AIR DATE:
EPISODE: Episode 1
This week Lou discusses the September 13th, 1950 world middleweight title fight between Champion Jake LaMotta and challenger Laurent Dauthille.
Transcribed
[, Music, ] foreign [, Music ] welcome to ring talk the usually how my hair looks all the time my hair is out of control.
In fact, if I got a buzz cut – which I probably will this week and you’ll see next Sunday, it will grow back within a couple of weeks.
My my uh daughter says I’m de-evolving, so the picture that you saw at the beginning of the show is one of the all-time great boxing photographs, uh Jake LaMotta versus lorento till the second time they fought.
They had fought a year before and the tail beat them lorento till was a methodical, cagey fighter.
He was a great counter puncher and he was quick and lamado was five.
Eight and and uh um so tell was five seven and a half.
So the hike thing was a saw off and and uh Lamont had a 67 inch reach and to till had a 68 in tweet.
So it didn’t really make a difference in that respect, and you know the 1940s and 50s was an interesting decade in the middleweight division, because at that time there were three World ranked truly brilliant fighters from France in the middleweight division.
There was the world champion: Marcel Sudan.
There was Robert viliman and the chorus the great lorento till who fought out of uh Quebec, which was perfect for him.
In fact, the first time he fought Jake LaMotta um.
He beat him in Quebec and uh.
I just wanted to read you the scores.
If I can find it here, because I wrote it down yeah, so he fought him the first time, uh 1949 February 21st at The Forum in Montreal and the scores were uh judge Tony Bergeron at it.
Six three one uh uh for um to tell so did Judge Rennie, umet 631 and judge Leon Jeffrey on headed seven, three Alford detail: he out fought him.
He out fought him and he kept pumping his left hand into lamanna’s.
Face lamanna threw a lot of shots, but he kept missing.
He couldn’t hit him, and you know the till stood right in front of him and and just counter punched him well, and it was a 10 round unanimous decision and he battered La model with both hands and they said his hands were working like Pistons.
He was so quick.
He kept putting his hands on him.
That was the key.
It wasn’t trying to knock them out that wasn’t possible.
He was trying to to uh win the fight win on points because the idea is to win, and you know he kept painting a motto with uh.
Two three four punch combinations to the Head Lamonica and the care LaMotta would take punches like that.
He had a hard head, I knew Jake quite well and um lamada, they said was the aggressor in the fight, but he missed a lot of his punches.
He was too anxious, and you know it was just one of those things where, where uh you got cut in the fifth round, I think the till and lamonda got cut in the next round and but still to till hung on and and won.
So the till was a good farter.
He fought a lot of good guys uh during his career, which I’ll get to in a sec.
The fight from uh September 13th, 1950 was at the Olympia in Detroit, where the Detroit Red Wings played hockey and it was a wonderful fight and you know it’s hard to watch.
I was lucky because I watched it for the first time 2004 with Angela Dundee and the set of Cinderella Man and we there was a company called Circle films which hasn’t existed in 60 years good afternoon to you too uh scrapbook and they had a live.
You know they had this well, obviously not, but but this great tape of the fight.
But when I say live I mean there’s a mic in the ring, so you could hear them grunting and groaning.
So I got to watch the whole fight and I’m watching it with Angelo and Angela’s.
Like you know, watch this watch hitting me in the arm and the thing about this fight was the till was ahead.
He was winning the fight after 14 rounds.
He was way ahead: uh, 72-68, 74, 66 and 7169.
Those were the scores offered to tell so if the till the till doesn’t get stopped in the last round uh, it would have been a majority decision for him because he still would have won on two of the judge’s scorecards and the last round on one score Card would have been a draw, so there’s no way he could lose the fight and tell is standing there and what lamada was great at and truly great at was a lot of things.
He was known as the Bronx bowl by the way and dotil was known as the Tarzan of buzen, Val and boozinval is a city uh in Paris, beautiful pictures.
Now a lot of outdoor markets and lamadas.
One of his key defensive tricks was playing possum.
So he would take shots and then he’d go against the ropes and he’d.
Let you hit him and then you know, as you were punching him, you might hesitate for a sec and then he he’d swing off the ropes catch you with a left hand and a right hand, and he would turn the tables and you’d be on the ropes And he would take you out when I watched this fight Angelo Dundee said to me.
You know when it was over.
It’S still crushing to watch because lamanna caught him with 13 seconds left um in the last two rounds in the 14th round, he’s playing possum and he kept tagging Sudan.
But what Sudan go to do I mean that’s the story, Saint Anne fought he’s or it’s not synonyms stood in front of him.
That’S the kind of fighter to tell was – and you come into the last round and when lamada rallies when he’s behind and saves his title 13 seconds ago, and Angela was there, he said that poor down bastard, all he had to do was run for three minutes And he would have been the Undisputed World middleweight champion and he simply couldn’t do it, and I said why didn’t he do it? Angela said: that’s not the kind of fighter he was, he won the fight, he was winning the fight by standing in front of Jake and counter punching him.
