Rest in Peace George “Tex” Rickard (January 2nd, 1870 – January 6th, 1929)

Published

9 years ago

January 6, 2016

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George Lewis “Tex” Rickard was born on January 2nd, 1870 in Kansas City, Missouri, however he is remembered as a 'Texan' because his family moved there at a very early age. The impact “Tex” would have on boxing, and indeed, on modern sports before he passed away on January 6th, 1929 at the age of 59 years is so massive as to be immeasurable.

Rickard is most often remembered as the promoter for boxing icon Jack Demspey, the Heavyweight Champion throughout most of the 1920's, and the pair took boxing out of the athletic clubs and mining towns and into the mainstream of American society.

The story of Rickard begins in the mining towns of the American west at the start of the 20th century. Rickard owned bars and saloons in Alaska and Nevada's desert as he chased the gold rushes around the west. It was in those times that he started promoting boxing events and in 1906, Rickard was the promoter for the legendary Lightweight title bout between “The Old Master” Joe Gans and Battling Nelson. The fight lasted for 42 rounds with Gans retaining the belt. History would see him eventually lose the belt to Nelson in 1908.

Rickard, with his nose for big things, then promoted the first fight that was marketed as “The Fight of the Century”, which featured former World Heavyweight Champion James J. Jeffries returning from a long hiatius to try and rescue the belt for the white race from Jack Johnson. After that match, Rickard left for South America, and when he returned he went east. Rickard's genius can be seen in his ability to foretell the potential of having a truly national sports star using the emerging newspaper and radio technology of the day. He returned to New York on March 25th, 1916 to the original Madison Square Garden to promote World Heavyweight Champion Jess Willard's fight with Frank Moran. Willard had wrested the World heavyweight title from Jack Johnson almost a year earlier, and this was Willard's first title defense.

It would be more than three years before Willard would fight again, but on July 4th, 1919 Rickard was there, in Toledo, Ohio. Willard was a reticent champion, at that point more at home back on the farm than in the ring, or in the spotlight Rickard had in mind. ButJack Dempsey, who had come up fighting in the same western mining landscape that saw Rickard emerge fifteen years earlier, and he would prove to be exactly what Rickard needed. Willard versus Moran had gone down in the record books as a lackluster performance, but Dempsey's two round dismantling of the gigantic champion gave him a sensational performance and Rickard a new star. Dempsey could be the star Rickard envisioned.

Rickard periodically promoted shows at Madison Square Garden throughout 1920, but on July 2nd, 1921 the true scope of what Rickard was capable of became apparent, as World Heavyweight Champion Jack Dempsey defended his title against Georges Carpentier, a Frenchman who was one of the best boxers of his era and an iconic star in Europe. Carpentier had just knocked out Britain's Joe Beckett to earn the title fight. The charismatic Frenchman was the perfect foil to Dempsey's dark persona. Rickard made sure that he was at the forefront of new radio technology, and this was the first fight to be broadcast through the new medium. People stood at receiving stations in the streets to hear results, as most homes didn't have radios yet. In order to host the fight, Rickard would have a 90,000 seat arena built on a farm in New Jersey in nine weeks.

The numbers around the fight are truly staggering. The event was a sellout, with over 90,000 people in attendance generating a live gate of $1,789.238, boxing's first million dollar gate. Under Rickard's clever guidance, the fight was promoted with Dempsey firmly in the the role as the bad guy. Carpentier was a war hero, and in Post World War I America, questions about Dempsey's war record were enough to have people wanting him to get beat. The fourth round KO by Dempsey catapulted him to the level of international star, and a few years later he would meet Carpentier as friends while he travelled Europe giving lucrative exhibitions and rubbing elbows with other famous entertainers of the time.

Rickard would avoid involvement in Dempsey's ill fated title defense against Tommy Gibbons in Shelby, Montana on July 4th, 1923. Dempsey would win, but he did not deliver the expected knock out and the event promoters did not make their money back in what is generally described as a financial disaster. Two months later at New York's Polo Grounds, Rickard and Dempsey produced another million plus dollar gate as he defended the Heavyweight title against feared Argentininan “Wild Bull” Luis Angel Firpo. Dempsey, again in the eye of Rickard's media frenzy, delivered one of the most memorable performances of his career as he was knocked onto press row by the rampaging Firpo after scoring half a dozen knock downs himself. He would take Firpo out in the fourth round.

In January of 1925 Rickard built the third edition of Madison Square Garden. The box style building of the new arena was built with boxing in mind, and could seat nearly 19,000. Rickard had gathered investors from among his contacts and built what would become the most famous arena in the world. Though boxing was clearly Rickard's first love, his nose for business led him to found the New York Rangers Ice Hockey franchise, and he helped solidify the presence of the new sport in the nation's largest media market. The name Rangers came as a reference to Rickard's “Texas” roots.

