James Jeffries
vs.
Tom Sharkey
In his autobiography, Jeffries called this his greatest fight.
"..that fight was the hardest of my life, and perhaps the greatest combat ever waged in a ring between two human beings."
"When we reached the arena that night, I began to get an idea of what we were to endure. Without, advising us, the promoters had planned to take moving pictures of the fight, the first time it had even been attempted. ...They had installed great lights right over the ring: lights strong enough to illuminate a city of forty thousand , pouring their heat down upon us. The lamps were hung so low that, standing in the ring I could reach up and touch them with my glove. ...It was like standing at the mouth of a blast furnace.."
"The old Sharkey, better trained and conditioned, came bouncing out of his corner like a lion released from a cage..."
"There was no feinting or sparring; it was fighting..."
"We fought round after round..."
"In the second...during a desperate mix up I landed a left hook squarely on his chin, lifted him from his feet and stood him on the back of his head. I had delivered the blow with the bad arm...The arm was practically helpless and from that instant, to the finish I fought with one hand. "
"In the seventeenth round...determined to end it, even if I had to break the useless left arm off in doing it."
"As Sharkey came tearing in,...I dropped back a step,..driving my right into his ribs. ..I felt the fist crush into his ribs, heard a crack..."
"I knew something was broken and learned afterwards that the blow caved in three of his ribs. In spite of that, and with one of his ribs sticking through the skin toward the end of the battle, the human cyclone refused to stop, but kept coming as before."
"He was half blind with blood and wholly blind in his stubborn refusal to admit any man could beat him. He split my forehead once when we crashed , head on in a collison, that shook the ring and another time butted my nose and at the same time broke one of my teeth. Not that he ever butted intentionally. He was blind, with blood, and determination...
"The last two rounds were a nightmare for both of us...."
"As two tired, almost exhausted big men stood there, bloody and panting, under the pitiless heat, Siler lifted my hand-I had retained the title after the most desperate fight I think two human beings ever had."(1)
Vintage Original Flyer
Extremely Rare.
Size: 4 3/8 X 8 inches
Condition: Fine
Price: $ 950.00
2000-1292
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