Jake was missing a lot of shots.
He was telegraphing his shots.
You know the tale was smarter.
He was using, you know, a lot of head movement.
He was blocking shots sliding with him slipping him with him, but lamanna was on the ropes and lamada caught him a couple times and just before the fight ended, lamada caught him with six shots to the head.
But, as Angelo said, it was really the second left hook where he hits him and his eyes rolled and then just like when Patterson fought, you know Hanson the first time the tail doesn’t know where he is so he just you know Lamar’s on the robes and Detail just walks away staggered what’s going on and then out of nowhere he doesn’t even see it.
Lamotta catches him with a left and the tail goes down and everyone said well.
The referee gave a fast count, but when you watch the tape in real time, which is hard to get one in real time real time, that was the way referees counted back then and did tail gets up after the Count’s over, but he’s staggering I mean he’s.
He’S out of it, he walks to his corner, but it was.
It was such a heartbreaker now lamada.
As you know, the great Jake LaMotta uh was born in the Lower East Side and um of uh of New York and yeah.
When you’re reading about Jacob on his book, he said I was born to Italian parents, well duh and he was born July 10th 1922 and he lived a long life.
I mean I met him quite a few times at The Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota.
He died September 19th to 2017 at 95.
.
There’S several things about Jake that in the movie Raging, Bull were not true, it was put in for effect.
He never had an argument with his brother, DeNiro and passy play out.
You know she’s, like the brother that ignores him later on that never happened, Joey never ignored him.
They never fought not even once they loved each other.
In fact, at the end last 20, 30 years of their lives, they had a joining condominiums in Florida.
They always got along.
Joey was the only guy he trusted and his uh mother was Elizabeth and his father was Joseph lamada and his um uh uh.
He people say that he’s born in 1921.
That’S listed a lot, but in fact he was born in 1922.
.
His mother was born in the United States.
Father was born in Messina, Sicily and uh, who came with family, including his brother, uh, Joseph and the family lived in Philadelphia before returning to New York and settling in the Bronx.
Now it’s interesting here that um uh his uncle, you should know his uncle Richard lamada father’s brother.
He invented chipwicks, guys sandwich, so they weren’t all boxes, but with Jay but Jake’s father.
They showed us in the um movie uh.
Somebody up there likes me Paul, Newman, playing Rocky Graziano and Graziano, and him were running Partners.
I mean they were both thugs when they were kids and Jake’s.
Father forced him to fight other boys uh in the neighborhood for pocket change, which is how we helped pay.
The rent back then and uh lamada was always getting into trouble.
As he said, I was a dumb young kid and I didn’t go to school.
I didn’t care and they sent him to Reformatory and Reformatory it well.
He was sent there because he had attempted an armed robbery and then he went there.
I mean he couldn’t believe he was still alive.
He said I should have been killed a long time ago and he went there and in reformed School uh.
He found boxing and it was a revelation to him.
I can actually get paid real money for beating people up and he loved the fight and he thought I’m going to get in fights anyways, whether I’m in the ring or not.
So I might as well get paid for for doing it and uh.
He was undefeated in his damn job, but an interim professional in 1941.
He applied to get into World War II.
He wanted to fight because to him not only could I fight, I could kill people which would be great, but he had a mastoid operation on one of his ears as a child and for the rest of his life.
It affected his hearing.
Uh lorento till was born February 20th 1924 in France and sadly died at the age of 47 July 10th uh.
I still haven’t, found the reason or uh for his death.
I’Ve been looking for a long time, checked.
Rechecked double triple check.
My archives, I just can’t find one – I will try to find one, but he got to Montreal in the 1940s, which was a big thing for him.
You know, being speaking French to have a French Outpost in North America or he could launch his career and he fought a lot of good guys.
He fought and beat the Canadian Walter Johnny Greco, who was a great fighter.
It’S sad today that in Canada most people haven’t heard of Johnny Greco, but he was a magnificent fighter and during his career he beat a lot of guys.
He you know lamada Tony Gennaro, Eugene, Hairston, Steve beloys, uh, Norman Hayes, uh beloys was the guy that uh uh thumbed the great welterweight number one ranked in the world from Toronto son.
You love spring in the eye, but it wasn’t deliberate Norman Hayes, uh Patty young.
He beat Bobby Dawson twozzo Portuguese Luke Van Damme, who was a very good fighter from Europe and another Frenchman, Robert Sharon, but his biggest fight.
The biggest victory of his career is when he beat lamanna, because no one thought he had a chance to beat LaMotta and he fought him in Montreal and it’s a 10 round fight and the you have to.
I was thinking about this, the other night.
