Fight:118110
Ace Hudkins 162 lbs beat Charley Belanger 172 lbs by PTS in round 10 of 10
- Date: 1929-06-28
- Location: Dreamland Auditorium, San Francisco, California, USA
- Referee: Bobby Johnson
Hudkins "set a pace so slow that a one-legged entrant in a cross country race could have beaten him.... For most of the ten rounds the fighters played tag. At no time during the contest was a solid blow struck and the 10,000 fans who had paid approximately $27,000 to see the fight hissed and booed, without result." (UP) The disgusted fans hurled their programs into the ring. State Commissioner William Hanlon announced an immediate investigation and ruled that the purses would be held up, to the delight of the fans. Ultimately the state boxing commission levied its "most drastic" punishment in the history of legalized boxing in California: both purses were forfeited, although Hudkins was allowed $2,000 of his $15,000 guarantee for training expenses, while Belanger was allowed $1,000 of his $2,700. Referee Johnson was suspended indefinitely.
According to a September 5, 1929 Associated Press news item with a San Francisco dateline in the September 6, 1929 edition of the Los Angeles Times on Newspapers.com, Superior Court Judge Walter Herzinger ruled that the California State Athletic Commission didn't have any right to fine Ace Hudkins $13,000. for his performance while winning a decision over Charley Belanger in a ten-round bout which took place in San Francisco, California on June 28, 1928. The bout was generally regarded a very poor one and a "waltz," resulting in the commission to hold up the purses of the two fighters pending an investigation and ultimately levying such a hefty fine on Hudkins. In his ruling, Herzinger pointed out that the referee gave his stamp of approval for bout when he allowed it to go the distance and then gave the decision to Hudkins afterwards. Hudkins' lawyer had challenged the commission's ruling to levy the fine on the grounds that if the referee had thought anything was improper in the bout, he could have stopped it. Since the referee had not done so, Hudkins' lawyer maintained that the legitimacy of the bout could not be questioned.