Johnny "Honey Boy" Bratton should be in the Hall of Fame in my opinion, hopefully the powers that be will do the right thing one day and induct this great Gladiator from Chicago.
Former lightweight, light-welterweight and welterweight champion Barney Ross was born Beryl David (or Dov-Ber) Rosofsky on New York's Lower East Side in 1909.
One of the toughest fighters in history, Ross was never knocked out in 81 fights, against the best fighters of his generation.
He was lightweight and light-welterweight champion when he defeated Jimmy McLarnin to win the welterweight crown in 1934. Ross and Henry Armstrong are the only two fighters to hold three world titles simultaneously, although some historians question the recognition of Ross's light-welterweight title at that time as the division was in it's infancy.
His heroism during the second world war further enhanced his legend.
After the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor in 1941, Ross enlisted in the U.S. Marines and became a much-decorated veteran. He was 32-years-old and had to obtain a special waiver on the usual requirement that Marines be 30 or under.
Although he was assigned to work as a boxing instructor, he requested that he be sent into combat. He was sent to Guadalcanal Island, one of the most brutal U.S. military engagements against the Japanese.
On November 19, 1942, Ross and three comrades were attacked by Japanese troops while on patrol. His three fellow Marines were wounded and Ross shepherded them into a crater where he protected them throughout the night. He fired over 200 rounds of ammunition and was credited with killing seven Japanese snipers and 10 probables. By the morning, two of his colleagues had died and though wounded, he managed to carry the sole survivor to safety. For his brave efforts, Ross received the Silver Star, Purple Heart, and a Presidential Citation.
Mike Gibbons, "The St. Paul Phantom", one of the greatest middleweights in history, in fact, one of the greatest fighters in boxing history. The man holds a win over Harry Greb for Christ's sake. He was a defensive wizard, that's why they called him the Phantom, because of his ability to avoid punches and counter punch. The thing about Mike Gibbons, he had good knockout power but didn't like to use it, he was never looking to hurt his opponents, just outthink them, outwit them, and he was great at that. He was only defeated three times in his entire career, and had a granite chin, he was never knocked out in 133 fights.
Credit: IBHOF
Although he never became a champion, Mike Gibbons is considered by many boxing historians to be one of the top ten middleweights of all time. Gibbons learned to box at the YMCA in his native St. Paul. He turned professional at the age of nineteen with a third-round knockout of Roy Moore and was unbeaten in his first fourteen fights before losing a decision to Jimmy Clabby. A footwork wizard who could wear an opponent out with his defensive maneuvers, Gibbons could punch hard, too. As a young fighter, he built a reputation that put him in line for the middleweight championship.
In 1912, the middleweight division had no recognized champion. More than half a dozen fighters, including Gibbons and Eddie McGoorty, claimed a right to the title. Gibbons signed to fight McGoorty with the winner to be declared champion. The heavier McGoorty was the favorite by far, and Gibbons employed his ring choreography not to beat McGoorty but to keep him from winning. Gibbons constantly backpedaled and put on a great display of footwork but he did not really fight. The newspapers awarded McGoorty the decision, but the fight's lack of action kept him from gaining general acclaim as the titleholder. Asked by a reporter why he had not fought more vigorously, Gibbons replied, "Because you and every other writer said that McGoorty would beat me, simply because he was ten pounds heavier than me. I decided to prove you were wrong, and that he couldn't lay a glove on me. And he didn't. That's all I cared about."
Gibbons continued to fight successfully after the McGoorty fight, and proved his mettle in a 1916 match with Hall of Famer Jack Dillon. At the time, Dillon was reputed to have the best punch in all of boxing. For ten rounds, Gibbons eluded Dillon's attack and countered beautifully when Dillon missed him. Gibbons won every round of the fight, according to those at ringside.
Gibbons fought for another six years, taking on Harry Greb, among others. Even the blurringly fast Greb was confused by Gibbons, by then known as the "Phantom of St. Paul." Greb shouted to his manager, "From now on, match me with one guy at a time."
Minnesota Boxing Hall of Fame - Old Timers
Mike Gibbons, "The Saint Paul Phantom", is regarded by boxing historians as the greatest fighter ever to live from the state of Minnesota, and one of the greatest fighters of all-time. The top two boxing historians are universally regarded as former Ring Magazine founder and editor, Nat Fleischer; followed closely by fellow historian, Charley Rose. Fleischer rated Gibbons as the #9 Middleweight in history, while Rose rated him even higher at #4 of all time. He is no doubt, Minnesota's all-time pound-for-pound king, per general consensus, and endorsed as such by the great George D. Blair.
