[8.6] JERSEY JOE WALCOTT 71-51(32)-18-2 [Heavyweight]: Rocky Marciano - Joe Louis
The night that I fought you I believed you were the greatest. Your punches were strong and powerful. You were moving around so good. Rocky Marciano, The Main Event interview
In round one, Walcott hit me with a bunch of left jabs and hook right away. When I pressed forward, Walcott stopped dancing long enough and hit me with a solid right to my jaw and floored me for a two count. I lost my head then, and I tried to take him out with lefts and rights, but Walcott ran away. Joe Louis with Edna & Art Rust, A Hell of a Way to End the Year
Ezzard Charles I Lost Points 15: US Fight Commentary TV -
v Ezzard Charles I 7th March 1951 Detroit: [r9] ... Walcott seems to go right into that left hook. Notice the glazed expression in the eyes of Jersey Joe ... [r15] ... Two magnificent fighters giving it all they have. Ezzard Charles won a unanimous decision. US fight commentary
68) Ezzard Charles II KO7: US Fight Commentary TV - Ringside: Top Ten Heavyweights TV -
v Ezzard Charles II 18th July 1951 Pennsylvania: [r7] ... The fight is dead even here in round seven. A crushing right sends Charles sprawling. US fight commentary
70) Rocky Marciano Lost KO13: US Fight Commentary TV - Mills Lane - Jersey Joe Walcott - Don Dunphy - Bert Randolph Sugar -
v Jersey Joe Walcott 23rd September 1952 Municipal Stadium Philadelphia Heavyweight [r1] … Marciano staggered with a sharp right. Down from a left hook! ... [r13] ... There’s a right hand! Walcott! And Rocky Marciano is the Heavyweight champion of the world! Rocky Marciano! A beautiful right hand punch ... turned Joe upside down. Rocky Marciano! US fight commentary
Tremendous contrast in styles. Mills Lane
Rocky had a tremendous chin but he definitely knew he’d been hit. Mills Lane
Boxing is all profession. On the night of the fight naturally we looked at each other and tried to kill each other. But after the fight is over we become human beings and disparate American citizens. Jersey Joe Walcott, interview The Main Event
Walcott was a superb heavyweight. He gave Marciano such a beating. And I didn’t think Rocky would be able to come out for the thirteenth round. Don Dunphy, broadcaster
The greatest single punch I ever remember. Don Dunphy
Walcott got hit with a sledgehammer. He might still be lying there for all I know. Bert Randolph Sugar
71) Rocky Marciano Lost KO1: US Fight Commentary TV -
v Jersey Joe Walcott 15th May 1953 Chicago Heavyweight [r1] ... A minute to go in round one. It’s all over. US fight commentary
[8.5] JOHNNY NELSON 59-45(29)-12-2 [Cruiserweight & Heavyweight]: Johnny Nelson: Sporting Triumphs TV - Ring TV online -
I was a terrible coward when it came to fighting … I was very shy. Johnny Nelson: Sporting Triumphs, Spy Sports 2017
When I first started I was terrible. ibid.
I’m thinking, I’ll get to five; if I haven’t won one I’m definitely packing it in. ibid.
‘Johnny Nelson fighting like a pacifist here tonight.’ ibid. fight commentary v Waring
I now believe in myself: the problem is nobody else did. ibid.
Frank [Bruno] had a £1 bet I would lose! ibid.
‘This is a much much different Johnny Nelson.’ ibid. fight commentary v Carl Thompson
Won a world title, made 13 defences and retired as champion. ibid.
Former WBO cruiserweight titleholder Johnny Nelson was one of boxing’s most unlikely world champions. With minimal amateur experience, he learned on the job and went on to become the longest reigning cruiserweight champion in history.
Nelson was born in Sheffield, England in January 1967. He was from a family of six and attended a Catholic school, which he left without qualifications.
‘I didn’t find boxing, boxing found me,’ Nelson told RingTV online. ‘I wasn’t an aggressive person. I wasn’t a tough man. I was just a man in a tough job. I only boxed because my mates did. It’s where my social circle was. I never actually wanted to fight. I just wanted to train at the gym with the boys.
The downside was I had to fight at the amateur shows. I had 13 amateur fights and only won three. I didn’t care when I lost.’
After boxing as an amateur for two years, Nelson elected to turn professional at 19 because he saw people getting paid.
‘[Trainer] Brendan [Ingle] always said I’d make a better professional than an amateur,’ recalled Nelson. ‘Everyone thought Brendan was crazy saying, ‘The kids useless, he’s no good.’ I thought, I’ll have five professional fights and if I don’t win one, I’ll get a proper job. I’ll apply for the police force.’
Nelson turned to the paid ranks and simultaneously held down three jobs. He lost his first three fights, however, one of those setbacks, against former amateur standout, Magne Havnaa, gave him confidence.
‘I thought, if I’m that bad, that rubbish, how come he’s not got rid of me? Maybe I’m not that bad after all. That’s how I started to think. I won the fourth and fifth fights. I thought, I’ll get to 10 and see how we go. I kept giving myself five fights and that’s how I got into it.’
Considerably more motivated than he had been as an amateur, the eager young prospect began winning more than he lost. On May 21, 1989, Nelson remarkably captured the vacant British title on the undercard of the Nigel Benn-Michael Watson fight. Nelson says that along with becoming world champion, that was his proudest moment.
‘I wasn’t expected to win,’ he said. ‘I was on the bus back thinking, ‘I’ve won the British title.’ It showed, Brendan Ingle’s system worked. I didn’t have the talent. I had to work from scratch in that gym.’
Nelson’s rapid improvement hadn’t gone unnoticed, and shortly after his 23rd birthday, the southpaw stylist was matched against WBC cruiserweight titleholder Carlos de Leon. The bout took place on January 27, in Sheffield.
‘As a professional, I didn’t think I was any good,’ admitted Nelson. ‘I thought the opposition was bad and that I was fortunate to be in the position where I boxed people that weren’t very good.
‘It was a day of reckoning. I looked at De Leon and was beat before I even got in the ring. It was a great opportunity to fight for the world title, but I didn’t have the confidence and self-belief to back up my ability. I got a draw against one of the best fighters in the world, so in hindsight I did pretty well.’
Despite the draw, Nelson now felt that he needed a back-up plan. He attended university and studied recreational management, with the idea of teaching physical education. The ups and downs in his professional boxing career continued.
Nelson captured the vacant European championship by stopping Markus Bott in the 12th and final round in December 1990. Bott would subsequently test positive for steroids.