The thing about LaMotta, you have to understand is, and this applied to James Tony years later, James Tony was 6-1.
James Tony usually is regular.
Weight was 200 pounds, so Tony had to lose 40 pounds for each fight.
When I look back at lamotta’s career, he would walk around at 185 to 200.
.
Lamada would have been much better served.
Had there been a super middleweight division of 168 pounds that would have been the best for him, but it didn’t exist back then and also later in his career.
He fought light heavily, which was probably the best for him.
But the fact is, you know, being five: eight, it was just it would have been and he was a small light heavy and at the time he wanted to fight light heavy.
But there was more money in the middleweights he would have had to fight a guy.
Like Archie Moore who tremendous chin and the greatest knockout puncher of all time, so uh lamada near the end of its career, fought light, Heavies and Heavies because he just couldn’t fight anymore to keep his weight down.
In fact, I asked him, you know: was he upset about retiring? He said no the day I retired it’s the first time I enjoyed a meal.
Since I was a kid, I could actually sit down and have a steak and have dessert and have a drink, and I didn’t have to worry about it because lamada, for you know five six weeks before fight would have to starve himself.
You know he figured Joey says to him: you got a fight coming up in six weeks, seven weeks and and or two months maybe and he’s got to lose.
You know he’s at 160th middleweight limit he’s at you know: 185 200, so 200 he’s got to lose 40 pounds in two or three months and it’s got to do it gradually and while doing that, he always had a struggle.
He’S still got to eat and always on.
You know two three days before he had to weigh in they would dry him out, so he couldn’t drink and he like that was the one thing.
That was not the one thing, but it was true in the movie when he said I’ll pay, you money for just a sliver of ice.
They had to dehydrate himself and finally he’d make the wait and then he could go and have a meal, and then he could drink because he had started himself to get to the weights.
160 was not his natural weight and he was doing himself at the service by fighting at the weight, but because of its size it was the perfect weight for him.
What’S he gon na do in the 40s he started 41.
he’s not going to fight heavyweight, although he could make the weight, because there’s Joe Lewis he’s not going to beat Joe Lewis and he’s not going to be Archie Mars, so he you know he he was Stuck as a middleweight – and he was one of the all-time great middleweight champions um, he he had to fight Marcel third and for the title in order to do that, he had to fight Blackjack Billy Fox, who was a mob controlled fighter, African-American fighter, and he had To lose him deliberately and when I spoke to Jake, I was sitting between him and Angelo at the banquet at the pre-banquet uh in Canastota.
Before we go to Syracuse on the bus, this is 212.
and and uh um.
You know he says to me, you know I’m fighting Billy Fox.
I said that must have been a terrible feeling.
He said.
Well, I promised a mob.
I would throw the fight.
If I don’t throw.
He said.
Listen for years.
I told him to you know: F, you, I’m not fighting for you guys and finally, Frankie Carver cornered me one day and said: listen, you know you thick skull.
Dimwit, it goes through me.
You either do what I say or I’ll make sure you never get a shot at the title and what’s the matter going to do you can’t go to the Press because Carver would have killed him and his family.
He can’t go to the boxing Commission because you know they’re controlled by the mob.
He’S got to do what he’s told so he takes to die, but he’s the Blackjack Billy Foxwell is such a terrible fighter.
You know lamada said the fights start.
20 30 seconds in.
I hit him a double jab in the chin and his eyes.
Roll his legs buckle and he said I held him up.
I walked him to the ropes and, I just said, calm down, take a deep breath and he said he could feel him taking a breathtaking uh their breath.
Okay won’t hit you to the chin anymore, and then he just hits him to the belly or the chest.
But he said every time I landed a punch, a half-hearted punch, this guy would stagger, and so obviously his you know, Billy Fox’s record of having like 40 wins whatever 36 by knockout or something was all bogus.
They were all fixed and even though he loses to him in the fourth round, the referee stops it and it’s his purse was withheld.
He finally got it because he said he was injured.
He ruptured his spleen or he heard his spleen in training which wasn’t true, but the commission bought it because they were mob control and they wanted things to continue along that way.
Um lamada still had to wait three years to get a shot at Sudan, Seattle to pay 25 grand out of his own pocket.
He said the carpet, you said: if I lose to him, I got a shot.
My next fight, I didn’t say your next fight.
I said if you lose to him: you’ll get a shot at the title, and you will I didn’t say when and I didn’t say how much it would cost you and what’s LaMotta going to do argue with this guy he’s got.
You know 300 soldiers that are armed.
No, he had to pay another 25 G’s to him and wait three years.
He fights sir Nan.
Now the interesting thing about the um, the Sudan fight, which which I found um fascinating, of course, was it’s listed in BoxRec.
In a lot of places, you’ll see that there was a knockdown in the first round.
I I you know he didn’t really knock him down.
