On This Day In Boxing History

1863: Bob Fitzsimmons Was Born!

Bob Fitzsimmons was born Robert James Fitzsimmons was born 1863 in Helston, Cornwall, England. The British Cornish boxer, made boxing history as the sport's first three-division world champion. He also achieved fame for beating Gentleman Jim Corbett, the man who beat John L. Sullivan, and is in The Guinness Book of World Records as the Lightest heavyweight champion. Nicknamed Ruby Robert or The Freckled Wonder, he took pride in his lack of scars, and appeared in the ring wearing heavy woollen underwear to conceal the disparity between his trunk and leg-development.

Fitzsimmons, the youngest of 12 children, was born in Helston, Cornwall. His father was James Fitzsimmons, born in County Armagh, Ireland, and his mother was Jane Strongman born in St Clement, Cornwall. Bob emigrated to New Zealand at the age of nine along with his parents, brothers and sisters. His family settled in Timaru, among many other Cornish settlers, and Bob became a blacksmith in his brother Jarrett's smithy.

Between 1880 and 1881, Fitzsimmons reigned as champion of the Jem Mace tournament in New Zealand. Some say[who?] he officially began his career as a professional boxer in New Zealand later in 1881. Records remain unclear whether he received payment for a bout in which he knocked out Herbert Slade in two rounds.

Fitzsimmons had six fights there, two of them bare-knuckle events. He won one and lost five, it remains unclear whether any of those bouts involved payment.

Boxing record-books show that Fitzsimmons officially began boxing professionally in 1883, in Australia. He beat Jim Crawford there by getting a knockout in three rounds. Fitzsimmons had his first 28 definite professional fights in Australia, where he lost for the Australian Middleweight title (rumours spoke of a fixed bout), and where he also won a fight by knockout while on the floor: when Edward Starlight Robins dropped Fitzsimmons to the canvas in round nine of their fight, he also broke his hand and could not continue, therefore the referee declared Fitzsimmons the winner by a knockout.

By this stage Fitzsimmons had established his own style. He developed a certain movement and caginess from one of the greatest bare-knuckle fighters, Jem Mace. Mace had encouraged Bob to develop his punching technique and he revolutionised this, drawing on the enormous power he had gained from blacksmithing. Fitzsimmons delivered short, accurate and usually conclusive punches. He soon built up a reputation as by far the hardest puncher in boxing.

The birthplace of Bob Fitzsimmons in Helston, Cornwall

Moving on to the United States, Fitzsimmons fought four more times in 1890, winning three and drawing one.

Then, on January 14, 1891, in New Orleans, he won his first world title from Jack (Nonpareil) Dempsey. Fitzsimmons knocked out Dempsey (from whom the later Jack Dempsey would take his name) in the 13th round to become the world's Middleweight champion. Fitzsimmons knocked Dempsey down at least 13 times, and by the finish left him in such a pitiable condition that he begged him to quit. Dempsey would not do so, so Fitzsimmons knocked him out and then carried him to his corner. On July 22, police broke off his fight with Jim Hall after he had knocked Hall down several times.

Fitzsimmons spent the next two years fighting non-title bouts and exhibitions until giving Hall a chance at the title in 1893. He retained the crown by a knockout in round four. He spent the rest of that year doing exhibitions, and on June 2, he had scheduled a two-way exhibition where he would demonstrate in public how to hit the boxing bag and then how to box against a real opponent. Reportedly, two freak accidents happened that day: Fitzsimmons hit the bag so hard that it broke, and then his opponent of that day allegedly slipped, getting hit in the head and the boxing exhibition was cancelled.

After vacating the Middleweight crown, Fitzsimmons began campaigning among Heavyweights (the light-heavyweight division did not exist at that time). Wyatt Earp, the famous lawman, refereed one of his fights, against Tom Sharkey. Fitzsimmons battered Sharkey and had him on the verge of a knock-out, but when he hit him with a body-and-head punch-combination Earp declared him the loser on a disqualification because he had hit Sharkey while Sharkey was down. Earp, according to a widespread belief, had involvement with gamblers who had bet on Sharkey.

In 1896, Fitzsimmons won the World Heavyweight title in a fight in El Paso, Texas, against the Irish native fighter Peter Maher. On March 17, 1897, he knocked out American Jim Corbett to retain the World Heavyweight title in round 14. This constituted a remarkable achievement, as Jim Corbett, a skilled boxer, weighed a stone (14 lb) more than Fitzsimmons. He out-boxed Fitzsimmons for several rounds, knocked him down in the sixth round, and badly damaged his face with his jab, left hook and right hand, but Fitzsimmons kept coming and Corbett began to tire. In the 14th round, Fitzsimmons won the title with his "solar plexus" punch. Corbett collapsed in agony. Fitzsimmons' "solar plexus" punch became legendary, although he himself may never have used the phrase. Fitzsimmons spent the rest of 1897 doing paper runs.

