1940: Boxing

Professional Boxing.

Although boxing dipped below previous levels in 1940 from a financial standpoint, competitively it was up to par: a total of thirty championship bouts went into the record, an exceedingly high average. This total of title struggles includes championships in divisions where the title claim is disputed owing to the fact that different governing bodies in boxing recognize different claimants to the championships.

As has been the case since he achieved the world heavyweight championship in 1937 by knocking out James J. Braddock in Chicago, Joe Louis ruled supreme over a field that saw no threat to his reign as the year ended. He defended his title four times, starting with a fifteen-round bout against Arturo Godoy, Chilean heavyweight, staged in New York's Madison Square Garden in February. In this battle Louis found Godoy's crouching style something of a problem, but the champion had little difficulty winning the decision. In March Louis scored a quick knockout over Johnny Paychek, Des Moines, Ia., boxer in a bout that was hardly a serious workout for the champion, so quickly did it end. The knockout came in the second round as Louis created something of a record with his second title defense in Madison Square Garden within a period of six weeks. The champion's biggest bout of the year was a return meeting with Godoy, staged at the Yankee Stadium in New York, June 20. In this bout Louis knocked out Godoy in the eighth round, the bout ending over the violent protests of Godoy after he had been battered into a helpless, gory spectacle by Louis' thudding blows. A crowd of 27,786 persons viewed the battle. The gross receipts were $149,505, the record receipts of the year, and a sharp decline from the high of 1939 when the bout between Louis and Bob Pastor in Detroit attracted a year's record gate of $347,870. Louis closed his year's activity with a six-round knockout of Al McCoy, French-Canadian boxer, in Boston on Dec. 16, the bout ending because of an abnormal swelling over McCoy's left eye, although the challenger sought to dissuade his handlers from calling a halt. Through the year Louis' earnings amounted to $129,312, hardly as much as he has collected from a single bout in the past. His gross earnings from the time he forsook a factory hand's berth in the Henry Ford plant in 1934 rose to $1,722,908.

Henry Armstrong won distinction as the year's most active champion for the second successive year. The doughty little California Negro who defended his welterweight title eleven times in 1939, retained the honor through six defenses before finally being dethroned in his seventh bout of the year, his twentieth as welterweight champion, by Fritzie Zivic of Pittsburgh. Leading up to his fall from eminence, Armstrong, with effective display of the ring attributes which earned him the sobriquet 'Hammering Henry,' knocked out Joe Ghnouly in five rounds; Pedro Montanez in nine; Paul Junior in seven; Ralph Zanelli in five; Paul Junior (again) in three; and Phil Furr in four, as he waged battle in St. Louis, New York, Boston, Portland, Me., and Washington, D. C., from January to September. On Oct. 4, Zivic won a fifteen-round decision over Armstrong in a bout in Madison Square Garden that closed with the gallant Armstrong the figure of crushing defeat, staggering and swaying about the ring, hardly able to see through eyes that were bruised, torn and partly closed. Zivic engaged in three non-championship bouts after becoming champion, but did not defend the title.

Armstrong was one of several champions whose titles changed hands. Only Billy Conn of Pittsburgh, in addition to Louis, retained his championship. Conn made one defense of the light-heavyweight crown, winning a decision over Gus Lesnevich in Detroit, June 5, after fifteen rounds. The middleweight championship passed from Ceferino Garcia to Ken Overlin of Washington, D. C., when, on May 23 in Madison Square Garden Garcia, who previously fought a draw with Armstrong in defense of the title, lost a decision to Overlin in fifteen rounds. Overlin twice defended his title, winning two fifteen-round decisions over Steve Belloise of New York. But the division ended the year with rival claims to the title. While Overlin was generally recognized by right of direct succession from Garcia, the National Boxing Association recognized Tony Zale of Chicago as champion.

Lew Jenkins of Sweetwater, Tex., knocked out Lou Ambers of Herkimer. N. Y., to win the lightweight title on May 10. The knockout, one of the most startling ring reversals of the year, was effected in three rounds. Jenkins defended the title once, knocking out Pete Lello of Chicago in two rounds in New York. Jenkins undertook a bout against Armstrong in July, a non-title match between two champions, but was knocked out in six rounds.

The featherweight title changed hands when Henry Jeffra of Baltimore, defeated Joey Archibald of Providence, R. I., in fifteen rounds at Baltimore on May 20. In the bantamweight division Lou Salica of New York became champion when, following a drawn battle against Georgie Pace on March 4 in Toronto, Can., he came back to win a fifteen-round decision over Pace in a bout staged in the Bronx Coliseum, New York, Sept. 24. The flyweight division was entirely inactive.

In addition to Zale as a disputant to a title, divisions were recorded also in the lightweight and featherweight classes. Zale's recognition came from the N.B.A. through a victory Zale scored over Al Hostak of Seattle. The N.B.A. recognized Sammy Angott as the lightweight champion through a victory he scored in May over Davey Day at Louisville, in a match dignified with championship recognition by the Association. In the featherweight class Petey Scalzo of New York was recognized by the N.B.A. as champion. He defeated Frankie Covelli in Washington in May.

Amateur Boxing.

Amateur boxing continued on a wide scale through the country and in increasing volume. Sectional championships drew increased patronage, tournaments of sectional, district and national distinction drew large entries, attracted banner crowds and provided sterling competition. In collegiate boxing Penn State won the Eastern Intercollegiate Association championships in March, retiring the trophy while the Eastern Intercollegiate Conference championship title was retained by Bucknell.

European Countries.

The war crushed boxing in European countries. Only in isolated cases was any attempt made to maintain the sport on a competitive basis and then only on a moderate scale.