Primo Carnera In Fifteen Round Championship Match In Jack Sharkey's first defense of the world's heavyweight championship against Primo Carnera was his first and last fight on the 29th of June 1933. Jack Sharkey was knocked out in the sixth round of what was to have been a fifteen round championship match at the Long Island City Bowl. Primo Carnera, a giant of a man in Sequals near Udine, Italy on the 26th of October 1906 stood a good 6ft 7ins tall, nicknamed the "The Ambling Alp," challenged Jack Sharkey for the world heavyweight in which Sharkey was knocked out in round 6 creating for the first time in ring history the heavyweight crown was now being worn by an Italian champion. A terrific right uppercut to the chin of Sharkey almost decapitated him, making Primo Carnera the first Italian to win the World Heavyweight Boxing title of which the boxing match for the World Heavyweight Championship Boxing Crown was held at the famous Madison Square Gardens bowl at Long Island. Primo Carnera threw a vicious right uppercut, a blow that dropped Sharkey and stunned the audience of some 40,000 or more, men and women who had paid an estimated $200,000 for a ringside view of the spectacle which provided the thrill boxing fans all looked for, but few could ever really imagined it happening on the night. Jack Sharkey Was Deaf to the Count From the Impact of Carnera's PunchUnder the impact of the blow Sharkey stretched limp and unmovable with his face flat on the canvas, while a bewildered crowd looked on as the count proceeded. Referee Arthur Donovan, picking up the official count from Eddie Forbes, who was the knockdown timekeeper. Referee Arthur Donovan moved his right arm up and down, shouting out the count from into the ear of Jack Sharkey. But there was no movement from the defending champion, not even a feint quiver to show that he had heard the count. Suddenly Sharkey's crestfallen handlers leapt quickly into the ring to the side of their fallen idol picked him up and carried him to his corner. The first aid administrations quickly revived Jack Sharkey and escorted him from the ring. As he left he heard the clamour of the throng, the cries of the crowd for the winner, for there came welling up from the huge pine and asphalt bowl on the Long Island flats tremendous shouts of acclaim for this gargantuan newly crowned boxing champion of the world. Jack Sharkey Was Lifted Out of the Boxing RingThe punch Primo Carnera had thrown landed flush on Sharkey's chin putting him to sleep like a new born baby that has just been breast fed. After Jack Sharkey had been lifted out out of the ring, a scene of excitement ensued, aside from that ordinarily enacted when a new heavyweight boxing champion is crowned king of the world. Bill Duffy, Primo Carnera's chief adviser and the man to whom credit must go for his scaling of the heights, claimed that Johnny Buckley, Sharkey's manager, insisted on an examination of Carnera's gloves. This aroused Bill Duffy and he shouted commands to Carnera, apparently overcome to the point of helplessness, to remain in the ring until his gloves were removed. Duffy even invited Bill Brown, recently appointed State Athletic Commission member, into the ring to remove and examine Carnera's huge gloves. But the excitement passed away calmly and the ring was soon cleared. With his victory Primo Carnera attained heights that perhaps he himself would never have expected in a thousand years. Primo Carnera Banged Sharkey Around As If He Was a Punching BagFight followers thought so well of him that the day before the fight he was quoted favourite to win at odds of 6 to 5 on favourite. Sharkey entered the ring at 6 to 5 and 11 to 10, which was as it should be when past performances are considered. Primo Carnera aroused to fury before he struck the damaging uppercut Primo Carnera did not give any evidence that would lead to suspicion of the result save a grim determination which became a raging fury on occasions as his efforts to wreck Jack Sharkey with a blow that would frustrate the champion into the land of nod and of the five rounds completed before the knockout blow was delivered Sharkey won four, three of them beyond question, and lost only one. The Italian Giant, towering close to half a foot above Sharkey, and outweighing him by 59½ pounds, proved the efficacy of size and strength, in the first round, he banged Sharkey around right merrily. But in the second, third, fourth and fifth rounds Sharkey had the advantage. |
Sharkey Had No Chance With the Giant CarneraThere might have been questions over the fourth round, but in this fight Sharkey's boxing gave him the upper hand. In the other rounds Sharkey was outmanoeuvred by the huge Italian, whose defeat of Sharkey he was seeking systematically. At the beginning of the sixth round, however, Carnera left his corner with the Bill Duffy's instructions ringing loud in his ears. "Take advantage of everything now, overlook nothing." "Go out there and win." Carnera followed the instructions right to the letter. Bounding in at Sharkey, Carnera began to cuff and mull the Bostonian, labouring him with ponderous rights and sweeping lefts, whatever Carnera could find in his boxing artillery he threw all at Sharkey. | |
