Rarely do great fighters meet when they are still in the prime of their careers. There were four great fighters meeting in two matches. The only thing was that the two were former champions and not in their prime.
Future world heavyweight champion Rocky ‘The Brockton Blockbuster’ Marciano was 37-0 when he met Joe ‘The Brown Bomber’ Louis, 66-2 with 52 stoppages in October of 1951 at Madison Square Garden. Louis had lost his title to former champion Ezzard ‘The Cincinnati Cobra’ Charles, 66-5-1, at Yankee Stadium in New York, in September of 1950. His record was still good, but not quite the fighter he once was. He had won eight fights since losing for the second time in his career. There was no title at stake.
After seven rounds, Marciano was ahead on the cards 4-2, 5-2, and 4-3. In the eighth round, he dropped Louis with a left hook for an 8-count from Referee Rudy Goldstein. Then Marciano sent Louis through the ropes for the knockout. There was no count; the fight was over.
Marciano idolized Louis, and in the dressing room shed some tears, it was reported. Louis would never fight again.
Five fights later, Marciano won the world title, knocking out ‘Jersey’ Joe Walcott, 49-18-1, in the thirteenth round. Walcott was ahead after twelve rounds 7-4, 4-8 and 7-5.
One of Marciano’s stablemates, Hank Cisco went to Walcott’s dressing room and overheard the ring physician say ‘this man should never fight again. He has a broken bone under an eye and would be knocked out with the first solid punch. The mob had Walcott and put him into a rematch eight months later, probably with their money on Marciano. In 2:25, Marciano knocked out Walcott in the first round.
Marciano would end his career coming off the canvas in the second round against the light heavyweight champion Archie ‘Old Mongoose’ Moore, 149-19-8, who was the knockout king. Marciano scored four knockdowns, stopping Moore in the ninth round, ending his career 49-0 with 43 stoppages. The record held up for sixty-two years before Floyd Mayweather, Jr. stopped Conor McGregor, who was making his pro debut with no amateur experience and was a former MMA champion.
Another match was between possibly the two greatest pound-for-pound fighters of all time. Former three-division world champion Henry ‘Homicide Hank’ Armstrong, 132-17-8, lost to future champion ‘Sugar’ Ray Robinson, 44-1, at Madison Square Garden by a ten-round decision. He was the former champ for ten years.
Armstrong would fight for another six years, going 17-2-1, before losing his final bout in February of 1945, ending with a record of 149-21-10 with 99 stoppages.
Three years later, Robinson would win the world welterweight title and then the middleweight title. Ahead on points, he couldn’t continue due to the outdoor heat of 104 degrees at Yankee Stadium in New York in June of 1952 against Light Heavyweight champion Joey Maxim, 78-18-4. Robinson was up on the cards at the time by 10-8, 9-8-1, and 7-3-3. Referee Rudy Goldstein was replaced in the tenth round due to the heat.
Robinson would lose his middleweight title in 1957 to Gene Fullmer, 37-3, at Madison Square Garden. He would end his career in 1965 losing to Joey Archer, 44-1, ending with a record of 174-19-1.
Last Updated on 06/16/2025
