Content deleted Content added
m Removing from Category:American people of Italian descent using Cat-a-lot |
|||
| (5 intermediate revisions by 4 users not shown) | |||
Line 25:
}}
'''Jackie Sharkey''' or '''Jack Sharkey''' (born '''Giovanni Cervati''') was an Italian-born American boxer who made a claim to the World Bantamweight Title on August 15, 1919, defeating reigning champion Pete Herman in a ten-round, no-decision bout in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. His claim to the title was not universally recognized at the time. Jack Sharkey, also known as Little Jackie Sharkey, should not be confused with the heavyweight champion [[Jack Sharkey]]. <ref name=BR>{{cite web|title=Jackie Sharkey|url=http://boxrec.com/boxer/37689|publisher=BoxRec|accessdate=8 August 2016}}</ref>
==Early life and career==
Line 35:
===Draw with Johnny Coulon, February 1917===
On February 5, 1917, Sharkey drew with former World Bantamweight champion [[Johnny Coulon]] in a ten-round newspaper decision at the Pioneer Sporting Club in New York. Local newspapers disagreed on the decision. Coulon held the World Bantamweight Championship from
On July 27, 1917, Sharkey first lost to [[Kid Williams]] in six rounds at Oriole Park in Baltimore, at least by the newspaper decision of the ''Baltimore Sun''. He lost to Williams again on April 1, 1918, in a twelve-round points decision at the Lyric Theater in Baltimore. Williams held the World Bantamweight Title from June 1914 to January 1917.<ref name=BR/>
===Bouts with December 1920 World Bantamweight Champion Joe Lynch 1916–25===
Sharkey first met [[Joe Lynch (boxer)|Joe Lynch]] on September 26, 1916, in the star bout at the Pioneer Sporting Club in New York, losing in ten-round newspaper decisions of the ''New York Times'' and ''New York Tribune''.<ref>"Joe Lynch Outpoints Sharkey", ''The New York Times'', New York, New York, pg. 12, 27 September 1916</ref> They met on February 27, 1917, and Sharkey lost again by a ten-round decision of three New York newspapers at the Pioneer Sports Club in New York City. Sharkey was down in the fifth round, after which Lynch had little trouble penetrating his defenses. The bout was an elimination series for the bantamweight championship, and Lynch had some difficulty with Sharkey in the early rounds.<ref name=BR/><ref>"Joe Lynch Outpoints Jack Sharkey", ''The Evening News'', Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, pg. 8, 28 February 1917</ref>
Sharky and Joe Lynch drew in a fifteen-round points decision at New York's Madison Square Garden on September 28, 1920, although Lynch was down in several rounds from the blows of Sharkey.<ref>Lynch was down in the bout in "Joe Lynch Knocks Out Jack Sharkey", ''Altoona Tribune'', Altoona, Pennsylvania, pg. 18, 3 December 1920</ref> Sharkey's ability to stay fifteen rounds with a top bantamweight contender put him squarely in the list of top contenders himself. On December 2, 1920, in a somewhat more historic bout, Lynch defeated Sharkey in a fifteenth-round knockout at Madison Square Garden. Sharkey had the better of the bout up until the sixth round, when Lynch became far more dominant. Lynch's win gave him the right to challenge Pete Herman for the Bantamweight Championship three weeks later.<ref>"Joe Lynch Knocks Out Jack Sharkey", ''Altoona Tribune'', Altoona, Pennsylvania, pg. 18, 3 December 1920</ref> On July 2, 1925, at the Polo Grounds in New York, home of the New York Giants, the two drew in four rounds to a large house in which Lynch was somewhat favored to win.<ref name=BR/><ref>"Expect Italian Fund Bouts to Draw $80,000", ''The Scranton Republican'', Scranton, Pennsylvania, pg. 20, 2 July 1925</ref>
Line 46:
===Seven bouts with top bantamweight contender Frankie Burns, 1916–18===
[[File:Frankie Burns.jpg|185px|right|thumb|Frankie Burns]]
Sharkey met [[Frankie Burns]] seven times during his career, but had little luck with the highly rated bantamweight contender. Beginning on November 27, 1916, Sharkey faced a ten-round loss by newspaper decision from Burns in New York, followed by a ten-round loss on February 9, 1917, at the Harlem Sports Club in New York by newspaper decision of the ''New York Sun''. Sharkey sank to the mat in the sixth round and claimed a foul, though he recovered by the seventh. He fought the first two rounds "like a whirlwind" and looked to have an advantage, but lost his pace in subsequent rounds.<ref>"Burns a Winner", ''El Paso Herald'', El Paso, Texas, pg. 13, 16 February 1917</ref> In the third, Sharkey was stunned by a left hook to his midriff that may have affected him for the remainder of the bout.<ref>"Burns Outpointed Sharkey in Ten Rounds", ''Durham Morning Herald'', Durham, North Carolina, pg. 5, 10 February 1917</ref>
On October 15, 1917, he lost to Burns in a newspaper decision ten rounder in Albany, New York. Burns was "too clever" for Sharkey and "won by use of constant left jabs and right handers to the body".<ref>"With the Scrappers", ''Wilkes-Barre Times Leader'', Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, pg. 17, 18 October 1917</ref> Sharkey fell to a ten-round loss by newspaper decision in Scranton, Pennsylvania, on February 21, 1918. In their February 21 Jersey City Town Hall bout, Burns was described as easily outpointing his opponent, and taking seven of the ten rounds, with only one to Sharkey before a substantial house of 4000.<ref>4000 attended in "With the Scrappers" ''Wilkes-Barre Times Leader'', Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, pg. 17, 28 May 1918</ref><ref>"Sharkey Loses to Burns", ''The Wilkes-Barre Times Leader'', Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, pg. 11, 22 February 1918</ref> On June 20, 1918, he drew with Burns in a six-round newspaper decision in Madison Square Garden, and he lost to Burns again at the Garden in their last bout on November 16 in a six-round newspaper decision of the ''New York Times''. Burns was eight years older than Sharkey, but seemed a difficult opponent to defeat. On July 13, 1920, Sharkey lost to Burns in a twelve-round newspaper decision of the ''Philadelphia Record'' at the Outdoor Arena of the Armory in Jersey City, New Jersey.<ref>"Burns Wins", ''The Courier News'', Bridgewater, New Jersey, pg. 12, 14 July 1920</ref> As a highly rated Bantamweight, Burns contended four times for the World Bantamweight Championship between 1912 and 1917.
