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Stanley Ketchel vs Sam Langford, April 27,1910


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STANLEY KETCHEL v SAM LANGFORD, APRIL 27 1910, PHILADELPHIA

 

 

Special to The New York Times. PHILADELPHIA, April 27.—

 

The main feature of the fight here to-night between Stanley Ketchel and Sam Langford, the colored light heavyweight, was the dis­satisfaction among the big crowd who saw the go—dissatisfied because they could not see more of the lively going which characterized the bout throughout.

 

It was a fight full of action from start to finish in which the only apparent damage was Ketchel's bloody face, the re­sult of Langford's straight jolts on the nose and mouth. Langford was the finished boxer and landed clean and hard on the white man, who was all willingness and determined to finish the black man in short order. Langford lost a clear title to the fight by his slowing up in the last part of the last round. He was entitled to a draw, however, and the doubt still remains whether or not he is Ketchel's master. Up to the last round he demonstrated this fact, but his slowness in the last round took a lot of credit from him. Many thought he was stalling, but only he could tell that with any certainty.

 

At 7 o'clock the doors were opened and a crowd that had blocked the wide street in front of the clubhouse surged In be­tween a double line of city policemen. The cheaper seats at $2 and $3 were soon occupied. An hour before the scheduled opening the management announced that the rec­ord for the club, a $23,000 gate, would be broken.

 

A crowd of New Yorkers, including Tom Foley, Gene McGuire, Arthur Murphy, "Honest John" Kelly, Charlie White, Billy Gibson, Jim Buckley, Tim Sullivan, Jimmy Johnson, Larry Mulligan, Johnny White, Billy Long, P. Paul, Eddie Milan, and Jimmy Kelly occupied seats around the ring. Another partv included Tom Jones, Billy Job, Charles Gates, Warren Bar­bour, the amateur heavyweight champion; Frank Mulken, M. Murray, John Mooney, and John Murray.

 

Langford was the first to appear in the ring. He was accompanied by Young Mississippi, George Byers, and George Cole, his seconds. The colored fighter received a warm reception. He was fol­lowed a moment later by Ketchel, who en­tered the ring with Eddie Baun, Jimmy Kelly, and Nick Muller. Ketchel was cheered to the echo as he crawled through the ropes.

 

Langford looked to weigh easily ten pounds more than his white opponent, though the latter had the advantage of height and reach. For an instant they fiddled after the gong announced the start, and then they broke for each other, coming to a clinch. Langford boxed and Ketchel took a chance and literallv threw his left in. It fell short, but lie tried again, always to be blocked by his clever opponent. Langford feinted and got home a left half swing to the body. More spar­ring with Ketchel boring in. The crowd hissed. A slight let up in the going, and Langford went in with both arms work­ing. He landed left and right on the body lightly. Ketchel got away with a left on the negro's stomach as the round ended.

 

There was no question of the willing­ness of the pair as they rushed at each other for the second round. Langford landed a stiff left on the side of the head. The crowd worked up to the realization that they were about to see a real fight. and cheered wildly as the fighters pegged away. Ketchel was always after Lang­ford, who was kept jumping continually, but the middleweight champion only landed once effectively at this stage. It was a hard right swing on the chest, as Langford was stepping away. Langford was measuring his man coolly, and backed and sidestepped the swings Ketchel was working. He stepped in as the round closed and landed a short half-arm left and then a right on the neck and side of the head.

 

Ketchel carried the fight to Langford as usual in the third round, but the black man saw him coming and landed pretty much as he pleased. Langford's blows were clean and had force back of them, but they were not doing much damage, apparently. To those close to the ring it was evident that Langford was shaping Ketchel up. The latter was busy at all times, however, and thinking only of rushing Langford. He kept trying his right shift low for the body, and landed it twice. The crowd went wild, for it was all with the white man. Langford was not at all worried, and came back with hard, straight rights and lefts on the neck. They were fighting furiously as the round closed, and exchanged a couple of punches even after the bell rang.

 

Langford was all scientific action as they toed the mark for the fourth period, and it looked as though close fighting was beginning to tell on Ketchel, who looked worried and a bit tired. His nose and mouth were bleeding from the straight lefts Langford was planting, but they did not deter Ketchel, who came along nevertheless. He was taking all that Langford sent across, and got back a few of his favorite right shifts for the body. Langford shook Ketchel up with straight lefts and a right uppercut close­ly following, just after they stepped to the centre Ketchel was rough in the clinches, while Langford boxed whenever he could get set. He was kept busy, though, dodging Ketchel's swings and getting out of the road of his rushes. Ketchel's many attempts to find the col­ored man were mostly futile, though he couldn't be denied. Langford missed a straight left lead for the head as the bell rang and slipped to the floor.

 

The crowd yelled like wild Indians in the final round. Ketchel started furiously and had Langford backing away, dodging and side-stepping to keep out of the road of the slamming Ketchel had ordered for him. It was a sort of a finish that the average crowd likes to see in a limited round go, because it was so full of ac­tion. Ketchel was showy, but he was not effective. About the middle of the round Langford stepped in and shoved over a left and right that landed beauti­fully. Ketchel staggered, but he was back at the little negro like a bull. Sam kept his hands quieter and Ketchel thought he saw a chance to slip one over. Langford immediately woke up and countered hard enough to crack an inch board. He didn't follow it, up, however, in the manner his friends knew he could. Ketchel kept hard at it and was trying like a demon at the bell rang. The crowd cheered him to the roof.

 

 

Source : http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F00C1FF63F5F12738DDDA10A94DC405B808DF1D3

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Re: Stanley Ketchel vs Sam Langford, April 27,1910

 

STANLEY KETCHEL v SAM LANGFORD, APRIL 27 1910, PHILADELPHIA

 

 

Special to The New York Times. PHILADELPHIA, April 27.—

 

Langford lost a clear title to the fight by his slowing up in the last part of the last round. He was entitled to a draw, however, and the doubt still remains whether or not he is Ketchel's master. Up to the last round he demonstrated this fact, but his slowness in the last round took a lot of credit from him. Many thought he was stalling, but only he could tell that with any certainty.

 

----- Perhaps /\ the source of rumors that Langford carried Ketchel.

 

The account of the fight shows a hard fought slugging match, the kind that easily saps the best fighters when he goes against a game equal as these two were.

 

Supposedly this was a promotion to the lucrative rematch for Ketchel's title, but I'm not convinced if Langford could make the middle limit again without severe consequences. Didn't matter in the end since Ketchel was dead before he could make another big fight.

 

Coulda been a classic that was filmed!

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  • 4 years later...

Re: Stanley Ketchel vs Sam Langford, April 27,1910

 

This is one of those fights that will forever be debated and the death of Ketchel before this newspaper decision could be set up as a true fight is a crying shame. That said it's left the imagination to run riot with obvious note that Langford was tight at middle countered by the claims of Langford going easy in the later half of rounds to obtain the title fight. Sometimes legend and myth can be more fun than what the reality would have brought which is why sporting history especially boxing is fooking marvelous.

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