Rickard would promote Jack Dempsey's final fight as Heavyweight Champion, as he faced Gene Tunney on September 23rd, 1926. Though Dempsey walked in the favorite, he was outboxed by he clever Tunney and lost the Heavyweight title in what was his sixth title defense. For Rickard, it was the third gate in boxing history that broke a million dollars, as over 120,000 people filled Philadelphia's Sesquicentennial Stadium for the fight, paying a gate of over $1.8 million dollars.

Rickard would promote Dempsey's subsequent fight with Jack Sharkey before he re-matched Tunney, and Rickard promoted Tunney's last career fight on July 26th, 1928 when Tunney defeated Tom Heeney at New York's Yankee Stadium but it would all come to an abrupt end for Rickard. On January 6th, 1929 after undergoing surgery on his appendix, he suffered complications and was unable to recover. What followed in boxing is recognized as a slump in Heavyweight division post-Dempsey, but how would Rickard have affected that period in boxing history had he lived?

Gone but not forgotten, “Tex” Rickard.

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Miguel Iturrate

Ringside at the Fontainebleau where Mikaela Mayer Won her Rematch with Sandy Ryan

Published

4 days ago

March 30, 2025

Arne K. Lang

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LAS VEGAS, NV — The first meeting between Mikaela Mayer and Sandy Ryan last September at Madison Square Garden was punctuated with drama before the first punch was thrown. When the smoke cleared, Mayer had become a world-title-holder in a second weight class, taking away Ryan’s WBO welterweight belt via a majority decision in a fan-friendly fight.

The rematch tonight at the Fontainebleau in Las Vegas was another fan-friendly fight. There were furious exchanges in several rounds and the crowd awarded both gladiators a standing ovation at the finish.

Mayer dominated the first half of the fight and held on to win by a unanimous decision. But Sandy Ryan came on strong beginning in round seven, and although Mayer was the deserving winner, the scores favoring her (98-92 and 97-93 twice) fail to reflect the competitiveness of the match-up. This is the best rivalry in women’s boxing aside from Taylor-Serrano.

Mayer, 34, improved to 21-2 (5). Up next, she hopes, in a unification fight with Lauren Price who outclassed Natasha Jonas earlier this month and currently holds the other meaningful pieces of the 147-pound puzzle. Sandy Ryan, 31, the pride of Derby, England, falls to 7-3-1.

Co-Feature

In his first defense of his WBO world welterweight title (acquired with a brutal knockout of Giovani Santillan after the title was vacated by Terence Crawford), Atlanta’s Brian Norman Jr knocked out Puerto Rico’s Derrieck Cuevas in the third round. A three-punch combination climaxed by a short left hook sent Cuevas staggering into a corner post. He got to his feet before referee Thomas Taylor started the count, but Taylor looked in Cuevas’s eyes and didn’t like what he saw and brought the bout to a halt.

The stoppage, which struck some as premature, came with one second remaining in the third stanza.

A second-generation prizefighter (his father was a fringe contender at super middleweight), the 24-year-old Norman (27-0, 21 KOs) is currently boxing’s youngest male title-holder. It was only the second pro loss for Cuevas (27-2-1) whose lone previous defeat had come early in his career in a 6-rounder he lost by split decision.

Other Bouts

In a career-best performance, 27-year-old Brooklyn featherweight Bruce “Shu Shu” Carrington (15-0, 9 KOs) blasted out Jose Enrique Vivas (23-4) in the third round.

Carrington, who was named the Most Outstanding Boxer at the 2019 U.S. Olympic Trials despite being the lowest-seeded boxer in his weight class, decked Vivas with a right-left combination near the end of the second round. Vivas barely survived the round and was on a short leash when the third stanza began. After 53 seconds of round three, referee Raul Caiz Jr had seen enough and waived it off. Vivas hadn’t previously been stopped.

Cleveland welterweight Tiger Johnson, a Tokyo Olympian, scored a fifth-round stoppage over San Antonio’s Kendo Castaneda. Johnson assumed control in the fourth round and sent Castaneda to his knees twice with body punches in the next frame. The second knockdown terminated the match. The official time was 2:00 of round five.

Johnson advanced to 15-0 (7 KOs). Castenada declined to 21-9.

Las Vegas junior welterweight Emiliano Vargas (13-0, 11 KOs) blasted out Stockton, California’s Giovanni Gonzalez in the second round. Vargas brought the bout to a sudden conclusion with a sweeping left hook that knocked Gonzalez out cold. The end came at the 2:00 minute mark of round two.

Gonzalez brought a 20-7-2 record which was misleading as 18 of his fights were in Tijuana where fights are frequently prearranged. However, he wasn’t afraid to trade with Vargas and paid the price.

