Description
The date was set for the reigning World Heavyweight Champion Jess Willard to fight Jack Dempsey on July 4th 1919 in Toledo, Ohio. The temperature at ringside was 110 degrees when both fighters entered the 20-foot square ring. Willard was 6-5 favorite as they faced each other from their corners wearing only 5oz gloves.
When the referee Ollie Pecord signaled to the timekeeper, William Barbour to sound the bell, he pulled the cord but it wouldn’t ring so he blew a whistle. Dempsey floored Willard seven times in the opening round. The round ended with Willard on the canvas in a neutral corner. The referee Pecord, was at the count of 7 when Barbour blew the whistle but due to the roars of the crowd Pecord didn’t hear the whistle and carried on with the count and informed Dempsey the winner. Dempsey left the ring when Barbour told Pecord the round had ended before he counted out Willard. Dempsey was called back to the ring.
During the 2nd and 3rd round Jess Willard stood on his feet but took one hell of a beating. As he sat on his corner stool at the end of the 3rd round, his handlers stopped the fight and Jack Dempsey became the World Heavyweight Champion. After the fight Willards injuries was noted as being very severe, with multiple facial fractures, a broken jaw, lost teeth, hearing loss to one ear and several broken ribs.
It was later published in a magazine on January 13th 1964, Jack Kearns, Dempsey’s manager said that Dempsey’s gloves were loaded, his hand wraps were treated with plaster of Paris. This was always denied by Dempsey and said Kearns was sore because he was sacked by him before the fight. Dempsey sued the magazine, they settled out of court for an undisclosed amount.
