The heavy burden of history

A century ago a British heavyweight ruled the world. We are still waiting for his successor. Harry Mullan reports

Despite the top-table presence of the World Boxing Council heavyweight champion, Lennox Lewis, at tonight's Lonsdale Sporting Club dinner in London to mark the centenary of Bob Fitzsimmons's victory over James J Corbett for the world heavyweight title, the event is a celebration of a century of failure.

Fitzsimmons, a balding, spindly freak from Helston in Cornwall, was the last English-born holder of the title: whatever the tabloid cheer-leaders claimed, the rush of Union Jack-wrapped claimants over the last few years have held only splinters of the fragmented championship. Lennox Lewis (twice) and Frank Bruno wore the WBC belt, Herbie Hide and Henry Akinwande represented the World Boxing Organisation, while Johnny Nelson struggled to keep a straight face as he was hailed as world heavyweight champion by the World Boxing Federation.

But it is appropriate that Lewis should be involved in tonight's festivities because the parallel with him and Fitzsimmons is not just that they each styled themselves, with varying degrees of authenticity, as world champion. Lewis has always struggled for acceptance as "British" because he won his many amateur honours in a Canadian vest, and because his years of residence there have left him with an accent a long way removed from his West Ham origins. Much the same doubts about national identity plagued Fitzsimmons, who emigrated to New Zealand as a child, learned his boxing in Australia, and was an American citizen by the time he whacked Corbett in the stomach to such historic effect on that sunny St Patrick's Day in Carson City, Nevada, 100 years ago tomorrow.

The English were quick to claim him, but Fitzsimmons himself showed no particular pride in his roots and continued to live in America until his death in 1917. He was the first to win world titles in three divisions, having been middleweight champion from 1891 to 1894 and then winning the light-heavyweight in 1903, when he was already 40.

As a role model, though, the scandal-free Lewis is probably a safer bet. Despite being married to the imposing Rose, whose possibly apocryphal ringside shout "Hit him in the slats, Bob!" inspired him to throw the title-winning body punch, Fitzsimmons liked the ladies. (Given his singular ugliness, the glamour of the ring must have been as powerful an aphrodisiac in his era as Macho Camacho's). He was not averse to "doing business": Philadelphia Jack O'Brien, who knocked Bob out for the light-heavyweight title in 1905, swore an affidavit that the fight was fixed.

Between Fitzsimmons and Lewis stretches a catalogue of incompetence, punctuated by occasional heroics and a sprinkling of farce. Fitzsimmons set the tone when he failed to regain the title from James J Jeffries in 1902, being knocked out in eight rounds, and the other two British challengers in that decade fared no better.

The title passed from Jeffries to Marvin Hart to Tommy Burns, a squat Canadian who fled to Europe in 1907 to avoid facing Jack Johnson. He financed his European stay by defending as often as he could, regardless of the quality of the contenders. Gunner Moir was at least the British champion when Burns knocked him out for the then worthwhile sum of pounds 2,000 in December 1907. The champion outraged the aristocratic (and autocratic) members of the National Sporting Club by insisting on being paid in full, in cash, before entering the ring. He was not welcome at the NSC thereafter, so his other British defence, against the former middleweight champion Jack Palmer, was staged at the Wonderland arena in Whitechapel. Palmer was flattened in four rounds in February 1908, and a month later, on St Patrick's Day, Jem Roche from Wexford was dispatched in the first minute in Dublin.

The title remained a distant dream for British contenders until 1937, when Tommy Farr was imported from Tonypandy as a safe opponent for Joe Louis's first defence. The American perception of British heavyweights at that time was largely based on the exploits of Phil Scott, a lanky Londoner whose fondness for claiming a foul earned him the nickname "Phaintin' Phil", and prompted Dorothy Parker's famous barb that "if all the heavyweights in Britain were laid out end to end, I wouldn't be at all surprised."

Farr made them think again, with a stubbornly brave performance which none of Louis's opponents matched for another decade. He defied Louis for the full 15 rounds, and the radio commentary (a landmark in sports broadcasting) encouraged listeners at home to think he had been robbed. In fact, even Farr always acknowledged the justice of the verdict, but his heroism was unforgettable.