Emiliano Vargas, with his matinee idol good looks and his boxing pedigree – he is the son of former U.S. Olympian and two-weight world title-holder “Ferocious” Fernando Vargas – is highly marketable and has the potential to be a cross-over star.

Eighteen-year-old Newark bantamweight Emmanuel “Manny” Chance, one of Top Rank’s newest signees, won his pro debut with a four-round decision over So Cal’s Miguel Guzman. Chance won all four rounds on all three cards, but this was no runaway. He left a lot of room for improvement.

There was a long intermission before the co-main and again before the main event, but the tedium was assuaged by a moving video tribute to George Foreman.

Photos credit: Al Applerose

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William Zepeda Edges Past Tevin Farmer in Cancun; Improves to 34-0

Published

4 days ago

March 29, 2025

David A. Avila

William Zepeda Edges Past Tevin Farmer in Cancun; Improves to 34-0

No surprise, once again William Zepeda eked out a win over the clever and resilient Tevin Farmer to remain undefeated and retain a regional lightweight title on Saturday.

There were no knockdowns in this rematch.

The Mexican punching machine Zepeda (33-0, 17 KOs) once more sought to overwhelm Farmer (33-8-1, 9 KOs) with a deluge of blows. This rematch by Golden Boy Promotions took place in the famous beach resort area of Cancun, Mexico.

It was a mere four months ago that both first clashed in Saudi Arabia with their vastly difference styles. This time the tropical setting served as the background which suited Zepeda and his lawnmower assaults. The Mexican fans were pleased.

Nothing changed in their second meeting.

Zepeda revved up the body assault and Farmer moved around casually to his right while fending off the Mexican fighter’s attacks. By the fourth round Zepeda was able to cut off Farmer’s escape routes and targeted the body with punishing shots.

The blows came in bunches.

In the fifth round Zepeda blasted away at Farmer who looked frantic for an escape. The body assault continued with the Mexican fighter pouring it on and Farmer seeming to look ready to quit. When the round ended, he waved off his corner’s appeals to stop.

Zepeda continued to dominate the next few rounds and then Farmer began rallying. At first, he cleverly smothered Zepeda’s body attacks and then began moving and hitting sporadically. It forced the Mexican fighter to pause and figure out the strategy.

Farmer, a Philadelphia fighter, showed resiliency especially when it was revealed he had suffered a hand injury.

During the last three rounds Farmer dug down deep and found ways to score and not get hit. It was Boxing 101 and the Philly fighter made it work.

But too many rounds had been put in the bank by Zepeda. Despite the late rally by Farmer one judge saw it 114-114, but two others scored it 116-112 and 115-113 for Zepeda who retains his interim lightweight title and place at the top of the WBC rankings.

“I knew he was a difficult fighter. This time he was even more difficult,” said Zepeda.

Farmer was downtrodden about another loss but realistic about the outcome and starting slow.

“But I dominated the last rounds,” said Farmer.

Zepeda shrugged at the similar outcome as their first encounter.

“I’m glad we both put on a great show,” said Zepeda.

Female Flyweight Battle

Costa Rica’s Yokasta Valle edged past Texas fighter Marlen Esparza to win their showdown at flyweight by split decision after 10 rounds.

Valle moved up two weight divisions to meet Esparza who was slightly above the weight limit. Both showed off their contrasting styles and world class talent.

Esparza, a former unified flyweight world titlist, stayed in the pocket and was largely successful with well-placed jabs and left hooks. She repeatedly caught Valle in-between her flurries.

The current minimumweight world titlist changed tactics and found more success in the second half of the fight. She forced Esparza to make the first moves and that forced changes that benefited her style.

Neither fighter could take over the fight.

After 10 rounds one judge saw Esparza the winner 96-94, but two others saw Valle the winner 97-93 twice.

Will Valle move up and challenge the current undisputed flyweight world champion Gabriela Fundora? That’s the question.

Valle currently holds the WBC minimumweight world title.

Puerto Rico vs Mexico

Oscar Collazo (12-0, 9 KOs), the WBO, WBA minimumweight titlist, knocked out Mexico’s Edwin Cano (13-3-1, 4 KOs) with a flurry of body shots at 1:12 of the fifth round.

Collazo dominated with a relentless body attack the Mexican fighter could not defend. It was the Puerto Rican fighter’s fifth consecutive title defense.

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Avila Perspective, Chap. 319: Rematches in Las Vegas, Cancun and More

Published

5 days ago

March 28, 2025

David A. Avila

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Rematches are the bedrock for prizefighting.

Return battles between rival boxers always means their first encounter was riveting and successful at the box office.

Six months after their first brutal battle Mikaela Mayer (20-2, 5 KOs) and Sandy Ryan (7-2-1, 3 KOs) will slug it out again for the WBO welterweight world title this time on Saturday, March 29, at the Fontainebleau in Las Vegas.

