[JCWeb]

This is a summary of ring action from the second half of February 1935, covering a total of 59 bouts. There are two WBA title contests among the key bouts covered in this report.

Feb. 15, 1935: Friday night fights head to Havana, Cuba, where the second sanctioned LABF (Latin American Boxing Federation) card will take place at the Gran Stadium. The first-ever LW LABF title clash headlines the card, but first up is a main support featuring two HWs: the “Ambling Alp,’ Primo Carnera, and Chilean Arturo Godoy. Not much happens as the two sluggers start cautiously through the first two rounds. Then, in round three, Godoy drops Carnera with a barrage of blows; the Italian takes an eight count before arising. A second KD follows a round later, and by round five Carnera is showing the effects, with some noticeable swelling under his right eye. Godoy eases up noticeably in the later rounds, as a tired-looking Carnera is unable to mount a rally. UD 10 for Godoy (98-90, 98-90, 99-89) as Carnera is clearly not in position to move up the HW ranks. Post-fight career records: Godoy, 18-4 (9); Carnera, 20-6-1 (16). Then, in the LABF title contest, veteran LW Luis Vicentini faces hometown fan favorite Emory Cabana for the new belt. Vicentini holds a prior win by KO over Cabana, but that was back in 1930 and things have changed: Cabana has more experience, and Vicentini is on the downside of his career path, but still hoping to hold his first title belt. (Cabana has briefly held the NABF belt within the past year.) Cabana looks sharp early, and takes on the role of the aggressor in the first half of the bout. Vicentini recovers from a poor start and the bout is more of an even contest through the middle rounds. Cabana shows the effects, as his right eye begins to swell. However, in the end, the hometown crowd has something to cheer about as Cabana holds on to take a UD 12 (118-110, 117-111, 115-113) and the LABF title belt. The Cuban moves to 34-16-4 (12) with the win; Vicentini, who will be at End career stage from now on, ends the bout at 36-15-3 (13).

Feb. 16, 1935: Next card is back in Europe at the Palais des Sports in Cannes, France. A hot new MW prospect, Marcel Cerdan, is on the undercard, and he makes short work of an American TC with a TKO 2 win to up his career stats to 5-0 (4). Cerdan moves from Beginner to Pre-Prime with his next outing. The main event also features two MWs, with Eduoard Tenet making his first defense of the EBU MW title in a rematch with the former Champion, Hein Domgorgen. The two split two prior bouts, but now Tenet is coming off a loss in his last bout and is seeking to regain his status in the rankings at the expense of Domgorgen, who zoomed back up the rankings list with a win over Freddie Steele in his last outing. Late in the opening stanza, it is Domgorgen who starts the action with a flash knockdown of the Frenchman as a result of a well-timed cross. Tenet recovers and battles back to hold a slight points lead through the first six rounds of the bout. The bout remains close into the later rounds, with neither man really stepping up to seize the initiative. In the end, it is the German, Domgorgen, who regains the title by the a surprisingly wide margin via a UD 12 (118-109, 117-111, 118-110) – punch stats and ringside observers saw a much closer bout. Post-fight career marks are 38-14-1 (19) for Domgorgen; 31-14-5 (7) for Tenet. Domgorgen, now 37, appears to be at a career peek, winning back the EBU belt and establishing his position as the #1 contender for the WBA MW crown.

Feb. 16, 1935: Philadelphia is the scene for the next fight card. Two HW bouts headline the card, with Max Schmeling defending the WBA title preceded by an intriguing supporting bout with the “Cinderella Man,” Jimmy Braddock, facing ex-Champ Tuffy Griffith. Griffith assumes the role of the aggressor in the early rounds, while Braddock is content to patiently bide his time, working mainly on the outside. Eventually, the effects of aging begin to show, and Griffith tires badly as the bout enters the later rounds. Solid defense and counterpunching are sufficient for Braddock to register a solid UD 10 win (98-93, 100-91, 98-92). Four wins in his last five mean “the Cinderella Man” has his career back on track, moving to 27-11-2 (6) overall after a quality win over a former (albeit aging) ex-Champ. Griffith is now 28-12-1 (17). The main event is another clash of Champions as Max Schmeling defends once again against long-time LH Champ Tommy Loughran, this time in Loughran’s hometown. The earlier encounter, back in 1933, ended in a TKO win for Schmeling. This time, Loughran – now the USBA HW Champion – has a year’s worth of experience dealing with the heavier weight class. Tommy gets off to a good start, outboxing the German in the opening round. Schmeling moves inside in round three, and he begins to take the fight to the defensive-minded Loughran. He connects with a nice combination and Loughran tumbles to the canvas, arising after taking an eight-count. A couple of rounds later, Schmeling connects with a cross and Loughran is forced to cover up for a second time. At this point, there is noticeable swelling under the left eye of the challenger. Schmeling dishes out some more punishment in round six, but Loughran begins to turn things around and, by the middle rounds, Schmeling’s left eye is also showing signs of puffiness. Loughran goes on to take rounds eight and nine, closing the gap on the unofficial scorecards heading into the later rounds. Then, in round 12, Schmeling steps up the attack, landing repeatedly although Loughran remains upright. Early in round 13 Schmeling lands a big shot to score his second KD of the fight. A game Loughran battles on, but early in round 14 Schmeling dishes out even more punishment, and finally the ref has seen enough. TKO 14 for Schmeling; it is Max’s ninth successive title defense. Post-fight career marks: Schmeling, 38-3 (28); Loughran, 53-7-4 (18). Another fight-of-the-year candidate although it was fairly lopsided for the last three rounds leading up to the late stoppage.