He began his athletics in wrestling at the YMCA in downtown St. Paul, and it was here that he met an athletic instructor by the name of George Barton. It was a meeting that would change the course of the rest of his life. Barton, a former boxer, saw real athletic talent in Gibbons and encouraged him to try his talents with boxing. Gibbons was a natural. Barton tuned him pro in late 1907 against Newsboy Brown, a fight in which he won a 6-round decision. Boxing was illegal in Minnesota at the time, making it not only difficult to line up fights for Gibbons, but also extremely risky. Getting caught, carried with it a penalty of 7 years in jail and/or a $1,000 fine (about $23,000 today). So-called, "sneak fights" were often staged in barns, small halls, or on barges on the Mississippi. But his knack for evading punches, and his accuracy in delivering them, was quickly beginning to get Gibbons both exposure and notoriety.
From 1910 to 1921, Gibbons fought 106 fights without an official loss, facing all the top contenders of the day. Notice that the word, "contenders" and not "champions" was used here. It is a historical fact, that three world champions publicly evaded Mike Gibbons like a leper. They were George Chip, Al McCoy, and Frank Klaus. And these weren't just cases of wise managers protecting their champions (although that was true), Chip, McCoy, and Klaus wanted nothing to do with Gibbons themselves. Gibbons was commonly called the "uncrowned champion," as none would fight him with their titles at stake. Chip fought Gibbons three times, but not until years after his title reign was over. McCoy faced Mike once, and one time was enough to convince him that he best never do it again, as Gibbons gave McCoy a boxing lesson over 12 rounds. McCoy won the Middleweight crown from Chip just two months after his loss to Gibbons, but with his butt (and his ego) still sore from the whipping he had incurred from the St. Paul Phantom, he never looked Gibbons' way again. No one wanted to fight Gibbons. Why? Well, first off…you were probably going to lose. Secondly, you were going to look wholly unskilled in the process, throwing your best stuff and rarely connecting. And last, but not least; Gibbons was dangerous. Unlike the vast majority of history's defensive gurus, Gibbons had a bit of a punch. He could hurt you; especially with his right.
Indeed, the man known throughout the globe during the first quarter of the 20th Century as the greatest defensive genius of his time, also possessed a top-rate offense as well. Unlike most defensive guru's who seem to lack a punch, the same cannot be said of Gibbons. In matches where he knew he would have an official verdict, he ended things more than half of the time-an impressive KO ratio to be sure. In Gibbons' own words in 1919 before his super-fight against Mike O'Dowd, "I am a boxer, and almost without exception all my matches have been boxing matches of the no-decision variety. I have been employed by various clubs to display such skill as I have as a boxer, and it never has been part of my agreement to knock out my opponents. The men I have met have been in the same business; like me, they make their living at it, and I have on many occasions outpointed opponents whom, perhaps I could have stopped if had I wanted to. But I never could see the necessity for trying to win all my fights in this way. So, because of this, my record is not so impressive as those of other boxers who try to make every round the last one of their bouts. On several occasions though, I have tried to stop my opponents, and generally I have succeeded."
Gibbons' spent his entire career avoided by title holders-too good for his own good. It was not until 1919, when the Phantom was slowing down just a bit and coming nearer to the end of his career, would he get his only chance at winning a world title. The opportunity would come from fellow St. Paul native, Mike O'Dowd. O'Dowd had been the champion for two years and having already defended his crown six times, O'Dowd was game enough to give his Gibbons a shot. Officially the contest was a no-decision fight, as Minnesota had legalized prizefighting in 1915, but did not allow official decisions, hence the newspaper decisions of the time. O'Dowd's title would still be on the line, but only if Gibbons could knock out the champion-those were the rules of the day. No one had ever knocked either fighter out before, so a knockout was not likely for either man. Nevertheless, the world had waited for years to see Gibbons get a shot at the title, and his fight with O'Dowd was so big, that trains from all across the United States and Canada were booked full to St. Paul for the affair.
Gibbons was elusive and boxed well that evening, but he lost the verdict. With his best days behind him, O'Dowd's youth and over-aggressive style proved to be a little too much for Gibbons. The event set the Minnesota record for attendance with 9,559 people; and financially as well, with a gate of $41,846. Adjusted for inflation, this figure amounts to roughly $575,000 in today's money. Gibbons fought O'Dowd two more times, winning one of them, but both contests were after O'Dowd had lost the title to Johnny Wilson on a controversial decision. Gibbons finished his career in 1922 after knocking out Danny Fagan. He began having vision problems and his doctors told him that he could go permanently blind if he continued his ring career. He quit on the spot, and never turned back. He finished with a combined 133 fights and was never knocked out. If you account for the unofficial newspaper verdicts, his record reads as 113 wins, 9 losses, and 9 draws. A remarkable record in a remarkable era.
