter Jackson which would have made him the Police Gazette champ lineally.

 

It is a very interesting topic. I have seen quite a few who recognize Maher, and what follows from that, even today.

 

A lot of people took Peter Maher's title claim seriously, but the circumstances under which Sharkey took over the title claim, did not do anything to help its credibility.

If Corbett had stayed retired, people might just have rolled with it, based on the fact that there was nothing else going.

Once Corbett came out of retirement, the winner of Corbett Fitzsimmons, was always going to have a much more credible claim than Sharkey.

I see some parallels with Vitally Klitschko's title claim.