They got into a wrestling match, as they were, throwing punches and sedan went down, landed on the shoulder and injured his shoulder, and so for the rest of the fight it’s left arm.
It was useless and being an orthodox fighter.
He needed that to set up his job, but also the block lamotta’s right hand, and he he simply wasn’t able to.
He took a he kept fighting.
You got to give him credit for that.
He took a hell of a beating and it’s still a very close fight, but before the 10th round starts, he said the shoulder.
I can’t use my arm.
It can’t lift it.
I can’t fight this man with one arm.
I have you know he gives up the title and he goes over to Jake and he congratulates him and he says you deserve this and remember to enjoy it and save your money and at the press conference after La Mata or soon I never said he cheated.
He threw me down, he did this or he did that.
I mean that’s to be a lot of thought.
Uh Sudan said he’s a great champion and I I wish him a lot of luck.
Hope he makes a lot of money he’s a good man, and I look forward to you know meeting him again and back then this is what Fighters did you? You had Grace and a plum when you lost, but that doesn’t happen today.
There’S always this guy cheated the referee cheated judges cheated this guy’s a bum.
I really beat him, I mean he at some point.
You have to have some self-respect and respect for the fans and for the sport of boxing, and you have to admit and there’s nothing shameful admitting that you lost now that really touched Jake when he did that he thought what a good guy you know.
This is a real gentleman and they were friends.
As Jake said to me it was just business, that’s all, but he said outside of the ring.
You know we could talk and laugh and we had the same experiences.
It broke Jake’s heart because the rematch never happened because on the way back, Sudan’s airplane, crashed into the Azores and Jake was really upset because he truly liked him.
He truly liked Marcel Sudan, and I don’t know if he ever got over that, because when he would reminisce about it, you know 2005, 2006 or seven.
When I spoke to him, you know there were tears in his eyes.
He said this was a good man.
He was a family man, I don’t know how much of a family man you was because you know he’s having a famous Affairs event with uh Edith Piaf, but apparently that was quite common back then so um I mean lamada lamada went on.
He had the title and uh uh, he was defending it and then he gets he.
He lost the first time to Lauren detail before he was Champion so then same year.
He beat Sudan gets the title and now he’s got to fight lorento till again – and this is an interesting fight because go till had lambada’s number.
He knew how to fight him.
He was very well trained and I was just talking to Eric before the producer here.
Eric Boyce about the fight last night on against Pam, where you had Stephen Shaw, Stefan Shaw, fighting FAA, jagba and angry Ward said it perfectly: there’s no sense of urgency there.
There was no on Shaw’s part that there was no.
I got ta win this fight and my career is over back in the 50s and 40s guys had to fight like that, because the queer would be over so from the first round to the 15th round.
Dotil and lamanna waged a beautiful war and every round counted there was a tremendous sense of urgency and lamada is going all out.
He knows I got ta jump on him quickly.
I got to back him up into the ropes.
I got to take away his room.
The counter punch, I got to be careful of how I fight, but it, but the hotel was too smart.
Thetale was great at slipping shots sliding under them.
You know blocking them, pairing them countering them.
He would just have openings that were traps.
Lamada will go for it.
He duck under it and encounter him.
Lamada missed a lot of shots, a lot more shots than he usually does and his corner and in his Corner Al silvani, one of his trainers kept saying.
Forget his head.
Go to the body, keep pounding his body, but even on the inside, when you’re pounding a guy’s body, to tell what’s great at getting his arms in the way and covering himself up and making himself small.
That lamada was pounding his arms, which is fine.
You can pound the guy’s arms and elbows and hips.
It still slows them down, and you know people thought well.
The best way to fight um lamada was to uh use movement, keep turning him forcing him to reset, but the tail flipped that on its head, he thought the best way to fight Lambada was backing him up, and that was true, very few fighters ever in boxing History, other than Ali and Sugar, Ray Robinson were good at fighting backing up and he kept backing.
Jake up and Jake was forced to keep moving backwards.
You know which took away leverage from his shots and the more the fight goes on the more urgent it gets for Jake.
As he’s falling behind around says, Carmen’s saying Jake, you know you gave away the first five rounds.
You got to pick it up and he’s picking it up every round, but he’s missing a lot of shots.
Lorento till had a great career uh.
His record wasn’t as Stellar as as I’m just looking for his overall record.
I have it written down, but he could do one thing well and that was he could beat Jake LaMotta and he certainly did so.
You know Lawrence details record at the end, with 45 wins 13 losses, four draws with 24 Kos.
The motto is: 83 wins, 19 losses, four draws with 30k, so lamada had a lower KO percentage than to tell lamado wasn’t really a knockout puncher.
He would beat with an avalancho punches.
He was really determined.
He was indomitable, he was robust.
He was the guy that would be all over you.
He, you know he was the Bronze Bowl.
I mean later on Raging Bull, but his first name was the Bronze Bull and nickname, and he was great.