Mike is an inductee of both the World Boxing Hall of Fame and the International Boxing Hall of Fame.
Mike Gibbons (left) sparring with his brother Tommy Gibbons, Tommy was an all-time great light heavyweight, and like his brother Mike, Tommy had a granite chin. One difference between them though, Tommy had brutal knockout power and wouldn't hesitate to use it. Two all-time greats right here.
You know, it's fascinating that we actually have surviving footage of Mike Gibbons, his fight against Packey McFarland in 1915 and his fight against Mike O'Dowd in 1919 both survived time and are available for viewing on YouTube. Watching Gibbons on film you can tell right off the bat that you're watching an all-time great, a clever, scientific-minded fighter that would raise hell in any era. Here are some highlights of Mike Gibbons, "The St. Paul Phantom."
World welterweight champion Sugar Ray Robinson stopped Hans Stretz, ex-middleweight champion of Germany, in five rounds in Frankfurt on Christmas night, 1950.
And within 30 seconds of the fight, 29-year-old Sugar Ray showed his class by flooring Stretz with a left hook. It was the first of seven knockdowns.
It was Robinson's fourth knockout win from five fights in 29 days and the victory over Stretz came during a 91-fight winning streak, which also saw Sugar Ray win the world welterweight title shortly before Christmas in 1946.
''When I came out of boxing, it was Iike a bereavement. Every morning I had got out of bed at 6am to train, even on Christmas Day, and now I was getting up at 6am with nothing to do. My trainer once warned me that the toughest fight I wouId ever have would be out of the ring adjusting to life, and he was right.''
''One year I asked Mama what she wanted for Christmas, she laughed and said, 'Fifty thousand dollars!' I knew she was kidding but I asked her why anyway. 'Because those most money I've ever seen in one place is five hundred' she answered, 'Just to see what it Iooks like.' On Christmas morning Mama opened a present under the tree and found $50,000 in cash. I made her keep it.
A year later when I asked her what she wanted for Christmas, she stuck a finger in my face and said, 'What I don't want is any more money!' She told me a string of stories about what had happened when people found out she had that sort of money.
Old relatives she'd never even heard of showed up at her door. Close family she thought she knew began arguing about who should get what, and Mama wasn't even in those discussions. People all over the neighbourhood Iined up for some.
If she'd honoured all those requests it would have taken about $20 million, so although she didn't even mind giving most of it away, she had to say 'no' an awful lot. And when she did, you would have thought she was snatching food out of their mouths or kidnapping their children.
They got mad, they called her names, they refused to look at her in the grocery store, all because she wouldn't give them this 'extra' money that they seemed to feel she was obligated to parceI out for the asking.''
Sick photo of Kostya Tszyu, "The Thunder from Down Under", 1990s and 2000s two-time junior welterweight world champion, originally from Russia but proudly fighting out of Australia.
One of the sport’s most disciplined and devastating technicians, Tszyu unified the division, ruled with an elite jab and a lethal right hand, and became a national sporting icon in Australia.
Chris Eubank's win over Nigel Benn in 1990 was so brutal that his coach Ronnie Davies never wanted either men to go through it again.
"After the fight, I said to Barry Hearn, 'No two men has to go through that again.' It was horrendous, the punishment they took. We're in the corner and you could hear the power going in and they're going, 'Is that what you've got, you're punching like a girl! Is that what you've got?'
It's fascinating, Nigel Benn and Chris Eubank were both middleweights and they were both from the UK, they had a very bitter rivalry, Nigel Benn hated Chris Eubank and didn't hide the fact, he once said he detested Eubank but he respected him. Great photos of Nigel Benn getting in Chris Eubank's face before their second fight.
The first fight between Harry Greb and Gene Tunney on May 23, 1922, was a brutal, one-sided affair where Greb won a 15-round unanimous decision and the American light heavyweight title, inflicting Tunney's only career loss through a nearly 70-bout career. Greb, a whirlwind of aggression, broke Tunney's nose in the first round and opened severe cuts over both eyes, leaving the future heavyweight champ a bloody mess, though Tunney's courage saw him last the entire fight.
