Kid Lavigne vs. Young Griffo
George (Kid) Lavigne 133 lbs drew with Young Griffo 133 lbs by PTS in round 20 of 20
- Date: 1895-10-12
- Location: Empire A.C., Maspeth, Queens, New York, USA
- Referee: Tim Hurst
To close out a tremendously active and successful 1895, Griffo attempted to relieve reigning champion George "Kid" Lavigne of his crown. This was to be Griffo's second crack the ever elusive lightweight crown. His first attempt ended controversially when Maxie Moore, friend of McAuliffe and referee, declared that McAuliffe had retained his title. In this attempt, however, the Austrailian's heavy drinking and lack of training was finally proved on Griffo's own body. Sam Austin, editor of the Police Gazzette at the time, described Griffo's stomach as a "paunch". Luckily for Griffo, this "paunch" didn't effect his terrific skills for the first eleven rounds as he frustrated Lavigne with his brilliant defensive prowess. In the 12th though, Lavigne finally connected with a right which rocked Griffo against the ropes. Griffo began to tire in the 12th as well and Lavigne, as solid as they come, was there to follow up with another assault. Unfortunately for the champion, Griffo was such a defensive wizard that he was still able to avoid many of Lavigne's shots. In thwe 19th, Griffo's fatigue had really gotten the better of him and he was forced the weather an assault against the ropes. Going into the 20th and final frame, it didn't seem as if Griffo had much left at all. However, Griffo recovered signifigantly between rounds 19 and 20 and exhanged with Lavigne to climax a tremendous bout. The bout was ruled a draw, though both men had performed magnificently against arguably the toughest foes the had ever faced. Lavigne complemented his Austrailian challenger afterwards by stating that he had "never seen so many fists. He also said that Griffo was the finest defensive fighter he ever faced.
Source: "Young Griffo: "The Will-O'-The-Wisp of the Ring" By Nat Fleischer