In 1899, Fitzsimmons and James J. Jeffries succeeded in boxing in New York without the police intervening, probably at an underground club. Most people gave Jeffries little chance, even though at 15 st (95 kg) he massively outweighed his opponent and was far younger, but Jeffries lifted the world Heavyweight crown from Fitzsimmons with an 11th-round knockout.

In June 1901 Fitzsimmons took part in a wrestling match against Gus Ruhlin. He lost, and went back to boxing. He then enjoyed legitimate (boxing) knock-outs of both Ruhlin and Sharkey.

In 1901 he published a book Physical Culture and Self-Defense (Philadelphia: D. Biddle).

In 1902, he and Jeffries had a rematch, once again with the world Heavyweight crown at stake. Fitzsimmons battered Jeffries, who suffered horrible punishment. With his nose and cheek-bones broken, most would have sympathised with Jeffries had he quit, but he kept going until his enormous weight advantage and youth told, and Bob suffered a knockout in round eight.

September 1903 proved a tragic month for Fitzsimmons, as his rival, Con Coughlin, died the day after suffering a one-round knockout at the hands of Fitzsimmons. But less than two months later, Fitzsimmons made history by defeating world Light-Heavyweight champion George Gardiner by a decision in 20 rounds, thus becoming the first boxer to win titles in three weight-divisions.

Soon after, he went back to the Heavyweights, where he kept fighting until 1914, with mixed results. He boxed Jack Johnson, and film historians believe that his fight with Bob KO Sweeney became the first boxing-fight captured on film.

Although Fitzsimmons became a world champion in each of the Middleweight, Light-Heavyweight and Heavyweight divisions, historians do not consider him the first world Light-Heavyweight champion to become world Heavyweight champion, because he won the Heavyweight title before winning the Light Heavyweight belt. Michael Spinks counts as the first Light-Heavyweight world champion to win the Heavyweight belt as well. Although Fitzsimmons was the first Middleweight Champion to win the Heavyweight title, and the only Heavyweight Champion to drop down and win the Light Heavyweight title. In 2003 Roy Jones Jr. joined Fitzsimmons, Michael Moorer and Spinks as the only men to have won world championships at both Light-Heavyweight and Heavyweight.

Fitzsimmons's exact record remains unknown, as the boxing world often kept records poorly during his era, but Fitzsimmons said he had had more than 350 fights (which could have involved exaggeration on his part).

The statue Peace on the Dewey Arch was modelled on Fitsimmons by the sculptor Daniel Chester French.

He died in Chicago of pneumonia in 1917, survived by his fourth wife. His grave lies in the Graceland Cemetery, Chicago. Having four wives, a gambling habit and a susceptibility to confidence tricksters, he did not hold on to the money he made.

The International Boxing Hall of Fame has made Bob Fitzsimmons a member in its "Old Timer" category.

#8 on Ring Magazine's list of 100 greatest punchers of all time.

In 2003 Ring Magazine named Fitzsimmons number eight of all time among boxing's best punchers.

Bob Fitzsimmons    

Born: May 26th, 1863

Birth Name: Robert James Fitzsimmons

Birth Place: Helston, Cornwall, United Kingdom

Residence: Timaru, New Zealand

Pro-Debut: 1885-03-01

Division: Light Heavyweight

Alias: Ruby

Stance: Orthodox

Height: 5′ 11½″  

Reach: 71″

Record: 61-8-4, 57Ko’s

Bouts: 80

Rounds: 326

Ko’s: 71% 

Died: Age 54, October 22nd, 1917

May 26th

1863: Bob Fitzsimmons was born in Helston, Cornwall, England

1900: Dan Dougherty W20 Tommy Feltz

1904: Marcel Thil born.

1932: Tommy Paul W15 Johnny Pena

1943: Manuel Ortiz W15 Joe Robleto

1949: Ricardo Arrendondo was born in Apatzingan, Michoacan, Mexico

1958: Archie Moore W10 Charley Norkus

1959: Cleveland Williams KO8 Ernie Cab

1960: Yvon Durelle TKO3 Emile Dupre

1966: Joe Frazier KO1 Al Jones

1968: Sandro Mazzinghi WSD15 Ki Soo Kim

1969: Dick Tiger W10 Nino Benvenuti

1972: Joe Frazier KO5 Ron Stander

1977: 24-year-old, South Philly slick southpaw Tyrone Everett was shot and killed by a jealous girlfriend.

1978: Gerrie Coetzee W10 Randy Stephens  

Kelvin Davis was born in Natchez, Mississippi

1984: Jaime Garza KO3 Felipe Orozco

Victor Callejas KO8 Loris Stecca

Albert Davila KO11 Enrique Sanchez

Joo Do Chun KO6 Felix Marquez

1990: Luis Mendoza D12 Ruben Palacios

2000: President Clinton signs The Muhammad Ali Act into law

2001: Floyd Mayweather W12 Carlos Hernandez

2007: Steve Cunningham W12 Krzysztof Wlodarcyz

Arthur Abraham KO3 Sebastien Demers

2009: Denkaosan Kaovichit W12 Hiroyuki Hisataka

Daisuke Naito W12 Xiong Zhao Zhong