"The toughest fight I've ever had was against Harry Greb; I had a very bad time that night, it was on the 22nd of May 1922. I had my nose broken in the first 10 seconds and both of my eyes opened in the 2nd and 3rd round. Ooh, it was a pretty sorry affair. I had to go 15 rounds that way, it was pretty bad "
- Gene Tunney
Credit: The New York Times Archives
GREB TAKES TITLE FROM GENE TUNNEY; Pittsburgh Boxer Wins American Light-Heavyweight Championship in the Garden. NO QUESTION AS TO VICTOR Big Crowd Receives Decision Without Dissenting Voice After 15 Hard Rounds. LOSER IS A SORRY SIGHT Greenwich Village Fighter Badly Battered at End of Match, While Opponent Is Unmarked.
May 24, 1922
A new American light-heavyweight champion was crowned last night in Madison Square Garden, and in the coronation a qualified rival for Georges Carpentier, world's light-heavyweight champion, was produced. Harry Greb, the Pittsburgh boxer, dethroned Gene Tunney, Greenwich Village idol, in a spectacular battle. It was announced that 9,214 spectators paid to witness the bout. The gross receipts were $58,914.12. Greb weighed 162¼ pounds and Tunney 174½.
Greb, a human perpetual-motion machine, if ever there was one, received the decision of Judges Tommy Shortem and Eddie Hurley and Referee Billy (Kid) McPartland when the gong clanged the end of the fifteen-round struggle. There was no question as to the winner. The crowd acclaimed Greb almost without a dissenting voice. In defeat Tunney was a sorry sight. Shorn of his title the big Greenwich Village boxer presented a pitiable spectacle as he crossed the ring to shake the hand of his conquerer. Blood poured from a nasty gash over Tunney's left eye where an old cut was ripped open early in the fray as the heads of the combatants collided. The tireless fists of Greb had cut a gash over Tunney's right eye and the beaten champion's nose and mouth were bleeding freely-evidence of the relentless attack of the sprightly Greb, who never ceased his assault from the time the opening bell sent the men on their way until the gong clanged the end of the battle as Greb drove a straight left to Tunney's mouth.
Shows No Trace of Battle.
Greb, on the other hand, was unmarked. He was breathing rather heavily, as was natural after the energy spent as he battered his way to the title. But otherwise the Pittsburgher showed no trace of the ordeal and presented a striking contrast to the man from whom he had just gained the leading honors in the ring's 175-pound division.
Greb's persistent, unrelenting offensive won the battle and the title for the lad from Pittsburgh. Not a damaging puncher, boasting none of the destructive punching power ordinarily associated with a man of his weight, Greb made up for this shortcoming in his ability to keep ever on the move, always tearing in, bull-like, without regard for consequences, supremely confident of his own ability and disdainful in the face of his rival's fire. Had Greb possessed crushing force in his blows, it is possible he would have been returned the victor by a knockout. Certainly, he battered Tunney enough with both hands to support the belief. But, because of Greb's lack of hitting strength not an indication of a knock- down came, although the bout was a thriller. Greb carried off twelve of the rounds beyond a question. Not a round went to Tunney. The Greenwich Village idol appeared entitled to an even break in the honors of the third, fourth and seventh. But, though he fought back with all the tenacity and courage at his command, Tunney was outpointed convincingly in every other round.
The tireless Greb completely flustrated his rival with his windmill-like assault. The Pittsburgher's attack was aimless and without accurate direction, In the strict analysis, but it was steady, consistent and active—and it piled up an overwhelming margin of points for Greb. The victor entered the ring a 3 to 1 favorite to win the decision. Greb justified these odds by his work on the battle platform.
Unable to Stem Attack.
Tunney tried with every ounce of strength and every trick of the trade at his command to offset the speed and remarkable activity of his rival. But the defending champion could find no defense for the rain of blows which met him at every turn, and was completely at sea during the fifteen rounds. Finding it impossible early in the battle to stand off and keep Greb at bay, Tunney sought to flail away with both hands as did Greb. But Tunney is not built like Greb, nor has he the wonderful agility and stamina of the Pittsburgh boxer. Tunney had advantages in height, weight and reach, but they availed nothing in the face of Greb's furious assault. It In Greb was a whirlwind in action from the time the bell released the men from their respective corners. He rushed Tunney all about the ring and flayed the local boxer with a two-fisted attack before which Tunney retreated. It was a new experience for Tunney. It was not within his scope to halt the human hurricane in front of him. In the first round Greb brought the blood from Tunney's nose with an overhand left hook which described a half circle before landing.
I would love to do a profile on Harry Greb for this thread, but the truth is, I don't even know where or how to begin to cover such a great and complex fighter and man, he was a legend and arguably the greatest pound-for-pound fighter that ever lived, his resume is the greatest in boxing history, he fought and beat more Hall of Famers than anyone. I'll let Dan Morley of Boxing News online explain Greb.
