Boxing
At The Fairgrounds 1923-2005
Posted: September 12, 2009
by Bob Ryder, Photos & Images from Bob Ryder Collection
As the nations oldest state fair (established 1849), the Michigan
State Fair has provided its share of entertainment to families during
its traditional annual last week in August to Labor Day run. Located
just off of Woodward Avenue in Detroit, the fair showcased the usual
rides, midway side shows, animal exhibits and musical acts over
the years. There were, however, other significant happenings on
the fairgrounds during times when the fair itself was not running.
Horse racing was a big part of the activity on the grounds in the
early days. Until he won his first major race on September 7, 1936,
Seabiscuit was considered a mediocre racehorse. From that first
win on the state fair track, Seabiscuit moved on to fame and fortune
ultimately becoming one of the best loved racehorses of all time.
The Shrine Circus was always a big attraction and it was here that
one of the worst circus accidents occurred in 1962 when the Flying
Wallendas seven person high wire pyramid collapsed, killing two
performers and permanently paralyzing one other. The focus of this
literary treatise, however, is boxing. With the fair now on the
verge of being eliminated and the fate of the property and its buildings
unknown, the time is right to review the history of the sweet science
as it played out within the confines of the fairgrounds.
The largest and most imposing building on the grounds is the coliseum.
Built in 1922, it is here that our journey back in time begins.
On May 7, 1923 future heavyweight champion Gene Tunney stopped one
Jack Clifford in eight rounds in this structure. One might imagine
that with a record of 3-20 going into the contest, Clifford probably
did not provide much of a test for Tunney who was still three years
away from winning the big prize against Jack Dempsey. However, given
the fact that Tunney was coming off a hard fifteen round win over
Harry Greb just two months before, he was entitled to an easy one.
The incomparable Greb also fought at the fairgrounds winning a newspaper
decision over Tommy Burns (not the ex-heavyweight champ) on August
17, 1925. On the same card Detroit's Sid Barbarian also dropped
a newspaper decision to future lightweight champion Sammy Mandell.
The opportunity to see all time greats Harry Greb and Sammy Mandell
on the same card had to be a wonderful treat for the Detroit fight
fans of yesteryear.
The one and only bout with world title implications to occur at
the fairgrounds took place on July 25, 1929. Joe Dundee was defending
his world welterweight title and Jackie Fields was putting his National
Boxing Association version (yes, they occasionally had split titles
even back then!) of the crown on the line. One of boxing's earliest
title unification bouts. Things did not go well for Joe and he decided
after suffering a second knockdown that it was time to call it a
day. By all accounts he deliberately fouled Fields and was disqualified
in the second round to bring the bout to what had to be an unsatisfactory
conclusion for the folks in attendance.
Attendance plays the key role in our next contest. In what is most
likely the largest crowd ever for any fairgrounds fight, over 15,000
fans jammed into the coliseum to watch the giant Primo Carnera in
action. Carnera did not disappoint, putting the KO on KO Christner
in the 4th round on June 5, 1930. Carnera was still three years
removed from winning the heavyweight title at this point but obviously
was already a huge draw (literally and figuratively).
The list of future world champions that fought on the fairgrounds
is impressive. A young Barney Ross (a pro less than a year at the
time) beat Eddie Koppy over six rounds on July 1, 1930. Soon to
be light heavyweight champ Gus Lesnevich won a ten round decision
over Dave Clark on New Year's Day, 1940 and future middleweight
kingpin Joey Giardello stopped Joe Gray after five rounds on July
2, 1957. However, one of the most famous boxers of all time was
a faded, ex-champ by the time he made his fairgrounds appearance.
Jack Dempsey was winding down his career with a stint in which he
was taking on questionable opposition (mostly professional wrestlers).
After losing his second fight to Tunney in 1927, Jack took off a
couple of years before he began a barnstorming tour across the country
fighting many exhibitions (sometimes two or three in the same day)
during 1931-32. Out of the ring again until 1940, Dempsey returned
to knock out wrestler Cowboy Luttrell (side note: the film of this
fight shows Jack scoring a devastating KO, if the wrestlers thought
it would be fun and games Dempsey sure didn't). This leads us to
Dempsey's coliseum contest against pro wrestler Bull Curry on July
15, 1940. The poster trumpets "real action with 6 ounce gloves"
and Curry purportedly had some amateur boxing background and was
touted as "the world's toughest matman". Despite his age,
Dempsey still had more than enough left to blast out Curry in the
second.
The 1930's, 40's and 50's saw many quality fighters ply their trade
here. Excellent and now almost forgotten ring men of the day such
as George Burnette, Holman Williams, Bud Taylor, Red Burman, Teddy
Yarosz, Chuck Spieser, Roscoe Toles and Lester Felton all graced
fairgrounds rings. An outdoor contest between heavyweight contenders
held in front of the horse racing grandstands took place on May
24, 1958 when Nino Valdes knocked out Detroit's Johnny Summerlin
in five rounds leading to Johnny's retirement from the ring.
In the 1960's and 70's, presentations at the fairgrounds took on
a club show feel. Shows were frequent but top contenders boxed less.
Other Detroit area venues like Cobo Arena and the old Olympia landed
the big fights. The fairgrounds cards became a place where Detroit
area fighters such as Alvin "Blue" Lewis and Tommy Hanna
honed their skills as they waited for their big chance. Occasionally
however, a top contender would appear as when George Chuvalo took
on Billy Tiger on May 1, 1970 with Chuvalo scoring a tenth round
KO.
For this writer, the fairgrounds will always be a special place.
On March 25, 1972 I attended my first in person live fight as welterweight
contenders Ronnie Harris and Raul Soriano went at it for ten hard
fought rounds in the cramped Community Arts Building. Watching two
evenly matched boxers apply their skills in an effort to best the
other was artistry. Some felt Harris got the hometown decision,
but I remember most the atmosphere, the smoke, the noise and the
crowd. Boxing at its most brutal, yet beautiful best. I was hooked.
The 1980's and 90's had Joe Louis Arena, Cobo Arena and later The
Palace of Auburn Hills hosting most of the boxing in the Motor City.
Fairgrounds fights were almost non-existent. Bernard Mays fought
here several times in the early 80's and Len Hutchins was brutally
beaten into retirement over three one sided rounds against upcoming
Willie Edwards in 1982 but beyond this there was almost no other
activity.
The last fight of any significance took place on November 19, 2004.
In a nationally televised contest aired by Showtime, Troy Rowland
recovered from an early round knockdown and edged out Epifanio Mendoza
over ten rounds. In what very well might be the last fight to be
ever held at the state fairgrounds, Marlon Thomas stopped Vincent
Thompson in the first round on June 10, 2005.
With attendance down from the fair's heydays, corporate sponsorships
fading away, and a budget strapped state unable to write off the
fair's losses, things look exceedingly grim for the future. It appears
likely that the Michigan State Fair has run its course. The fair's
demise would most probably cause an alternative use for the property
and in combination with fewer fight cards anyway, would seem to
indicate that boxing at the fairgrounds has heard the ten count.
A sad ending for fair goers and fight fans alike.
(c)
2009, Sportssummary.com
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