Light Heavyweight Tournament Round of 64

Ezzard Charles vs. Johnny Persol

Referee: Joe Cortez
Judges: Chuck Giampa; Michael Griffin; Andreas Winde

This turned out to be an action-packed, albeit lopsided, contest. Although a capable boxer in his own right, Persol received a boxing lesson from the master, as Charles used his skills to dominate the 12 rounds from start to finish. Charles was able to land his jab with pinpoint accuracy and hurt his opponent with flurries of hooks, uppercuts and combinations that sent Persol to the canvas in rounds 10 and 11. To his credit, Persol did score two knockdowns of his own, in rounds 7 & 10, but for the most part had difficulty all night trying to find an opening in Charles' defense, as Charles was constantly moving and feinting, making Persol miss, then countering with big hooks and uppercuts. At the final bell, Charles had thrown a total of 252 punches, nearly twice as many as his opponent, with 89 percent finding their mark. In his defense, Persol entered the ring after having sustained an eye injury in a previous fight that would not be diagnosed until years later. Whether or not that injury hampered his vision on this occasion is questionable, but certainly was not helped by the cuts, swelling and pounding he suffered in this contest.

Scoring: Chuck Giampa, 117-108; Michael Griffin, 117-108; Andreas Winde, 117-104
Winner: Ezzard Charles (UD)

 

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Harry Matthews vs. Henry Maske

Referee: Harold Valan
Judges: Laurence Cole; Russell Naquin; Sid Nathan

Maske surprised Matthews late in Round 1, landing a quick, clean combination that floored Matthews for a seven count. The next seven rounds went back-and-forth, with both fighters having their moments, but with Maske the more effective, exhibiting quickness, footwork and punching power that stunned Matthews and prevented him from sustaining any offense. Matthews best round was Round 7, when he was able to trap Maske in the near corner and score repeatedly with his left and right cross. Matthews appeared to be running out of gas in Round 9 and was pummeled by combination after combination that sent him to the canvas for an eight count. The final three rounds saw a game, but tired, Matthews landing punches with little effectiveness and missing more often than not.

Scoring: Laurence Cole, 118-111; Russell Naquin, 117-109; Sid Nathan, 116-111
Winner: Henry Maske (UD)

 

 

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Archie Moore vs. Dick Tiger

Referee: Octavio Meyran
Judges: Terry Smith; Sid Nathan; Alexander Artemiev

An amazing fighter and one of the greatest middleweights, Dick Tiger was simply outboxed in this light-heavy contest by a hard-hitting Archie Moore. Moore used constant movement and a knife-like jab, landing it with pinpoint accuracy throughout the fight, to keep Tiger off balance and unable to work effectively inside. Moore's powerful, unrelenting attack, punctuated with thunderous hooks and uppercuts, had Tiger fighting off the ropes in nearly every round. In the fourth round, with Tiger on the far ropes, a clean jab and a power-packed hook sent a stunned Tiger to the canvas for a four count. At the final bell, after being outpointed by Moore 208-28, it came as no surprise that, though still standing, an exhausted, bloodied and beaten Tiger would lose a lopsided, unanimous deciision.

Scoring: Terry Smith, 119-100; Sid Nathan, 119-100; Alexander Artemiev, 119-101 
Winner: Archie Moore (UD)

 

 

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Michael Spinks vs. Fabrice Tiozzo

Referee: Roger Tilleman
Judges: Jackie Keough; Russ Withers; Zach Clayton

Spinks dominated this fight from start to finish, using an abundance of jabs and strategic hooks and crosses. A hard right cross from Spinks in Round 4 opened a major cut over the left eye of Tiozzo. With major swelling and his vision impeded, another right put Tiozzo on the canvas momentarily in Round 7. Spinks scored a second knockdown in Round 11 with a hard left hook that put Tiozzo down for a 7 count. Spinks' constant movement and unrelenting attack (268 punches landed to Tiozzo's 29) had Tiozzo visibly exhausted when the final bell sounded.

Scoring: Jackie Keough, 117-102; Russ Withers, 118-103; Zach Clayton, 118-102
Winner: Michael Spinks (UD)

 

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