Harry Greb beat the best and lived a rollercoaster life
By: Dan Morley
2nd January, 2025
Continuing his GOATs of boxing series, Dan Morley looks over the career of one of boxing’s greatest.
THE mythical claim of Greatest of All Time is an argument that will take place forever. Many opinions differ on who rightfully deserves their place amongst the pinnacle of boxing greatness and it’s difficult to compare eras, considering the natural evolution of the sport since the turn of the 20th century.
However, I believe there are nine fighters throughout history whose body of work gives them the strongest claim to GOAT status. Men whose achievements border on mythical, compiling resumes beyond belief and dominating in a manner that has never been surpassed at the peak of their powers whilst avoiding no challengers and remaining active.
You may have already read about the likes of Roberto Duran and Willie Pep. In this series, I will be covering each of these nine men’s careers and stating why I think their claim to the ‘Greatest Ever’ is so impactful. This is not to discredit any of the other legendary fighters who aren’t on this list. I simply believe what these men achieved and the manner in which they did so is just in a bracket of its own.
Today, I’ll be covering perhaps the most fascinating fighter of all time, ‘The Pittsburgh Windmill’ Harry Greb.
Harry Greb
Record: 261-16-19 (49 KOs)
Years active: 1913-1926
Harry Greb lived fast and died young. In his 32 years of life, he dodged bullets, drove cars manically and fought 299 professional fights, not including his brutal public exhibitions. Greb, in his prime, was a complete anomaly, fighting constantly in bouts ranging anywhere from 10 to 20 rounds and beating practically every major name from welterweight to heavyweight.
It’s important to note no footage has survived of any of Greb’s fights, but from the accounts of all of the greats who witnessed him, he was extremely active (Teddy Atlas states that in today’s landscape, he would’ve broken the punch stats machine) and very elusive.
He swarmed fighters early on in his career and attacked at an unrelenting pace for the duration of long fights. It’s also worth noting he wasn’t a huge puncher, which makes his unprecedented dominance across so many weight classes even more fascinating. Toward the latter stages of his career, after suffering horrendous injuries, he altered his style using more dirty tactics.
His resume is the most impressive ever, with 33 victories over 16 different international boxing Hall of Famers, ranging from welterweight champions to some of the greatest heavyweight champions ever.
In total, Greb fought in well over 60 fights against world champions and Hall of Famers. To put it into modern context, he has over 20 more victories against Hall of Famers than either Mayweather or Pacquiao. The great Jimmy McClarnin is second all-time in different Hall of Famers defeated with 13, three behind Greb.
Early on in his career, whilst learning the professional craft, Greb suffered the majority of his defeats and draws, honing a record of 53-8-11 after 73 fights. Once he hit his peak, the ‘Smoke City Wildcat’ went on an absolute war path of dominance that has never been matched.
Across his next 164 fights in a six-year span, he lost just three times and avenged every defeat. The pinnacle of that peak was his staggering 1919, where across 12 months, he achieved a perfect 45-0 record, defeating many of the greats of the era.
Greb had intended to extend that streak further, but illness and injury forced him to take out a few months of the year. The unbeaten streak would ultimately extend to 52-0 before Tommy Loughran defeated him. He responded with another 50-plus fight unbeaten streak, meaning at his best, he lost just once in over 100 fights, competing across a stretch of what would be five weight divisions today.
Through these years, he dispatched many of boxing’s greatest fighters countless times. He hospitalised legendary heavyweight world champion Gene Tunney in the first of their five-fight saga, brutalising ‘The Fighting Marine’ in the only defeat Gene ever suffered across 80-plus fights.
Hall of Famers in Battling Levinsky and Jeff Smith suffered six defeats to Greb each, Tommy Loughran four defeats, Tommy Gibbons two defeats and Leo Hauck three defeats. During his run as a middleweight contender, he was refused a shot at the title.
Therefore, after dominating at light-heavyweight, he decided to gun for Jack Dempsey’s heavyweight crown, where he defeated heavyweight title challenger Bill Brennan and leading heavyweight contenders Billy Miske, Gunboat Smith and Kid Norfolk. Despite being the leading contender for Dempsey’s heavyweight crown, the fight was never made – Greb publicly sparred Dempsey, giving the champion a brutal beating in front of a crowd.
Eventually, after 239 fights, Greb finally became the world middleweight champion, which he held for two years and 56 fights. Throughout his reign, he defeated the incredible Mickey Walker, a dual-weight world champion (who Bert Sugar ranked among the 10 greatest fighters of all time) in the most brutal 15-round war of the 1920s.
