SPLENDID BOXING

Evening Post, Volume CXXIII, Issue 131, 4 June 1937, Page 5

SPLENDID BOXING

GILDO BEATS RAYNER

COURAGEOUS LOSER

KNOCK-OUT IN FOURTEENTH

The Wellington Boxing Association got away to an excellent start last night when it opened the 1937 professional season with a lightweight contest between "Young" Gildo, a Filipino, and Clarrie Raj'ner. the former New Zealand featherweight champion from Blenheim. Scheduled to last fifteen three-minute rounds, the bout went to the fourteenth, when Rayncr. who had repeatedly dropped to the canvas during the previous three or four rounds, went down for the last time, though he gallantly attempted to pull himself to his feet once more. It was a splendid contest from every ■ point of view, and the 1500-odd spectators enjoyed themselves to the full. Boxing science and aggression were judiciously mingled by.two boys who presented an interesting contrast in styles and who were both prepared to provide action the whole time. There was clever defensive work, but it was not of the kind that robs a contest of its spectacular element, and the clean and skilful punching on both sides constituted boxing at its best. | It was the second meeting of the pair, Gildo having won the previous bout on points. For a while last night it looked as if Rayner might be able to turn the tables. He started well, and quickly gained in confidence, concentrating mainly on keeping his clever opponent at arm's length and picking up points with Gildo's face as his target. Whenever Gildo got in close, however, it was seen that he was scoring two to one, and sometimes more. One glove would be pecking away at Rayner's face, and then suddenly he would swing a punch under and round, catching Rayner on an unguarded spot. Or he would swiftly whip in an uppercut —and again Rayner would receive a shock. DECIDING FACTOR. The deciding factor in the contest, however, was the manner in which the Filipino reserved his energy. While Rayner was forcing matters in the early rounds, Gildo, almost nonchalantly, bided his time waiting for whatever opportunities presented themselves. Should Rayner happen to leave a gap—which he did all too often, and with increasing frequency—then Gildo would exploit it with a snappy punch which went straight to its mark. During these early rounds Gildo did not impart a great deal of sting to his : punching. The weighty blows came , from Eayner's end, but the manner in which they were taken made all the ' difference. Rayner's vulnerable region 1 was the left side of the jaw, where i Gildo caught him with almost mono- : tonous regularity towards the finish. \ And nearly every time Raj'ner hit the < mat. Gildo, on the other hand, "rode" ] Rayner's punches so skilfully that he would often stand with his glove hang- _ ing by his side and present Rayner with an open target. As the Blenheim boy's punches came in to his jaw, his * head merely slipped sideways, and the punches were automatically robbed of any of the weight that might havo s hurt him. Sometimes, also, he would duck his head so that blows aimed for his jaw slid harmlessly off his forehead. v ■ , i: VITAL TENTH ROUND. S - The turning point in the bout came in the tenth round. Matters had gradually, been warming up to a climax, and it became apparent at this stage that something decisive was extremely pro- v . bable before the bout had gone the full distance. At the gong the boys came together in a brisk rally, Gildo moving in like an animal stalking its prey, while Rayner back-pedalled and at- ri tempted to fight him off. Finally, they came together, toe-to-toe, in the middle of the ring, with Rayner aiming at Gildo's jaw, and the latter concentrating on the stomach. Gildo's blows were a the first to tell, Rayner weakening visibly, and when, after a short break,, r; they mixed it again and Gildo whipped across a right to the jaw, Rayner went down for the first time—for a count of nine. He was scarcely up before a similar punch caused him to slump forward on to his knees, but the gong interrupted the count at "two." Nothing daunted, Rayner, whose courage was one of the features of the bout, carried the fight to his opponent in the next round, though Gildo was not slow in meeting him. The Filipino accepted what was coming with complete disregard and took the P1 opportunity to send Rayner down for to another long count. And so it went f° on, with Rayner repeatedly off his ai feet, until the finish in the fourteenth Ci round. L< NO SURRENDER. When he had his man helpless, Gildo, ds a cheerful little sportsman, signalled Ni urgently for Rayner's seconds to throw wi in the towel, but that is not allowed in wi this country and there was nothing for f a , him to do but finish it off. Both men s t; were given a rousing ovation by the a n excited spectators, who were delighted n c by a contest which was not marred ' in a single respect. t r j Gildo!s weight was 9st -. 31b, with cl^ Rayner 21b heavier. The referee was sa j Mr. Earl Stewart, the judges Messrs. ,ji) W. P. Sommerville and P. W. Woods, Th and the announcer Mr. G. A. Broad. f rc Challenges to the winner were received Co] from Henry Dunn and Ralph Ait ken, j \ and Fred Fisher issued a challenge to ovv any middleweight or light-heavy- a weight. th , AMATEUR PRELIMINARIES. po; Results of the amateur preliminary lat bouts were:— an F. Martin (Cotterills), lOst 91b, bent J J. Kellehan (Newtown), lost 31b. In cv] a contest of four two-minute rounds he. Kellehan, with a straight left, piled on «a points for the first three rounds, but se« Martin, over the last round, made a Ne great rally. The verdict was not kindly to received. sid P. Coburn (Moera), 6st 101b, beat. E. Foote (Newtown), 7st 2lb, over three two-minute rounds. J. Parker (Newtown), Bst 81b, beat A. Byrne (Moera), Bst 81b, in a contest of four two-minute rounds that had the audience on their toes, from start to finish. Parker, boxing coolly and using his left well, kept his aggressive opponent off. Byrne, in the last round, made a strong attempt to win by the ( short route, but Parker was quite able y M to meet him half-way. on

F. Finnegan (Parris), 9st 21b, beat T. Dunn (Moera), Bst 13Jib. The decision was unfavourably received.

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