This was the fight of the year and to tell as the fight’s coming on is winning more rounds he’s putting rounds in the bank, and this is a perfect example of what all the old-time great trainers would say.
You don’t have to knock them out, you’re not being paid just to knock the guy out, although that’s what the fans want to see, you’re being paid to win and the other old saying, unboxing is look good, now or or when now look good.
The next fight and that’s what he’s trying to do so you know two three four five rounds: the till puts them in the bank sixth round seven rounds.
Lamont is winning rounds here and there he’s pushing the tail back he’s getting his body shots in he’s lining these great head shots, and you can see details, heads snapping back into the side, but he’s not his legs aren’t buckling, he’s standing in there he’s taking it And he’s smart, he realizes La Mana needs punching room, the closer I am to him, the less room he has the hit, and so these guys are are wrestling on the inside they’re, leaning on each other they’re wearing away each other at the body.
But the tails in great shape he realizes this is one chance and lamada is desperate and he’s laying traps for detail, but the Tail’s not going into it and to tell is counter punching him.
The whole time he’s letting Jake lead he’s letting Jake come after him with the right hand, which he, which you know Jake throws the right hand he Ducks under it shifts to his left.
Hits him with the left to the liver then brings the left up to the head he’s using his jab to keep Jake at Bay and when Jake comes in, you know, he’ll use a couple of Jabs and then he’ll throw a straight right hand and hit Jake And Jake’s never heard he’s taken the shots and that’s the problem he’s taking too many shots and too many shots are losing him the rounds and it’s getting desperate because seventh, eighth, ninth round, you know, after nine rounds the tills ahead and there’s six more rounds to Go so if the first nine rounds you got to give the till at least seven or eight rounds and if lamada, when or excuse me, if the Tail wins a couple more rounds which he did Lamont has got a problem at that point, Lamont has got a Big problem Lamont has got to score her nanko to win and that’s not going to be easy to do against the guy who’s, taking his best shots and a guy who who’s who’s, a real tricky slick fighter and a great counter puncher hard to beat a guy.
Like that and the tail is pouring it on every round, it keeps putting you know rounds in the bank.
He keeps pulling farther ahead and after it was a great fight for the first 11 rounds, it was an exciting close-in, all-action phone booth war with each man trading shots it.
Just the tales are more accurate.
He was scoring more often and winning more rounds, but from the 11th to the 15th.
It was a super fight.
It becomes one of the all-time great fights because from the 11th round on the sense of urgency, which we didn’t see in fights last night went way up and lamada has got the middleweight title again to wait years for it, and he was probably past his prime.
When he fought, sir, that he was the best middleweight in the world for years before he got a chance at the title and once he won the title, that’s when you cash in and make money he didn’t want to lose this.
He didn’t want to give this money-making machine away, because then he’s not going to get another shot and if he did manage to get another shot, who knows when it would be and against whom and how much more he’d have to pay them off? He’S got to hang on to this title and so in the 11th round.
Jake is a Madman he’s throwing punches for the full three minutes of the round he’s hitting the tail, but the Tail’s not moving the kill’s standing in close and he’s getting his own shots in and Jake is rallying in the 11th 12th round 13th round.
He’S rallying he’s making it a close fight.
You know this is becoming a close fight now Jake’s starting to come back on the cards.
He can’t win a decision at this point.
He knows that when he goes back to the corner, Al servani says you can’t win the decision.
You’Re not going to win on points.
It is not possible.
You have to knock him out and lamada said I’m trying I’m trying to knock him out and he’s hitting hitting them everywhere when they’re getting clinches they’re hitting rabbit punches.
You know hitting him in the back hitting him in the arms using his shoulders using his head, but to till fights the same way he he’s used to that he’s beating lamada before and you have to imagine it from the Till’s viewpoint – he’s full of confidence at This point I’ve beaten this guy.
Already I’ve beaten him by unanimous decision in Montreal I’ll have to form.
I fought him 10 Rounds.
He only won three there’s no way he can beat me.
You know I’m gon na win the title.
You know 11th round 12th round.
The standing Toe to Toe and and the crowd at the Olympian Detroit’s going crazy and and 13th round people are screaming, and you know in Jake’s Corner also Fanny and the other cornerman his brother Julia screaming at him.
Jake you’re losing the title he’s gon na win.
The title you got ta keep turning it up.
You got ta, knock him out and lamada.
It’S frenzied at this point he’s doing his best with every punch to knock him out he’s jabbing his way in.
But then he just sort of eshoes that gets rid of the jab and just starts throwing right and left hooks he’s going to the body as often as he can to bring the Tail’s head down he’ll get in close and rip him inside he’ll hit him two.
Three four punches to the head with the Till’s, taking it and firing back four five, six shots.
