This a thread showing appreciation to one of the all-time greats, The Cincinnati Cobra - Ezzard Charles. In recent years Charles has become vastly underrated and forgotten by many new fans. But he was truly awesome. A brilliant, slick and technical boxer, with deceptive power, who could put together stinging combinations and who is often miscredited with having a glass chin. So read on about one of the greatest to ever lace up the gloves!
Ezzard Charles started his career, at middleweight initially, in early 1940. He ran up a string of 14 consecutive victories before dropping a decision to former middleweight champ, Ken Overlin. Charles rebounded with 4 victories over game opponents before facing Overlin again, this time fighting to a draw. Following another victory, Charles dropped another decision to Kid Tunero before rebounding with two of the biggest victories of his career.
He filled in for his recent nemesis, Ken Overlin against all-time great Charley Burley and pulled off a masterful 10 RD UD, flooring Burley in the final round. This was followed by another decision victory over Burley. After 4 more victories Charles moved up to light heavyweight and took on all-time great Joey Maxim. After taking the victory over Maxim, and the subsequent rematch he once again dropped a decision to the great Jimmy Bivins.
After the Bivins fight in 1943 he entered the military. He was discharged in early '46 and immediately resumed his career with a TKO loss to the great, and underrated, Lloyd Marshall. Rebounding from his first KO loss, Charles scored 5 consecutive victories, 4 by KO, before running into all-time great Archie Moore. Ezzard defeated Moore by UD then faced Lloyd Marshall again two months later, this time scoring a 6th round KO victory.
Despite all of his success at light heavyweight Charles was never able to secure a title shot. He was widely ducked because of his superb skills, hence the reason he started his first steps in the heavyweight division.
From late 1946 until early 1948, Ezzard Charles would win 13 times, scoring decisive victories over Jimmy Bivins (2), the average but always power punching Fitzie Fitzpatrick (2), Archie Moore (2) and Lloyd Marshall. His only loss came via highly disputed points defeat to Elmer Ray. Most pundits agreed that Charles handily won this bout with his excellent boxing skills and sharper punches. During this time he also made his first forays into heavyweight territory, having successes against Joe Matisi, Al Smith, Clarence Jones and Teddy Randolph as well as the high disputed loss to Elmer Ray.
However the next bout was the one that forever changed Ezzard Charles. In a bout with young Sam Baroudi tragedy struck. By all accounts Baroudi was holding his own in the first 5 rounds but Charles started thoroughly to punish him with his crisp punches. Charles ended the fight in the 10th with a KO. Baroudi later dies from the punishment sustained in this bout.
Because of the Baroudi fight, Ezzard contemplates hanging up the gloves and retiring. However encouragement would come from a most unlikley place, the Baroudi family. They urge Charles to keep fighting, and he does, donating his next two purses to them. Directly after the Baroudi fight he avenges the ealier disputed loss to Elmer Ray by decisive 9th rd KO.
Now firmly entrenched as a heavyweight Charles entered the most important stretch of his career. A string of impressive victories including decision wins against Joey Maxim and Jimmy Bivins as well as an impressive TKO over top heavyweight contender of the day, Joe Baksi led to a match against Jersey Joe Walcott for the vacated title left by the retirement of the legendary Brown Bomber, Joe Louis.
Ezzard put on a masterful performance, clearly defeating Walcott in the eyes of everyone to capture his first major title, the heavyweight championship of the world.
After winning the title Ezzard Charles became one of, if not the, fightingest champion in the history of the heavyweight championship. In the span of 25 months he defended his crown 8 times. Most notably against top contender Pat Valentno, the ever tough and iron chinned Freddie Beshore and the returning Brown Bomber, Joe Louis.
Because of the well documents financial difficulties, Joe Louis had to return to active competition and was granted a title shot in his return bout. Ezzard Charles was apprehensive against fighting Louis because that was his idol. Charles even made the analogy that it would be like facing your father in a prizefight. Still the bout was never in doubt. Ezzard thoroughly thrashed the aging ex-champion during the fight in route to a decisive victory.
After the Joe Louis fight he was recognized as the undisputed world's heavyweight champion. Despite his victory the public never fully embraced him because he followed in the footsteps of Joe Louis and was forever in his shadow.
Following the Louis bout Ezzard Charles embarked on a string of tough defenses. First against the tough Nick Barone who had never been off of his feet until the Charles knockout. Next against the great heavyweight contender, and always underacheiving Lee Oma. Then came two decisive defenses against Jersey Joe Walcott and old foe Joey Maxim.
In his next fight, a third bout against Jersey Joe Walcott, he would lose his crown by KO in the 7th in a great fight which was voted fight of the year. 3 months later he was back in the ring against top contender Rex Layne whom he would stop in 11 of a onesided fight. After a couple of more victories he earned a rematch with Jersy Joe (the 4th and last of their series) for the title. In a very close fight, which some thought Charles won, he would lose by decision.
Still Ezzard kept going determined to get another shot at the title. Althought alot of pundits and experts noted a decline in his skills after the 4th Walcott bout he kept going. He was such a gifted fighter that even with deteriorating skills he was able to stay in top contention for the crown.
Almost 2 years after his final loss to Walcott and after a string of bouts against top contenders, he worked himself back into a title shot against Rocky Marciano who had dethroned Jersey Joe Walcott. In a tough, close bout Rocky Marciano prevailed with a decision victory. Three months later they met in a return bout. It was an action packed bout ultimately winning fight of the year honors. Ezzard was ahead and had severely cut Rocky's nose, which put the bout in danger of being stopped, when he was KO'd in the 8th.
Marciano would later say that Ezzard Charles was his toughest opponent and two of his hardest fights. However after the second Marciano fight his skills were in sharp decline, losing 13 of 23 bouts before retiring. It should be noted that 19 of his 25 losses came after he was 30 years old and his skills had started to erode.
Like alot of fighters he faced financial hardships after hanging up the gloves thus leading to his professional wrestling career in later years. He also worked with the Juvenile Court systerm and Chicago Youth Commision after his retirement. Ultimately Lou Gehrig's disease would claim him at the age of 53.
It should also be said that Ezzard Charles was a very compassionate and intelligent man who didn't enjoy the fight game and just viewed it as an occupation. Alot of people around the sport noted that Charles was too nice, gentle and intelligent to be a fighting man and that he lacked a great killer instinct that defined most great fighters. But inspite of it all he climbed the mountain of this countries most brutal sport to become, in some people's eyes the greatest light heavyweight in history as well as the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world.
-Hawkins
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The final three rounds of the Joe Louis fight -
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