CARPENTIER’S GREATEST BOXING THRILL

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 1069, 5 September 1930, Page 7

CARPENTIER’S GREATEST BOXING THRILL

When Frenchman’s Right Staggered Dempsey in Memorable Contest Nine Years Ago

ALTHOUGH it was nine years ago, it seems like only yesterday when Georges Cferpentier, the Orchid Man of France, treated the civilised world to one of its greatest, most spine-tingling thrills. The scene was a vast, rambling, octagonal wooden arena, laid out on a parcel of ground known as Boyle’s Thirty Acres in Jersey City, America. The date was July 2, 1921. The thrill came in the second round of Monsieur Georges’ battle for the world’s heavy-weight boxing championship with Jack Dempsey, when the Frenchman landed two blazing punches to the champion’s jaw. Close on 100,000 frenzied spectators saw the famed Manassa Mauler go back on his heels before the concentrated fury of the Frenchman’s thrilling attack, and they saw, too, how Dempsey weathered the storm and smashed Carpentier into bloody defeat with a clean knockout in the fourth round.

FROM the end of the Great War dates the era of million-dollar gates in the sport of boxing, and the rise of the late Tex Rickard to the position of the world’s premier sports promoter.

A business man to his fingertips, and a master of mob psychology. Rickard started the post-war boxing boom with Jack Dempsey as his trump card. Keenly alive to the value of the international aspect of a fight. Rickard made his first play lor big stakes in 1921 when he managed to sign up Georges Carpentier Lor a bout with Dempsey. Carpentier was the heavyweight champion of Europe, the idol of France, and with his wartime reputation as an aviator, a vivid and colourful personality in the prize ring.

We know now that Carpentier never had a real chance of beating Dempsey It was the old story of a good big man against a good little man. but in tho second round, the Frenchman, outweighted and outfought by a heavier and stronger opponent, made a wonderful and desperate bid for victory, and for a breathless few moments it looked as if the heavy-weight title was in the balance.

It remained for Dempsey to furnish a similar thrill two years later when he was bludgeoned through the ring ropes by Luis Angel Firpo. only to come back and pound the Wild Bull of the Pampas into submission.

Public sympathy was with Carpentier; it was, strangely enough, against Dempsey Georges was a veteran of the big war. having served with a French flying unit. Dempsey had been accused of “slacking” it —working in a shipyard instead of taking his place in the front line trenches over there.

It is safe to say that three out of every four Americans seated in Rickard’s pine arena that sweltering afternoon wanted to see Carpentier win

over the glowering, panther-like Dempsey. So the stage was set for Carpen tier’s right lo the jaw. Some say that Dempsey was careless, but the fact remains that midway through the second round, Carpentier got home on Dempsey’s jaw with all the power of his smoothly-muscled body behind his right hand. Once, twice, straight and true, the Frenchman connected, and the scowling Dempsey faltered and staggered back on his heels. Swiftly and savagely, the Frenchman leaped into his bulkier and stronger rival. A world’s championship hung in the balance. Dempsey's greatest attribute was his ability to absorb punishment. Desperately as did Carpentier strive for a knockout, the Hying seconds brought home to him the fact that Dempsey had taken his hardest punch, and was slowly but surely regaining bis strength and lighting poise. And in driving home that deadly right the Frenchman broke his right thumb. The “New York Police Gazette” describes what followed: With a crimson blotch marking the place where once had been a finelychiselled nose, and with his cropped liaid standing out’in a spreading pompadour, the once gorgeous Georges advanced to meet his conqueror for the third round with an altered plan of campaign. He had learned the lesson imparted by the annihilating fists of his powerful adversary, and at the belated advice of Francois Descamps, his manager, he strove to make the affair a boxing match. Dempsey, however, would not be denied. and with the eagerness of a panther closing in upon his prey, he relentlessly pursued the Frenchman about the ring, hammering him with body punches that caused the frailer man to wince and clinch. It was in the clinches in the third round that Jack twice dropped his famed “rabbit punch" on the back of the Frenchman’s neck, at the base of the skull.

The third round was the prelude to the finish, which came one minute and sixteen seconds after the opening ut the fourth round. In the final round Dempsey emerged from his corner with his great shoulders hunched and wearing that hideous fighting scowl which is so foreign to the champion’s expression outside the squared circle that he has been called the Jekyll and Hyde of the ring. Every sign pointed to a grim determination to end the battle then and there. Carpentier kept away from those menacing lists. He loped around the ring, almost brushing the ropes, as he sparred and feinted and backed away. Cut Dempsey would not be baffled now He crowded the gallant Frenchman to a neutral corner, and feinting with his right, suddenly shot his deadly left hook inside the wavering guard of Carpentier and planted a sickening blow over the challenger’s heart. Those superb legs of the French idol nagged, and quicker £hun thought Dempsey whipped over his crushing right to the jaw. It was the Dempsey shift. Carpentier wilted to the canvas. He sank to his hands and knees, then collapsed, with his face on the resined floor and his paralysed outstretched hands pointing to his own corner, where the frantic Descamps crouched. Dempsey abruptly turned his back upon his fallen foe and strode toward his own corner. Referee Ertle leaned over Carpentier and began to count. His right arm rising and falling like the pendulum of fate, lie tolled off nine, while the vast concourse of humanity that a few moments before had clamoured for a victory over the champion was strangely silent as if stricken dumb by this bewildering reversal of events. At nine Carpentier arose and faced his destiny like the soldier and man he is. Dempsey, now watching him like a hawk, leaped across the distance intervening and whipped in another left to the solar plexus. . As

Carpentier started to lunge forward Dempsey brought his right across to the chin and the French hero dropped heavily to the ring floor, raising a little puff of resin. He struck on his right side and his legs flew up. then fell limp. This time Dempsey hovered over the prostrate figure. Ertle began another count. The ninety odd thousand fight fans in the arena were standing on their seats. There was again a strange absence of turmoil. As Ertle brought his swinging arm down for the tenth stroke that spelled defeat for the Frenchman. Descamps leaped into *iqg 75*<1. nwiu Ts*i bjt pettjm sey, who picked up his beaten adversary. half-led. half-carried Georges to nis corner and the fight was over. NEVER A CHAMPION AFTER

Like most of the men beaten by Jack Dempsey. Carpentier was never worth much after the “Battle of the Century.” In 1922, in Paris, he was battered into a knockout defeat by the singular Senegalese. Battling Siki a semi-savage black.

Georges came back to the United States in 1924 and fought Tom Gibbons and Gene Tunney. Gibbons found nothing to fear in the vaunted right hand of the Frenchman in a 10-round, no-decision affair at Michigan City. Tunney scored a technical knockout over him in 15 rounds in New York. Throughout the fight Gene took the right hand frequently on the button without suffering any particular discomfort.

Dempsey had robbed that fist of its dynamite.

Georges now is a sort of dilettante. A little work on the stage—dancing and grimacing—occasionally a little fling at t lie talking movies. Seen here and there at Continental pleasure resorts and sporting events, as a spectator. the cynosure of curious eyes. The Orchid Man is as debonair as ever, even though he makes no pretence at fighting.

But nine years ago he gave the world a fistic thrill that it will long remember!