It was 22 years before another British challenger emerged in the portly person of Don Cockell, a metabolically challenged light- heavyweight who suddenly ballooned to heavyweight after winning the British title in the lower division. Cockell successfully sued a newspaper for suggesting that his weight gain was due to inadequate training, and proved that it had a medical explanation. None of that helped him when he faced the awesome Rocky Marciano in San Francisco in May 1955; but Cockell, like Farr, earned respect for the way he survived repeated fouling and a dreadful beating before the ninth-round finish.

Four years later, Brian London was considered so unqualified even by the British Boxing Board of Control that they fined him pounds 1,100 - a hefty sum in 1959 - for challenging Floyd Patterson without their permission. London paid the fine, lasted 11 one-sided rounds, and banked the rest of his pounds 22,000 purse. London got a second chance in 1966, a few months after cuts had inevitably ended Henry Cooper's brave bid for revenge over Muhammad Ali, but this time he only got as far as the third round before Ali blitzed him with a 14-punch sequence. A gormless reporter asked London if he would fight Ali again. "Sure," he said, "as long as he ties a 56lb weight to each leg."

Ali repelled the feeble challenge of Joe Bugner in 1975, when Bugner scarcely threw a punch for 15 rounds and had enough energy left to leap in the swimming pool of his Kuala Lumpur hotel. Bugner at least had the appearance and credentials of a contender, which was more than could be said for dear old Richard Dunn from Bradford, whose southpaw awkwardness kept him upright (some of the time) for five rounds against Ali in May 1975.

Dunn's trainer and father-in-law, Jimmy Devanney, had been splendidly dismissive of Ali in the build-up to the fight in Munich. "Richard's not overawed by this Ali," he assured bemused American reporters. "Why, we've got far too many of these black chat merchants back 'ome in Bradford. He's right used to seeing them dance up and down Westgate with their tambourines every Saturday."

There was only one more British challenger for the undisputed title: Frank Bruno, who might have changed the course of history had he realised how badly he had shaken Mike Tyson in the opening round of their 1989 meeting in Las Vegas. Tyson stopped him in the fifth, but Frank can at least say he took part in what, given the proliferation of governing bodies, may yet prove to have been the last fight for the undisputed championship. It's not much of a claim on heavyweight history, but it's the best we can do. Heroic failure: British challengers for the undisputed world title 15 July 1902 James J Jeffries won ko 8th round v Bob Fitzsimmons in San Francisco. Verdict: Fitzsimmons, 39, is too old for Jeffries but wins the light-heavyweight title a year later 2 December 1907 Tommy Burns won ko 10th v Gunner Moir in London. Verdict: Moir does well to last so long before Burns guns him down 10 February 1908 Tommy Burns won ko 4th v Jack Palmer in London. Verdict: No surprise here as Palmer had lost to Moir in 1906 30 August 1937 Joe Louis won pts (15 rounds) v Tommy Farr in New York. Verdict: Farr set the standard for future British challengers 16 May 1955 Rocky Marciano won rsf 9th v Don Cockell in San Francisco. Verdict: Outclassed and overpowered, but Cockell goes down fighting 1 May 1959 Floyd Patterson won ko 11th v Brian London in Indianapolis. Verdict: Cautious London never a threat 21 May 1966 Muhammad Ali won rsf 6th v Henry Cooper in London. Verdict: Ali takes no chances and waits for Henry to bleed. He obliges 6 August 1966 Muhammad Ali won ko 3rd v Brian London in London. Verdict: Brian comes down from Blackpool by second-class rail. He knows he's well out of his class 1 July 1975 Muhammad Ali won pts (15 rounds) v Joe Bugner in Kuala Lumpur. Verdict: "I'll fight anyone, even Jesus Christ," Bugner tells the press after lamentably unaggressive showing. "Ah Joe, you're only saying that because you know He's got bad hands," replies the irrepressible Hugh McIlvanney 25 May 1976 Muhammad Ali won rsf 5th v Richard Dunn in Munich. Verdict: Dunn does the best he can 25 February 1989 Mike Tyson won rsf 5th v Frank Bruno in Las Vegas. Verdict: Frank hurts him in the first, but after that it's painful to watch