Supposedly, the pair fought again on the streets later that evening. Two weeks later, Greb defeated one of the best light-heavyweights ever in Maxie Rosenbloom over 15 rounds. In their rematch, he lost the title to the brilliant middleweight champion Tiger Flowers, having won the first bout, which brings up another important factor in judging Greb’s career. He never drew the colour line.
In an era where black fighters were outright avoided due to the colour of their skin, Greb gave many black fighters of the era, such as Tiger Flowers, Kid Zulu, Kid Norfolk and Jack Blackburn, a chance to fight.
After defeating Flowers, Greb even made it his priority to personally ensure Flowers’ safety by waiting outside his door to prevent any racial attacks from angry fans, taking the champion to his train and ensuring he boarded safely.
Having covered his dominance and success, it’s worth noting that Greb was also one of the toughest fighters to ever step in the ring. He was stopped just twice across his career, one via KO in only his eighth pro fight and the other due to a broken arm. What makes the Greb legend far more fascinating is the fact he maintained an inhuman level of activity whilst dealing with so many severe injuries, yet still never lost.
In just the first half of his career, Greb suffered a broken hand twice, broken nose twice, broken arm, broken ribs, ankle ligament damage, multiple split lips, boils which became infected, severe flu, multiple cuts, ear infection, run over by a car and split his head open in a Turkish Bath.
He also had to stay inactive when serving in the navy in the First World War and many other injuries occurred in the second half of his career, most notably being permanently blinded in one eye in his fight against Kid Norfolk, which he kept a secret until his death.
Greb packed more into 32 years than many could in multiple lifetimes, suffering great tragedy, losing multiple siblings and his wife, often being called upon to see off local troublemakers in bars, evading bullets when a gunman fired upon his friends, supposedly tussling with the mob when they offered to bribe his fights and most famously driving like a maniac, which ultimately led to his downfall.
Following a car crash which broke his nose, Greb headed to the hospital to receive minor nose surgery in a procedure that would take his life. He was just 32 years old. His great rival, Tiger Flowers, would pass away the following year similarly due to nose surgery at 32.
Whilst living one of the wildest lives of any pugilist in such a short space of time, he’s also left a legacy that, in my opinion, has never been surpassed and arguably never been matched.
Greb’s victories over Hall of Famers and world champions are as follows:
Gene Tunney, Battling Levinsky 6x, Mickey Walker, Tiger Flowers, Jeff Smith 6x, Frank Moody, Jack Dillon 2x, Billy Miske, Mike O’Dowd, Mike Gibbons, Leo Hauck 3x, George Chip, Al McCoy, Kid Norfolk, Tommy Gibbons 2x, Tommy Loughran 4x, Maxie Rosenbloom, Jack Blackburn, Mike Mctigue 2x, Johnny Wilson 3x, Jakob Bartfield 3x, Bill Brennan 4x and Eddie McGoorty. Scoring 49 wins out of the 70 fights he would have against those listed above.
Harry Greb, The Human Windmill...“A Perpetual Motion Machine.”
By: Monte D. Cox
Harry Greb, World Middleweight Boxing Champion 1923-1926, was the ever in your face nightmare, the supreme swarming style fighter. His Cyber Boxing Zone bio notes that "Greb was called “The Human Windmill” due to the constant flurries of punches he threw as well as the fast pace he kept throughout his fights." He had unending stamina, and he kept coming and you could not stop him. He had great hand speed and an iron chin. He was a whirlwind in action from the moment the opening bell rang. He could wear down any opponent given enough rounds. He sapped the energy out of his foes and battered them mercilessly from all directions. He was a ruthless master of infighting and was not adverse to using dirty tactics. Greb stayed in shaped by fighting often averaging about 22 fights a year, and in 1919 fought 45 times. At his peak he weighed between 158 and 165 pounds at 5 ft. 8in., and he often fought men who outweighed him by as much as 40 to 80 pounds. Many consider Greb as the greatest middleweight champion ever.
Historian Eric Jorgensen stated, “Greb may have been the greatest fighter, pound-for-pound, who ever lived. Certainly, he was among the top 2 or 3. He combined the speed of Ray Robinson, the durability of Jim Jeffries, the stamina of Henry Armstrong, and the unbridled ferocity of Stanley Ketchel with a will to win unsurpassed in the annals of sport. At his peak, he was unbeatable, defeating virtually every middleweight, light heavyweight and heavyweight of his generation. A great, great fighter.”