Feb. 22, 1935: Friday night fight card at Detroit’s Briggs Stadium, and the fans are treated to the burgeoning talent of young Joe Louis, who makes his 7^th career start on the undercard. The hot young HW prospect makes quick work of another TC opponent, whom he backs up quickly and takes a TKO 1 at 1:40 of the opening stanza. Louis is now a perfect 7-0 (7), three of his wins have come in the first round, and no opponent has survived more than three rounds. Louis’ career appears to be on a fast track, as his next outing is scheduled in March. The card wraps up with a pair of interesting co-feature bouts. First, USBA WW Champ Barney Ross takes on his OPBF counterpart, Lope Tenorio. First meeting of these two but unfortunately for Tenorio, he has hit post-prime and is no match for an in-form Ross. Tenorio suffers a cut lip in round five, and later on his left eye begins to swell. Ross goes on to take a convincing UD 10 (99-91, 98-92, 97-93) to move to 25-3-2 (8); Tenorio slips to 29-14-8 (8). Final bout of the evening is for the NABF LH Championship, currently held by John Henry Lewis, who is making his second defense after battling to a draw with Mickey Walker. His opponent is the unheralded Dave Maier, who is perhaps in over his head in his first title bout of any kind. Lewis goes on the offensive in round three and is able to shift from boxer to slugger effortlessly, confusing his opponent. However, in round five, with the two scrapping away on the inside, Maier connects with a combination that puts Lewis down and out. In a huge upset, Maier captures the NABF LH belt via a KO 5. It is Lewis’ first career loss, made even more remarkable by the fact that Maier had just hit Post-Prime career stage. The post-fight marks are 22-6-3 (18) for Maier; 18-1-2 (15) for Lewis. After this bout, I am thinking about creating a new category called “Upset of the Year,” for which this bout would be an early leading contender.

Feb. 23, 1935: Next card is back in the UK at the Olympia in London. Lots of quality matchups on this card. First, unbeaten HW prospect Roscoe Toles has traveled from the States to face veteran Swede, Johnny Widd. Toles accumulates an early points lead and puts Widd down in round five when he lands a huge shot. Not much resistance from Widd, so Toles runs his career totals to 19-0 (5) with a lopsided UD 10 (99-90, 100-90, 97-92). Widd is now 24-9 (17). The co-feature is for the EBU Flyweight title, as Commonwealth and GBU titleholder Jackie Brown challenges Istvan Enekes in his quest for a third title belt. Brown is making a good showing, taking a huge lead in the punches landed stats, and showing superior stamina heading into the second half of the bout. All seems ready for a new Champion when, suddenly, in middle of the seventh, Brown is called for repeated holding and hitting. The foul is ruled flagrant, and hence Enekes retains the belt via a DQ-7 in a bout he was well on his way to losing. The controversial call leaves Enekes still with the EBU title and a 22-2-1 (9) career mark, while Brown ends up at 26-9-3 (9). Then, in the main event, Brit Johnny King makes his third defense of the WBA BW title against veteran Pete Sanstol, a one-time USBA titleholder but never a World title challenger until now. First meeting of the two. Not much action until round five, when King connects with a big shot that puts Sanstol down for the bout’s first knockdown. In the middle rounds, King remains active and aggressive, and in round 10 he is rewarded when he scores a second KD, decking Sanstol with a barrage of blows. Sanstol finally steps up the pace in the later rounds, but all he winds up with for his troubles is a rapidly swelling left eye. In the final round, King punctuates his win with a third KD, fighting his way off the ropes with a quick combination. Sanstol manages to finish on his feet, but the end result – a lopsided UD 15 for King (146-136, 146-137, 146-137) is a foregone conclusion despite a very game effort from Sanstol. Post-fight career marks: King, 35-3-1 (15); Sanstol, 29-8-2 (9).

Feb. 23, 1935: Last card of the month is at the Cow Palace in San Francisco. No titles on the line, but two notable bouts which serve as co-main events on the card. In the first of these, long-time USBA (and former WBA) Flyweight Champ Fidel LaBarba faces a familiar foe, former EBU Champ Johnny Vacca. It is the third meeting of the two, and in both prior contests LaBarba came out on top via SDs (the most recent, in 1930, was for the WBA title). However, both are at the downside of their respective careers; in fact, Vacca is at End career stage while LaBarba is at Post-Prime. LaBarba pulls ahead in the first half of the contest, and by round six Vacca is showing signs of swelling under his right eye. The American goes on to take a comfortable UD 10 (98-92, 98-92, 98-93), leaving LaBarba at 36-8-1 (9) while Vacca dips to 29-10-4 (12) after the bout. Then, in the second co-main event, two HWs do battle. Long-time HW contender and OPBF titleholder Tom Heeney faces Max Baer, a local fan favorite. In round two, Baer serves notice when he jolts the veteran Heeney with a solid uppercut. Baer forces the action on the inside, and in round six he finally breaks through Heeney’s defenses, dropping the “Hard Rock from Down Under” with a nice combination for the bout’s initial knockdown. A Baer hook results in a second KD in round eight. Then, the end comes in round nine, after a cross from Baer decks Heeney for the third time. Baer’s killer instinct kicks in, and the bout is finally halted with Heeney helpless against the ropes. TKO 9 for Baer. The win lifts Max to 21-5 (20) and moves Baer into the top 20 in the HW rankings. Heeney, who is at Post-Prime, is 36-21-1 (12) after the loss.