The model is like what do I have to do, but the one thing in boxing – that’s always true, regardless of who you are no fighter, no matter how great he is and how great his chin is, can take continuously heavy power shots to the Head.
It just adds up and eventually it will catch up with you, so we get to the 11th round 12th round 13th round.
The fans are going crazy because the fight is closed.
Jake is coming back, but all the writers at ringside said well.
You know Laurent details ahead, Laurent, it’s about to win the World middleweight title we’re about to have the second world middleweight Titleist from France.
You know after Sudan and they have the 14th round and the 14th round Savannah says you got to go for it.
You got ta, you got ta go out, you have no choice.
Now Jake.
You have to knock him out or say goodbye to the title and Jake goes out and in that round, before the 15th he plays possum, you know he’s throwing shots and when details countering and hitting him in the head, he goes back on the ropes.
He has his hands up like this or he’ll put his hands down and the Tail’s not going for it right away and detail, comes in to land, more shots and lamada springs off the ropes and hits him a bunch of shots.
But lamada misses as many as he’s Landing and the till is ready for it, and lamada is going all out in the 14th round he’s putting every you think he’s not gon na have anything left.
You know he should say something save something for the last problem, but he’s not doing it he’s doing everything he can to put the till away in the 14th round and to tell is standing there Toe to Toe he’s, not running he’s not moving around he’s.
Not circling him which he should have been doing, but that just wasn’t the way the man fought and he stood there and went toe-to-toe with Jake.
Lamotti didn’t believe.
Lamotta could hurt him because he couldn’t hurt him in the first fight.
La model landed great shots during this fight, but the tail took them well.
He had great balance great leverage and he was firing back and giving as good as he was getting, and so when the 14th round ends it’s interesting to tell you know it takes a deep breath sort of size head down walks back to his corner, but lebonne Walks back head up he’s confident now it’s almost as if he’s saying to himself, I got him, I’m going to get them and one more round.
This is it.
This is lamata’s point in his life.
You know there’s no tomorrow for Lamar, there’s no I’ll fight him again.
Next time there will be no next time because of the mob.
If Jake loses the mom’s like hey, you lost nothing.
We could do about it.
You blew it.
We gave you the chance.
You won it, you blew it you’re done and he doesn’t want to go through that.
So he comes out and he’s got to be strategic.
You know his natural inclination is to go there and try to kill, go till and go all out, but he’s been doing that for the whole fight and detail’s been slipping so many of his shots and he’s throwing so many wide shots he’s telegraphing them.
So the Tail’s having no problem, you know docking them sliding with them slipping them and countering him effectively.
Every time.
Every time Jake misses the Till’s hunting.
One two three counter shots on his head, so lamad is the effective.
The mod is the aggressor he’s.
Just not the effective aggressor he’s the one coming forward to tell’s the one winning the rounds and what’s happening now is they’re getting close around.
You know.
One minute passes when judges score rounds.
They usually score it.
They did back then anyways, but you’re supposed to score it in three one minute intervals, so that that makes it easier to decide who wants to round.
So you could say you know this.
Guy won the first minute, uh fighter B, one the second minute but fighter A1 to third minute, so he wins it around now.
Lamont is on the ropes again he’s playing possum he’s trying to you know with his hands he’s standing there like he’s trying to sucker him.
You know he’s trying to do the old thing that Joe Quincy did with Jack Johnson he’s lifting his hands high.
He wants to make the till come in hit him in the stomach, so he can move his right leg forward and hit him with a left hook coming in that’s what he wants to do.
He wants to do, but good Tail’s not going for it.
The Tail’s still jabbing him he’s not moving in, like that.
He sees the Trap and so the tail Line’s a couple shots.
He hits one model with the right hand and lamada starts blinking his eyes and he hits him again and lamanna goes back to the ropes and he sort of sags and until as any fighter in the world would thought he’s done.
I I heard him so he goes in.
He lands four five, six, seven, eight more shots and when he does it, you know lamada hangs on the LaMotta spins off the roads and the Till’s got to turn and, as he’s turned turns he’s tweeted with a wide left hook a right hand.
Another punch, you know three four punches and to tail bows to the far ropes and lamada hit some another six shot, five shots.
It was really the second left hook that took the till out and eventually he hit someone with five shots and the tail is heard, and so he just staggers away.
Lamont has got impressed against the ropes and he’s hitting him and to tell just moves up to the side staggers out, but he’s doing it on like he’s sideways.
So when lamada hits him the Tail’s looking over here and the punch catches him, he doesn’t see the punch coming.
He just feels it.
He gets hit by it because he doesn’t see lamanna because he doesn’t know where he is punches.
You don’t see, are the ones that get you out of there and that’s what happened.
He didn’t see.
The punch and lamada had hurt him and he was trying to walk away from it, but his hands were down.
He got caught with a hellacious wide left hook and he went down and we’ve seen this in boxing so many times.
