Damon Runyon
New York American/February 12, 1917
The Mornin’s Mornin
They are laying 2 to 1, and even 3 to 1 in certain speculative quarters that Fred Fulton wins by a knockout over Charley Weinert at Madison Square Garden tonight.
One bet at 1 to 2 was made Saturday that the fight does not go four rounds. Few of the hadjis of the boxing game seem to expect it to go more than seven rounds at the very outside.
This is a mighty surprising sentiment in some respects. It must be based entirely on Fulton’s showing against Tom Cowler, with perhaps some consideration given to the exhibition put up by Weinert against Billy Miske.
The pride of the Newark cabarets was outpointed by the St. Paul slasher a few weeks ago, and yet it cannot be denied that Charley was coming on strongly at the finish. Weinert had done little fighting prior to the bout with Miske, and his work showed the effects of idleness. He has done no fighting since that time, but it is claimed he has trained assiduously for tonight.
If that is so, and if Weinert is to make a desperate effort this evening, and is not merely a sacrificial offering toward a Willard-Fulton match, the odds mentioned are wholly false. Fulton has shown no 2 to 1 knockout form against a man as fast and clever as Weinert.
In beating Cowler he only did what little Jack Dillon accomplished, to say nothing of Frank Moran, the man who must be beaten by Fulton before anyone accepts the plasterer as a serious contender for Willard’s title.
Dillon bested Moran in a ten-round bout, and Dillon, in turn, has been licked by Miske, who beat Weinert, yet it is not improbable that in longer fights Moran would have knocked out Dillon, and Weinert would have dropped Miske.
Records About the Same
When you compare the records of the two men, Weinert has done just about as much as Fulton the past year, which is little enough.
Charles has had about seven fights. He knocked out Jim Savage, Frank Hagney, the agile, amphibious, asinine, acrobatic, assimilating Andre Anderson, Jack Keating and one Kendall, and fought no-decision bouts with Porky Flynn and Billy Miske.
Fulton had six fights in 1916 of which we have any record. He knocked out the old warhorse, Jim Flynn: the ambulating, aromatic, astute Andre Anderson, and Tom Cowler; stopped Al Reich and fought two battles with the trial-champion, Porky Flynn, one a twenty-rounder at New Orleans, which he won, and the other a no-decision matter.
Weinert’s only knockout was at the hands of Jack Dillon. Fulton was dropped for the long count by Al Palzer. That was in 1914, the same year Weinert was stopped, and both Fulton and Weinert were then practically novices.
Weinert is younger than Fulton, and while he is lighter and smaller in every way, he is none the less probably more experienced for the reason that he has had tougher and more experienced opponents. There was a time when Weinert was regarded as one of the coming great heavyweights of the ring, but he never seemed to take the game very seriously.
He is worse than a fool if he does not make a terrific effort tonight, for the winning of even a popular decision over Fulton puts him right back among the top-liners and in a fair way to make a great deal of money.
His Mental Attitude
A report from Weinert’s camp is to the effect that he has adopted much the same mental attitude toward this fight as the Brooklyn Dodgers had toward the world series—that he is getting $4,000 for his end, no matter what happens, so why should be worry?
We trust this report is untrue. Much more than Fulton’s future or Weinert’s future may depend upon this affair tonight. It may have a strong bearing upon the future of the fighting game in this state; wherefore we hope the squabble will be eminently satisfactory to all concerned.
There is no doubt the making of a Fulton-Willard match has been commenced, Willard’s denials to the contrary notwithstanding. It is planned for March, the promoters probably figuring that the authorities cannot deal the game its death blow before the end of that month anyway, if at all, so it will be the last big financial mop-up in case boxing is shut down.
Fulton being the ideal man to meet Willard, from the promoters’ stand point, it is essential to their plans that Fulton wins most decisively tonight. Weinert may spill the beans for them, but the betting people evidently do not think he will.
We say this: In a long bout, Fulton probably has every license in the world to beat Weinert, size and strength and Weinert’s apparent lack of a finishing punch considered, but in ten rounds a husky young lad who has gone that distance with such as Miske, should still be up and doing at the close against even a potential champion.
Still, it has been our experience that the betting men, especially when they are laying their little 2 to 1 propositions, seem to know more about those matters than we do, so we are going to string with the two-to-one-ers.
L.P. Flynn’s Champ
Leo P. Flynn, the carpet-bagger of fistiana, has a fighter who challenges Jim Coffey to a battle for the championship of Ireland, the same to be contested exclusively in the United States of America.
Leo’s fighter is Bill Brennan, late Shanks, born in the County Mayo. On his record, William is probably the knockout king of the ring, but no acid tests on the record will be permitted. He had some twenty-four fights in 1916, and won seventeen by knockouts, his victims including Eli Stanton, Tim O’Neill, Al Benedict, Boer Rodel, Frank McMahon. Joe Lennox, Battling Ryan, Spike McFadden, Charles Emerson, Bob Williams, One-Round Davis, Al Williams, Tony Ross, Soldier Kearns and Tim Logan.
“It’s almost as hard to dig ’em up as it is to find opponents for a champion,” sighed Leo P. Flynn yesterday, while assuring us on his cross-his-heart that many of the persons named above live and frequently breathe.
“Do you know where I can find John L. Sullivan or Charley Mitchell?” he asked. “I must have a match for Bill for next month.”
“No,” we said, “but Bob Fitzsimmons is around somewhere.”
“Who?” said Leo, in alarm. “Fitz? Oh, no! No. no! Not Fitz! He might have one kick left. When Bill is champion of the world we may give Fitz a chance, but not now.”
“Well, when are you going to take the blanket off this marvel and let us see him against a good man?” we demanded.
“When?” repeated Leo. “Why, tomorrow night at Madison Square Garden. He boxes the star bout. Fulton and Weinert are on in the semi-windup. I believe. Bill will be displayed against a real top-notcher, and you can judge him for yourself.”
“Who is his opponent?” said Leo. “Well, he’s a good one. He’s a real tough fellow, and make no mistake. His name is—let me think now. His name is—er—er—oh, yes—Tex McCarty.”
(Source: New York American microfilm archive)
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