Greb’s record is virtually unbelievable. How many fighters can claim to have a record like that of Harry Greb? He defeated 18 men who held, had held, or would hold world championships, and this at a time when there were only 8 divisions in boxing and one champion in each division. The 5 middleweight champions that Greb defeated were Mike O’Dowd, George Chip, Al McCoy, Mickey Walker, Tiger Flowers and Johnny Wilson from whom he won the title. He also defeated 4 middleweight title claimants Eddie McGoorty, Frank Mantell, Jeff Smith and Bryan Downey. Greb defeated 7 light heavyweight world champions, Mike McTigue, Jack Dillon, Battling Levinsky, Tommy Loughran, Jimmy Slattery and Maxie Rosenbloom and one future world heavyweight champion, Gene Tunney whom he fought five times. Count ‘em! 5+4+7+1=18 champions who lost to Greb. Remarkable!
To really understand the era one should know that because of the “No Decision” rules that prevailed at the time the champions were not always the best fighters, there were many uncrowned champions during this period. There were so many great fighters that Greb met and defeated more first tier boxers than any other champion in history. He beat Mike Gibbons, considered by many ring historians among the top 10 all time middleweights. He beat George "Ko" Brown who twice went 20 rounds with the legendary Les Darcy. He defeated master boxer Tommy Gibbons, a light heavyweight and a truly clever mobile fighter who could feint, jab, move and do it all. He won a narrow verdict over Kid Norfolk who Jack Dempsey was accused of drawing the color line against. He beat Charlie Weinert who went on to beat heavyweight slugger Luis Firpo in a No Decision match. He also defeated heavyweights like Bill "Ko" Brennan who fought Jack Dempsey for the world title. He decisively beat Brennan in every one of their meetings to the point where it can be argued that he didn't lose a single round. Greb annihilated former "white heavyweight champion" Ed Gunboat Smith knocking him out in the first round. Greb decisioned Billy Miske who a year later would fight Dempsey for the heavyweight title. Greb beat Willie Meehan who once won a 4-round decision over Dempsey. Greb also beat several of Dempsey's favorite sparring partners like Larry Williams and Chief Clay Turner. Reigning light heavyweight champion Georges Carpentier avoided Greb like the plague. Tex Rickard was very eager to match Greb and Carpentier and even offered Carpentier a huge purse to meet Greb for the light heavyweight championship but he refused.
The question of Harry Greb's greatness cannot be disputed by the unbiased observer. His record is impeccable. The argument that one cannot know how good Greb was because there are no available films of him (except a training video) hold to an untenable argument. Historians and collectors of vintage films understand Greb's greatness based on his record and the many existing films of his opposition. There are films of Mike Gibbons, Tommy Gibbons, Tommy Loughran, Jimmy Slattery, Mickey Walker, Bill Brennan and Gene Tunney, all outstanding fighters whom Greb bested. One can see how good these fighters were and know that Greb defeated them. Further there are the newspaper accounts, with some of the bigger fights featuring round by round descriptions of the action in the ring.
Whenever great fighters of his era discussed Greb they mentioned three outstanding qualities that qualify him as the greatest swarming fighter of history. First of these was his great speed. Second of these was the relentless pace he set by the sheer volume of punches that he threw. And lastly was his impregnable chin, which is an essential ingredient to the successful swarming fighter.
Heavyweight champion Jack Dempsey said that Greb was “The fastest fighter I ever saw. Hell. Greb is faster than (lightweight champion) Benny Leonard.” In 1920 Greb, who was in training for Billy Miske, sparred Dempsey a few rounds. The sparring sessions were so good that thousands of fans showed up just to watch. According to eyewitnesses Greb “slapped the crouching heavyweight champion around, and bounced away before Dempsey could do more than cock a punch.” Jack Kearns, Dempsey’s manager, ran Greb out of camp. There was much talk of a Dempsey-Greb match for the heavyweight championship, but it never came off. It seems Jack Kearns was unwilling to take the chance.
Fighting Greb was like fighting a man with eight arms. “He was never in one spot for more than half a second,” said Gene Tunney, “All my punches were aimed and timed properly but they always wound up hitting empty air. He'd jump in and out, slamming me with a left and whirling me around with his right or the other way around. My arms were plastered with leather and although I jabbed, hooked and crossed, it was like fighting an octopus.”
Greb would swarm over his opponents with his blazing fast hands while throwing punches from all angles. Veteran fight manager Dan Morgan said, “He threw so many punches that the breeze from his misses gave opponents pneumonia. He tossed leather from all directions in fusillades, barrages, salvo’s, and volleys. Naturally being so fast and throwing so many punches he was not a knocker-outer. To shoot a real shock punch a fighter must get set, be more or less stationary for a fraction of a second. Greb was never still in the ring, so most of his knockouts were of the TKO variety.”
