Joe Louis

:For the dessert cake, see Jos. Louis

During World War II

In between serving in the United States Army during the Second World War, Louis kept on defending his title, totalling 25 defenses from '37 to 1949. He was a world champion for 11 years and 10 months, after which he left his crown vacant. He set records for any division in number of defenses and longetivity as world champion non stop, and both records still stand. Apart from Schmeling, Farr, Mann and Thomas, other notable title defenses during that period were:

Related Topics:
United States Army - Second World War - 1949

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• his fight versus world Light Heavyweight champion John Henry Lewis, knocked out in the first.
• his fight with Two Ton Tony Galento, who upset the boxing world by knocking Louis down in round one, but Louis got up and knocked Galento out in the fourth.
• his two fights with Chilean Arturo Godoy, who almost did something no other boxer from Chile has ever done and no Hispanic had done before: Become world Heavyweight champion in their first bout, which Louis won by a close decision, and when Louis won the rematch by a knockout in the eight round, a riot broke loose at the Madison Square Garden.
• his two fights with world Light Heavyweight champion Billy Conn, the first of which is remembered as one of the greatest fights in heavywieght history. Conn was much smaller than Louis but also much faster, prompting Louis to say, "He can run, but he can't hide." For 12 rounds it appeared that Conn would prove Louis wrong; his agile footwork, blinding hand speed and ability to slip punches stymied Louis, and Conn was so far ahead on points that only a knockout could save Louis. Near the end of round 12, though, Conn visibly hurt Louis, so he decided to go for a knockout in the 13th. His decision to go toe-to-toe with Louis turned out to be his downfall, as the champion KO'd Conn with a vicious barrage. In the rematch, Louis won by a knockout in the eighth round.
• his two fights versus future world Heavyweight champion Jersey Joe Walcott, who would drop Louis in round four of their first bout and lose a close decision, then get knocked out by Louis in the rematch in 11 rounds.

Louis joined the Army from 1942 to 1945 and spent that whole period travelling around Europe visiting with the fighting troops and boxing in exhibitions. During this time, he became a national spokesman for the Army, inviting young men to join in and help their country in the war. He even acted in a couple of movies, produced by the Army to entice men to go to the war. After he came back to keep defending his title in 1946, Louis looked somewhat slower in his fights, and his best years seemed to have gone. He still managed to fend off every challenger until he retired for the first time, after the second Walcott bout. On March 1, 1949 Louis announced his retirement from boxing.

Related Topics:
Army - 1942 - 1945 - Europe - 1946 - March 1 - 1949

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