Corbett vs Kid Mccoy was it a fake? and why?
Posted: 14 Jan 2022, 16:41
As a historian i have great trouble with this fight.
Aug 30th 1900
James Corbett vs Kid Mccoy.
Having read most of Mccoy's fighting accounts prior to this bout. He had to be an overwhelming favorite in my mind.
Few boxers ever hit the scene with as most success as Mccoy.
In 1899 he went through a prime Tom Sharkey giving him one of his worse beating up until that point in time.
He defeated all the greats of the time Joe Goddard Joe Choynski peter Maher and a top lightheavyweight in Steve O donnell.
Before he took his original absence from the ring in 1904 he was dynamite in the ring.
Corbett would be a huge name on his resume i'm not sure why he would not want a victory against him.
Box rec indicates he almost certainly faked his knockout.
Did Mccoy ever address this later in life?
Here's a detailed account from the next day: Chicago Tribune Aug 31st 1900 I love how they write back in the day.
The blow that ended the battle was a hard left to the body which doubled up Mccoy like a boy with the colic. He held his stomach with his hands and made wry faces until he was sure the referee had counted him out. He rose partially once, as if in doubt weather the referee really had counted enough, and then dropped back down again til there could be no mistake.
It was hard to make one's self believe the men were not acting. So playful and kittenish were they in the first two rounds that Terry Mcgovern remarked "i could not fight that way. That's in a parlor"
Even the fast work of the last two rounds and the kockout were unable wholly to dispel the impression of artificially and feigning. At the end one had the same feeling as a person coming away from a clever but decadent play. He wants to take several long good breaths of fresh air and drink of cool, clear water to take the taste out of your mouth.
It appears no doubt what happened here.
Mccoy in reading his newspaper accounts never fought like this. He was superior on defense and moved very fast physically boxed at a breakneck pace. Corbett just playful dispels the notion that he is superior.
I just personally see McCoy kicking his ass in a real fight. Corbett i don't feel would knock him out and would never be able to keep up with the youth and pace Mccoy would set and more so he would have a tough time hitting him. I think Mccoy has the better chin he took bombs in the sharkey fight and didn't stop. He was in the dead center of his prime.
I'm not looking at them from a life review of greatness. I'm saying Mccoy was unstoppable at this point in time.
Corbett was off his fight with Jeffries and at least shook off some rust.
The fight was scheduled for 25 rounds.
It's horrible history robbed us out of settling whom was better. It basically took the steam out of Mccoy's career i can't help but wonder if his questionable choices in the Corbett fight haunted his future as he basically quit boxing within a few years. I do know he suffered a hand injury that slowed him down.
I'm really curious if Mccoy had any thought's about it after his career.
Mccoy is like several boxers of the early age you just can't gather much looking at Box rec.
Reading about Mccoy the newspapers loved him he was a machine in the ring, slashing about weaving in & out. Id start with reading the Sharkey fight. You'll really appreciate how great he was. Regardless of your option's of him almost no one hit the boxing scene with more impact than him prior to 1900. He was unbeatable fighting as a super middleweight range with tremendous power before he had hand issues. I'm not sure what was going to stop him he was like a middleweight Jack Dempsey. He been through the ring wars already with the great one Tommy Ryan. I'm not sure whom was going to stop him but i think he would have beat Corbett. Then the real match would of been Fitzsimmon's vs Mccoy. The Match was attempted by newspaper accounts. That would have been something special.
I guess Mccoy really paid for his mistake with Karma it certainly wasn't good to him. None of it makes any sense to me. He was fighting often at the time he had money why would he get so desperate? To sabotage his career. He was the king at the time it makes no sense.
Aug 30th 1900
James Corbett vs Kid Mccoy.
Having read most of Mccoy's fighting accounts prior to this bout. He had to be an overwhelming favorite in my mind.
Few boxers ever hit the scene with as most success as Mccoy.
In 1899 he went through a prime Tom Sharkey giving him one of his worse beating up until that point in time.
He defeated all the greats of the time Joe Goddard Joe Choynski peter Maher and a top lightheavyweight in Steve O donnell.
Before he took his original absence from the ring in 1904 he was dynamite in the ring.
Corbett would be a huge name on his resume i'm not sure why he would not want a victory against him.
Box rec indicates he almost certainly faked his knockout.
Did Mccoy ever address this later in life?
Here's a detailed account from the next day: Chicago Tribune Aug 31st 1900 I love how they write back in the day.
The blow that ended the battle was a hard left to the body which doubled up Mccoy like a boy with the colic. He held his stomach with his hands and made wry faces until he was sure the referee had counted him out. He rose partially once, as if in doubt weather the referee really had counted enough, and then dropped back down again til there could be no mistake.
It was hard to make one's self believe the men were not acting. So playful and kittenish were they in the first two rounds that Terry Mcgovern remarked "i could not fight that way. That's in a parlor"
Even the fast work of the last two rounds and the kockout were unable wholly to dispel the impression of artificially and feigning. At the end one had the same feeling as a person coming away from a clever but decadent play. He wants to take several long good breaths of fresh air and drink of cool, clear water to take the taste out of your mouth.
It appears no doubt what happened here.
Mccoy in reading his newspaper accounts never fought like this. He was superior on defense and moved very fast physically boxed at a breakneck pace. Corbett just playful dispels the notion that he is superior.
I just personally see McCoy kicking his ass in a real fight. Corbett i don't feel would knock him out and would never be able to keep up with the youth and pace Mccoy would set and more so he would have a tough time hitting him. I think Mccoy has the better chin he took bombs in the sharkey fight and didn't stop. He was in the dead center of his prime.
I'm not looking at them from a life review of greatness. I'm saying Mccoy was unstoppable at this point in time.
Corbett was off his fight with Jeffries and at least shook off some rust.
The fight was scheduled for 25 rounds.
It's horrible history robbed us out of settling whom was better. It basically took the steam out of Mccoy's career i can't help but wonder if his questionable choices in the Corbett fight haunted his future as he basically quit boxing within a few years. I do know he suffered a hand injury that slowed him down.
I'm really curious if Mccoy had any thought's about it after his career.
Mccoy is like several boxers of the early age you just can't gather much looking at Box rec.
Reading about Mccoy the newspapers loved him he was a machine in the ring, slashing about weaving in & out. Id start with reading the Sharkey fight. You'll really appreciate how great he was. Regardless of your option's of him almost no one hit the boxing scene with more impact than him prior to 1900. He was unbeatable fighting as a super middleweight range with tremendous power before he had hand issues. I'm not sure what was going to stop him he was like a middleweight Jack Dempsey. He been through the ring wars already with the great one Tommy Ryan. I'm not sure whom was going to stop him but i think he would have beat Corbett. Then the real match would of been Fitzsimmon's vs Mccoy. The Match was attempted by newspaper accounts. That would have been something special.
I guess Mccoy really paid for his mistake with Karma it certainly wasn't good to him. None of it makes any sense to me. He was fighting often at the time he had money why would he get so desperate? To sabotage his career. He was the king at the time it makes no sense.