Sonny Liston did this to so many fighters that would walk away he’d catch them, walking away.
Remember when Joe Frazier walked away from forming a foreign form and caught him with the overhand right to the side of the head, if you don’t see the punch, those are the ones that get you out and he didn’t see the punch and he just slumped to The canvas the people are on their feet, going crazy because they’re watching a fight but they’re watching the clock – and you know it’s like there’s under 15 seconds – to go – not it’s like sort.
It is under 15 seconds to go.
There are 15 seconds left and they’re going 15 seconds, we’ll have a new world middleweight champion.
I can’t believe he’s down.
I can’t believe this.
This cannot happen and it goes down and he’s sitting he’s in a sitting position and he’s shaking his head.
His eyes are rolling, you know he gets up on.
One knee gets up to all forwards.
He gets up on one knee.
He gets his gloves on the canvas and the referee is counting one two, three four: five: six: seven, eight nine and he’s trying to rise tan and if he’s still counted and went in 11, 12 around 12 13, which would have been 12 13.
, so till rises From the canvas and he realizes what happens in his head sinks down to his chest and he walks to the corner where his cornerman grab him, there’s no argument, he wasn’t hard done by and that’s when Angelo watching the film we were lucky to get a whole Copy of it Angelo says, support dumb, as I said earlier, poor, dumb bastard.
Of course he used another word Ambassador well known 12 blood ORD, but the important ambassador stayed away for three minutes.
If he can only do that, he would have been the Undisputed World middleweight champion and he simply couldn’t do it, and you can’t really blame him because he wasn’t the type of guy that would run now when, when um uh, Oscar De La Hoya fought Trinidad, I Had the way ahead, so I thought it makes sense for him.
He’S already won the fight and then, of course, the way judges are corrupt.
These days they didn’t give it to him, but that’s another story did till had no complaints.
You couldn’t argue about the referees count, because you know the referee Lou handler was a well-respected referee.
He did his job he’s not supposed to give him a long count.
He didn’t it wasn’t too fast.
It looks too fast on the tape depending which tape you’re watching, but it isn’t.
The tail couldn’t beat the count and until had no other way of fighting, you can’t argue and say well, you know he should have danced and stayed away from him.
He never fought that way.
He was a counter puncher, he was a cutie, he was a slickster, he was a guy that would get in front of you and give you all.
These moves be hard.
They had and then come back and counter you and win on points.
He also had some power, but lamada was indomitable.
Lamotta would have fought 50 rounds if he’d been allowed to and when I spoke to Jake he you know I said: did you ever feel bad for him, because he was only 15 or 13 seconds away? I felt bad for me because I would have lost everything and Jake did lose everything later on, not just to Ray Robinson, but when I, when I met Jake LaMotta at the hall of fame, I met.
I met him before I got his autograph and some photos, but when I met him he was there with no Jake was in his late 80s.
His wife was in there.
I guess his wife was 46 47.
They had an eight-year-old son, he had two children and two boys and a daughter with Vicky lamada.
One boy died of cancer, the other in the airplane crashed over Canada, Newfoundland and Jake said that was God punishing me.
That’S what the way he felt he felt when Ray Robinson was pounding him and taking his title in the same Valentine’s Day, Massacre February 14th 1951.
.
He felt he deserved that he felt when guys were hitting him, that he was such a bad mean person that he deserved.
That and of course, that’s not true, but that’s the way his mindset was, and so it’s great to see him with a new wife, young son, giving him a new lease on life, his daughter Christy.
He was very close with and um you know he just said.
I wish I wish I had the brains as a young man that I do now, but I was never granted that because I didn’t think I just acted out of anger, but he you know Jake’s career ends.
He opens a club in Florida goes to jail because it had underage girls, there is out in a couple years, becomes a comedian and then just travels the celebrity circuit.
You know I when he was at the hall of fame.
He was in his 90s and he’d get up on stage and they would say, ladies and gentlemen, to form our dispute a world middleweight champion and our favorite fighter here, Jake, LaMotta and the audience would stand up and he would say Hi.
How are you I fought? Sugar Ray Robinson so many times it’s a wonder, I didn’t get diabetes, he would just do a series of jokes.
I’Ve been married and divorced three times.
My wives only took things from me that started with the letter, A a house, a car, a family, a living.
You know uh that was actually a willy pep joke that he used, so he he would just you know, talking jokes in front of a big audience, but if you were lucky like me to sit beside him and Angelo and to hear them talk, I mean Jake Spoke to me and Yiddish as Angela wood, and it was just interesting to see the one thing that upset me at the hall of fame was and to me it’s heaven on Earth.
The whole thing is, people would come up to him and just put paper in his face.
They wouldn’t say how are you or it’s an honor to meet you? They would come up to him and go like this here and give him a pen and he would sign it, and I would say how can you take that from people? He said.
