Joe Louis vs. Buddy Baer (1st meeting)

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Challenger rankings
Org. Pos. As of Published
1+ Mth. Old
NBA NR 24.12.1940 24.12.1940
Ring NR 11.02.1941 by 01.03.1941
2+ Mth. Old
NBA NR 24.12.1940 24.12.1940
Ring N/A N/A N/A
3+ Mth. Old
NBA NR 24.12.1940 24.12.1940
Ring N/A N/A N/A
Louis goes through the ropes in round one.
Baer goes down in the sixth round.

Joe Louis 202 lbs beat Buddy Baer 237 lbs by DQ in round 7 of 15

Notes

Timeline

  • On January 31, Baer signed to face Tony Galento on March 26 at Madison Square Garden. The fight was booked by Mike Jacobs.[1] [2][3]
  • Galento attended Louis' title defense against Gus Dorazio on February 17. "It wouldn't have dropped me", Galento said about the punch that knocked Dorazio out in the second round.[4][5] He also said that after beating Baer, he would only need one more win to qualify for the championship match.[6]
  • On March 10, Jacobs moved the Baer-Galento fight to April 8 and Washington, D.C.[7][8]
  • On March 21, Mike Jacobs told the press that he was planning to match the winner of Baer-Galento with Louis in Washington, D.C in August.[9][10]
  • On April 8, Baer stopped Galento in the seventh round.
  • Contract for the Louis-Baer fight signed by both sides on April 17.[11]

Ranking Movements

  • Baer unranked by the National Boxing Association (NBA) prior to the signing.
  • Galento omitted from the NBA Q4 rankings released December 24, 1940, elevated to "honorable mentions" in the 1941 Q1 rankings published March 24, 1941, effectively becoming the fourth highest-rated contender. At that point, Galento hadn't fought since retiring in his corner after seven rounds of fighting against Buddy's brother Max on July 2, 1940.
  • Neither Baer nor Galento were rated top 10 by The Ring in April 1941 and May 1941 issues. Baer was then promoted to fifth in the June issue.
    • April 1941 issue released February 24-March 1, rankings as of February 11
    • May 1941 issue released by March 31, rankings as of March 11
    • June 1941 issue released after April 4, rankings as of April 11
  • After the fight, both NBA (Q2 rankings; as of June 27) and Ring Magazine (August issue; rankings as of June 12) promoted Baer to third.

The Fight

  • This was the first World Heavyweight Championship bout ever held in Washington, DC.
  • Louis was a 10-1 betting favorite.
  • A crowd of 23,912 produced a gross gate of $105,183.
  • Louis' purse was $34,616, and Baer's was $12,981.
  • It rained the day of the fight, and many thought the bout would be postponed by promoter Mike Jacobs. Ordinarily, Jacobs would have announced a postponement early in the morning. But the Washington Senators baseball team was coming back to town, and Griffith Stadium wouldn't be available for the next few days. Luckily for Jacobs, the weather cleared up early that evening. According to Louis biographer Chris Mead, referee Arthur Donovan "assumed it was off, so he went to a bar and got drunk." When he learned that the bout would go on, Donovan "tried desperately to sober up before the fight."
  • A left hook from Baer knocked Louis through the ropes and onto the ring apron in the first round. Louis got up and climbed back into the ring at the count of four. It was the first time since Jack Dempsey vs. Luis Angel Firpo in 1923 that a World Heavyweight Champion was knocked through the ropes in the first round of a title fight.
  • Louis dropped Baer with a right in the sixth round. The challenger rose at the count of seven, only to be knocked down again. With the crowd roaring, Baer staggered to his feet at the count of nine, and the bell rang to end the round. Louis didn't hear the bell, and he rushed across the ring and floored Baer with a right. Baer had to be carried to his corner by his handlers. When the bell rang to start the seventh round, Baer was still out. Baer's manager, Ancil Hoffman, and his trainer, Ray Arcel, argued that Louis should be disqualified for hitting Baer after the bell. When they refused to leave the ring, Donovan disqualified Baer.
  • Baer barely beat Donovan's count of ten when he got up from the second knockdown in the sixth round. Timekeeper Charley Reynolds later stated that he counted Baer out, but the challenger was permitted to continue fighting by Donovan, who tacitly overruled the timekeeper.

Post-Fight Quotes

  • Ancil Hoffman: "The last blow of the fight was struck at least three seconds after the bell sounded ending the sixth round."
  • Arthur Donovan: "That talk about Louis hitting Baer after the bell is baloney. The blow started before the bell sounded."
  • Buddy Baer: "I heard the bell and then was hit as I was dropping my hands."
  • Arthur Donovan: "I disqualified Baer because his seconds refused to leave the ring. As long as I'm refereeing, I insist that my orders be followed."
  • Ancil Hoffman: "We didn't leave the ring when Donovan told us to because Buddy was entitled to his full minute of rest before starting the seventh. Buddy should have won on a foul right then."

Sources


Preceded by:
Louis vs. Musto 		NBA Heavyweight Title Fight
# 30 		Succeeded by:
Louis vs. Conn I
Preceded by:
Louis vs. Musto 		NYSAC Heavyweight Title Fight
# 28 		Succeeded by:
Louis vs. Conn I


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