ESPN will show the Top Rank card live.

“It’s important for women’s boxing to have these rivalries and this is definitely up there as one of the top ones,” Mayer told the BBC.

If you follow Mayer’s career you know that somehow drama follows. Whether its back-and-forth beefs with fellow American fighters or controversial judging due to nationalism in countries abroad. The Southern California native who now trains in Las Vegas knows how to create the drama.

For female fighters self-promotion is a necessity.

Most boxing promoters refuse to step out of the usual process set for male boxers, not for female boxers. Things remain the same and have been for the last 70 years. Social media has brought changes but that has made promoters do even less.

No longer are there press conferences, instead announcements are made on social media to be drowned among the billions of other posts. It is not killing but diluting interest in the sport.

Women innately present a different advantage that few if any promoters are recognizing. So far in the past 25 years I have only seen two or three promoters actually ignite interest in female fighters. They saw the advantages and properly boosted interest in the women.

The fight breakdown

Mayer has won world titles in the super featherweight and now the welterweight division. Those are two vastly different weight classes and prove her fighting abilities are based on skill not power or size.

Coaching Mayer since amateurs remains Al Mitchell and now Kofi Jantuah who replaced Kay Koroma the current trainer for Sandy Ryan.

That was the reason drama ignited during their first battle. Then came someone tossing paint at Ryan the day of their first fight.

More drama.

During their first fight both battled to control the initiative with Mayer out-punching the British fighter by a slender margin. It was a back-and-forth struggle with each absorbing blows and retaliating immediately.

New York City got its money’s worth.

Ryan had risen to the elite level rapidly since losing to Erica Farias three years ago. Though she was physically bigger and younger, she was out-maneuvered and defeated by the wily veteran from Argentina. In the rematch, however, Ryan made adjustments and won convincingly.

Can she make adjustments from her defeat to Mayer?

“I wanted the rematch straight away,” said Ryan on social media. “I’ve come to America again.”

Both fighters have size and reach. In their first clash it was evident that conditioning was not a concern as blows were fired nonstop in bunches. Mayer had the number of punches landed advantage and it unfolded with the judges giving her a majority decision win.

That was six months ago. Can she repeat the outcome?

Mayer has always had boiler-oven intensity. It’s not fake. Since her amateur days the slender Southern California blonde changes disposition all the way to red when lacing up the gloves. It’s something that can’t be taught.

Can she draw enough of that fire out again?

“I didn’t have to give her this rematch. I could have just sat it out, waited for Lauren Price to unify and fought for undisputed or faced someone else,” said Mayer to BBC. “That’s not the fighter I am though.”

Co-Main in Las Vegas

The co-main event pits Brian Norman Jr. (26-0, 20 KOs) facing Puerto Rico’s Derrieck Cuevas (27-1-1, 19 KOs) in a contest for the WBO welterweight title.

Norman, 24, was last seen a year ago dissecting a very good welterweight in Giovani Santillan for a knockout win in San Diego. He showed speed, skill and power in defeating Santillan in his hometown.

Cuevas has beaten some solid veteran talent but this will be his big test against Norman and his first attempt at winning a world title.

Also on the Top Rank card will be Bruce “Shu Shu” Carrington and Emiliano Vargas, the son of Fernando Vargas, in separate bouts.

Golden Boy in Cancun

A rematch between undefeated William “Camaron” Zepeda (32-0, 27 KOs) and ex-champ Tevin Farmer (33-7-1, 8 KOs) headlines the lightweight match on Saturday March 29, at Cancun, Mexico.

In their first encounter Zepeda was knocked down in the fourth round but rallied to win a split-decision over Farmer. It showed the flaws in Zepeda’s tornado style.

DAZN will stream the Golden Boy Promotions card that also includes a clash between Yokasta Valle the WBC minimumweight world titlist who is moving up to flyweight to face former flyweight champion Marlen Esparza.

Both Valle and Esparza have fast hands.

Valle is excellent darting in and out while Esparza has learned how to fight inside. It’s a toss-up fight.

Fights to Watch

Fri. DAZN 12 p.m. Cameron Vuong (7-0) vs Jordan Flynn (11-0-1); Pat Brown (0-0) vs Federico Grandone (7-4-2).

Sat. DAZN 5 p.m. William Zepeda (32-0) vs Tevin Farmer (33-7-1); Yokasta Valle (32-3) vs Marlen Esparza (15-2).

Sat. ESPN 7 p.m. Mikaela Mayer (20-2) vs Sandy Ryan (7-2-1); Brian Norman Jr. (26-0) vs Derrieck Cuevas (27-1-1).

Photo credit: Mikey Williams / Top Rank

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