That’S the way people are, you know they don’t a lot of people who look manners they’re boxing fans, they don’t know what to say.
I he said listen rather than to be angry.
I should be happy that they’re still interested in me and Jake always got a big head.
He wasn’t a big guy.
You know he was a tiny little guy, but he had tremendous fists.
You know rock hard and he took my hand once he said here fill my head.
I don’t want to feel your head.
I got a hard head, I believe you have a hard head, I said so do I he said how do you get a hard hit and I said because I’m stupid but but you it’s good for your profession and I I said Jake, I love you.
I don’t want to feel your head, but I had some really great conversations with him and he told me, for instance, that in the fight with Ray Robinson, he never went over and said it doesn’t count right because he didn’t knock me down.
He said that was added in the movie.
He said: if you watch the tape of the fight, my lips are shredded, my teeth are knocked out, I couldn’t say anything.
Nor could I stand.
I couldn’t hold my arms up.
They had to get me down to the carry me to the corner, then carry me to the dressing room and also – and I mentioned it’s performing doc.
He said you know how they portray me in the film Raging Bull.
I was much worse than that.
He said they were sugar coating here in the film so and he said, but my craziness came from the fact of all the mob pressure that came under me.
He said I was very jealous of having a beautiful wife, Vicky I shouldn’t really.
If married, I was married once before he said: marrying a beautiful wife is a blessing, but it’s mostly a curse because you never stop being jealous and uh, but he was a wonderful figure from back.
Then he trained very hard.
He was very thankful of all this adulation and he said to me he said you know it’s sad I wanted to because it was business.
It wasn’t personal with him.
It was a little bit with Ray Robinson, but they became friends after boxing is not it’s not personal, it’s business.
He genuinely likes Sudan and regretted he didn’t wasn’t able to develop a friendship with him.
He said I was sad.
I was sad when uh lorento till died in 71.
That’S way too young.
If I’d known he’d been sick, I would have gone over there to visit him.
You know so these are things he regretted.
A lot of Fighters regret that he said we made good money together.
These are my friends, so he lived to 95.
He lived a long life and you know he got to see how popular he was, which was great Laurent until I think fought 19 more times after he fought lamanna, but he never again fought for a world title and as his career went on and he realized He wasn’t going to get another title shot, his love for the game started to diminish and he started to lose more often.
But don’t let that fool you.
The tail was a all-time great middle League and I think if he was fighting today, you know he would do.
He would do quite well because he was great at slipping shots in close, that’s a skill, not many fighters.
Have you know, Roberto Duran, perfected it Jack Johnson can do it, but Duran Lorenzo tell you know to stand this close to a guy, a foot away and the guy not being able to lay a glove on you.
That takes a lot of skill and a lot of focus and discipline and and to tell and master that the conference was lamada.
Lamada thought you can’t hurt me.
You could hit me with a sledgehammer you’re, not gon na hurt me.
So I’m I don’t care I’ll.
Let you land the shots and when you’re finished I’ll just beat the hell out of you and you know, lamada ripped him inside and the tail really came on inside as the fight went on against lamanna but lamada just you know, you see his head being hit On a swivel, but he still took it, he still took it.
He just would not quit he.
He was the unbeatable indomitable Force and uh.
Thank you scrapbook.
He lemana just would not quit and against Ray Robinson.
You see him sprawled out against the ropes.
He said.
I would have fought till he killed me.
I would not have stopped.
He said I couldn’t defend myself anymore, but I was certainly not going to quit.
You know so, two all-time great Fighters.
Unfortunately, you can get this on YouTube, but they only show the last round.
One clip that’s just over two minute shows the last two rounds highlights from the last two rounds.
If you can somehow get the whole fight watch it because they came out at the beginning of the fight, they renewed I’ll still leads from the Montreal fight.
They stood a foot in front of each other and traded shots and what the great thing about it – and I spoke to Ron Howard about this one thing wrong.
Howard didn’t like about the Rocky movies, and it’s true he said in the Rocky movies Fighters are throwing thousands of punches around.
That doesn’t happen, especially heavyweights.
He said Fighters.
If you watch closely are looking for openings and trying to faint each other into into position and are picking their shots and that’s what these guys were doing and it was a beautiful, they made it an art form, it was a beautifully Savage war and – and you Have to love both guys because lamada retains his title and to till came within 13 seconds of being the world middleweight champion, and for that you got to give him credit he’s one of the Premier middleweights not only of the 1940s and 50s, but of all time.
If you can have a top 10 or top 20 list, you got to put lorenza till there because he stands up against anyone.
I hope you enjoyed the show, I’m Lou Eisen and that’s been ring.
Talk for today and we’ll see you next week and and don’t forget this Tuesday January 17th, the birthday of the greatest fighter and athlete of all time, Muhammad Ali.
Thank you enjoy the rest of your weekend.
Contact The Hosts