![]() Klitschko, it should be mentioned, became the king of the heavyweights through attrition as much as from any single win. He gained that status with his upset win over Wladimir Klitschko in 2015. So, to be clear, Tyson Fury indeed was the lineal heavyweight champion. But at the same time it’s important to make sure we get it right before we proclaim someone to be a lineal champ or we defeat the whole purpose. Naturally it’s more satisfying to have an actual leader at the top of the division than just a bunch of contenders with belts circling an empty throne. The idea of lineal titles being more legitimate than those handed out by sanctioning bodies has gained some traction of late, and perhaps that has something to do with the fact that significant numbers of fight fans embraced Fury’s lineal claim. Each one extorts money from fighters for the honor of contending for their gaudy leather straps, and while winning one can be a boon to struggling boxers who are desperate for exposure and money, the proliferation of belts dilutes the meaning of the very term “world champion.” (And we won’t even go into all the nonsense of belts for “regular,” “gold,” “silver,” “youth” or “super” champions.) Boxing is flooded with so-called “world” titles. Four different sanctioning bodies currently receive widespread recognition and are all deemed “official,” whatever that means. One of boxing’s great flaws is the lack of uniformity around rankings and championships. It’s a claim I’ve seen parroted in the boxing media with increasing frequency as knowledgeable pundits refer to Tyson Fury as the “lineal champion.” And this is frustrating to me, because I have long been an enthusiastic advocate for recognizing lineal title-holders. The draw verdict was a disappointment but it allowed the Brit to hold on to a claim he had been making, and continues to make in earnest since his return to boxing in mid-2018, namely that he is the holder of the lineal heavyweight championship of the world. But despite Fury’s superiority in boxing skill, the match remained a taut and tense contest to the very end as Wilder scored a knockdown in round nine before “The Bronze Bomber” nearly decapitated “The Gypsy King” in the final three minutes, a stanza which was clearly 2018’s Round Of The Year. It was an exciting, sometimes sloppy, and highly dramatic match, which Fury, in the eyes of most, deserved to win as he flummoxed Wilder with his cartoonish, herky-jerky head movement and surprisingly nimble footwork. This book is available at Amazon.A few months ago we witnessed one of the more memorable heavyweight battles of recent years as alphabet titleholder and top-two contender Deontay Wilder faced off against the last man with a claim to the lineal heavyweight championship of the world, Tyson Fury. He lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico.īibliographic Info: 80 photos, appendix, notes, bibliography, index Wallace is a retired, aerospace systems engineer. ![]() ![]() She lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico and is a contributor to other publications on the history of boxing. This first comprehensive biography covers Baer’s complete ring record, his early life, his career on radio, film, stage and television, and his World War II army service.ĪBOUT THE AUTHORS: Colleen Aycock is a member of the International Boxing Research Organization and the New Mexico Boxing Hall of Fame. His battle with Joe Louis three months later drew the highest gate of the decade. Contrary to Cinderella Man, (2005), Baer favored 10 to 1 was not a villain and the fight was more controversial than the film suggested. Baer defeated 275-pound Primo Carnera in 1934 for the championship, losing it to Jim Braddock the next year. The film was banned in Nazi Germany Baer had worn a Star of David on his trunks when he TKOed German former champ Max Schmeling. His radio voice sold millions of Gillette razor blades his leading-man appeal made him a heartthrob in The Prizefighter and the Lady (1933). A contender for every heavyweight championship 1932-1941, California’s Glamour Boy brought back the million-dollar gate not seen since the 1920s. The Magnificent Max Baer: The Life of the Heavyweight Champion and Film StarīOOK DETAILS: Boxing might not have survived the 1930s if not for Max Baer.
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