Line 58:
==Championship fights==
[[File:Pete.Herman.jpeg|185px|left|thumb|Champion Pete Herman]]
Sharkey first defeated Pete Herman in a six-round newspaper decision of two local newspapers at the National Athletic Club in Philadelphia on May 4, 1918. The victory over the reigning bantamweight champion was described as "a clean cut lacing", and several newspapers agreed Sharkey had the advantage in the bout. Due to a smaller house than expected, Sharkey was poorly compensated for his victory. Sharkey was described as the aggressor through most of the bout and able to stand punch for punch with the champion.<ref>Sharkey was the aggressor, "Pete Herman is Beaten", ''The Pittsburgh
===Championship===
Sharkey briefly claimed the World Bantamweight Championship on August 15, 1919, in a ten-round newspaper decision against Herman in a no-decision bout in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, though the title was not unified at the time, and Sharkey won by a fairly close margin. Sharkey's claim was not recognized at the time, as he would have had to win by knockout or technical knockout to take the title, or to have won by the decision of a referee. Tt majority of newspaper reports gave Sharkey the edge.<ref>Sharkey had the edge in "Sharkey Given Decision", ''The Leavenworth Times'', Leavenworth, Kansas, pg. 1, 16 August 1919</ref><ref>The bout was close in "Jack Sharkey Gets Decision Over Champ Pete Herman", ''
===Jimmy Wilde fight===
Line 70:
===Johnny Buff fight===
On November 10, 1921, Sharkey lost to [[Johnny Buff]] in a fifteen-round World Bantamweight Championship by points decision at Madison Square Garden. In the close and exciting fight, Sharkey had five rounds, six went to Buff, and four were even. Both boxers took the lead at times, but Buff finished stronger. The ''Des Moines Register'' called it "as rousing a battle as ever you'd wish to see." Most newspapers gave the fight to Buff, who held the World Bantamweight title at the time. The ''New York Times'' gave Sharkey the seventh, eighth and ninth rounds, while Buff took eleven of the remaining rounds, with one even. The final rounds seemed to clearly belong to Buff.<ref>New York Times gave three rounds in "All Buff, Verdict", ''New Castle Herald'', New Castle, Pennsylvania, pg. 20, 11 November 1921</ref><ref>Peglar, Westbrook, "Johnny Buff Wins Over Jack Sharkey", ''The Des Moines Register'', Des Moines, Iowa, pg. 4, 11 November 1921</ref> Sharkey had lost to Buff on January 15, 1920, in an eight-round newspaper decision of the ''Jersey Journal'' in Jersey City, New Jersey.<ref name=BR/>
===Johnny Dundee fight===
Line 79:
===Frankie Fasano fight and aftermath===
On December 2, 1924, Sharkey lost on a second round disqualification against Frankie Fasano when he reportedly and uncharacteristically attacked the referee. He had claimed to be a victim of a foul which the referee disallowed. According to the ''New York Times'', the event greatly disquieted the audience. After
==Retirement from boxing, 1926==
Sharkey retired from boxing around May 1926, with a ten-round points decision loss to Young Mulligan in Norwalk, Connecticut. He had lost two prior bouts by newspaper decision since September 1925, as well as a third-round TKO to Jewish boxer Red Chapman on October 23, 1925. In September 1927, the talented Chapman would lose to Benny Bass in a close bout for the NBA World Featherweight Championship in Philadelphia.<ref name=BR/>
Sharkey was twenty-eight years old when he retired from the ring. He died on March 1, 1970, at the age of 72.<ref name=BR/>
Line 3,413:
[[Category:World bantamweight boxing champions]]
[[Category:American male boxers]]
[[Category:Italian emigrants to the United States]]
| |||