Greb threw so many punches, from so many angles and for so many hits that he would have drove today’s “punch stat” counters crazy. One of his opponent’s Pat Walsh said after their fight, “I thought somebody had opened up the ceiling and dumped a carload of boxing gloves on me.”
Harry had the proven tough chin needed to absorb the heavy punch of much larger men. In around 300 professional fights, which included dozens of bouts against heavyweights, he was stopped only twice, once in his first year of fighting, and once when he broke his forearm throwing a punch at Kid Graves.
Greb’s most famous victory is his win against Gene Tunney for the American light heavyweight title. Greb handed Tunney the only official defeat of his career in their first meeting. The May 24, 1922 NY Times reported, “Greb, a human perpetual motion machine if there ever was one received the decision of the judges Tommy Shortem and Eddie Hurley and Referee Billy McPartland.” The Times reported, “Tunney tried with every ounce of strength and every trick of the trade to offset the speed and remarkable ability of his rival. But the defending champion could find no defense for the rain of blows which met him at every turn.”
Grantland Rice, one of the top sportswriters of the time wrote, “Harry handled Gene like a butcher hammering a Swiss steak. How Gene survived 15 rounds I will never know.” Tunney himself said, “Greb gave me a terrible whipping. My jaw was swollen from the right temple down the cheek, along the chin and part way up the other side. The referee, the ring itself, was full of my blood. If boxing was afflicted with the commission doctors that we have now, the first fight probably would have been stopped and no one would have heard of me today.”
Greb and Tunney fought 4 more times and they were all good competitive closely contested fights and one must remember that Tunney was the naturally bigger fighter in all of these contests. Their second fight was highly controversial. Tunney won the decision in their rematch which many called the worst decision in New York history. Some sportswriters at the time declared that it called for an investigation. William Muldoon, NY State Athletic Commissioner, said in the Feb 24, 1923 NY Times “The verdict was unjust” and “(Muldoon) declares that Pittsburgh boxer (Greb) should have received decision.”
According to historian Steve Compton Gene Tunney won the the rubbermatch fair and square. The fourth bout in Cleveland was cast for Greb by 2 of 3 Cleveland papers with the third calling it a draw, and the fifth bout went to Tunney.
One of Greb’s greatest fights was his victory over welterweight and future middleweight champion Mickey Walker at the Polo Grounds in New York in 1925. Walker, himself an all time pound for pound great said in Peter Heller’s In This Corner, “Harry Greb was the greatest fighter I ever fought. He was one of the greatest that ever stepped in the ring.” The July 3, NY Times reported, “Greb retained his world middleweight title when he battered his way to the decision…in as savage and furious a ring encounter as either boxer has ever experienced.” The Times continued, “Walker left the ring badly used up. He had a split lip, a bruised and battered nose, and a cut under his right eye which was puffed and almost closed. Greb was unmarked, although he absorbed punishing blows to the body through every round.” The entire bout was fought at an extremely fast pace. Walker started off well in the early rounds but by the 6th Greb was firmly in charge. There was seesaw action in the mid to late rounds. The champion finished strongly taking the final "championship" rounds, nearly knocking Walker out in the 14th.
What is even more amazing is the fact that Greb fought most of these great fights while blind in one eye. He suffered a detached retina after being thumbed in his 1921 fight against Kid Norfolk. For five years he fought half blind.
When he finally lost the title to Tiger Flowers the split decision was a controversial one. The rematch was even more controversial. When Joe Humphreys announced Flowers as the winner by split decision with the judges, but not the referee, voting for him, the fans stormed the ring, littering it with bottles, hats, paper and everything they could find to throw in protest. Jim Crowley, the referee, walked over to Greb saying “Tough, Harry, a tough one to lose. It was your fight.” Gene Tunney who watched the affair said, “Harry won by a substantial margin. It was an unjust decision.” William Muldoon also said Greb had won, adding, “but the decision will stand. If we (The New York Athletic Commission) reversed it, the Negro people might think they were being discriminated against.”
Two months later Greb died. He was injured in an automobile accident and complained of dizziness and breathing difficulty. He would later die on the operating table as he tried to get his nose repaired so he could breathe better.
Harry Greb was the ultimate aggressive swarming style fighter, only Henry Armstrong can compare to him in terms of the volumes of punches he threw and the killing pace that he set. Not even Armstrong can compare to Greb in terms of his speed, maneuverability and durability. Greb’s perpetual motion fighting made him as dominant as any fighter who ever lived and his awesome record is virtually unmatched in the annals of boxing history.
Thanks to historian Steve Compton who is researching a book on Harry Greb for several contributions made to this article.
It's amazing to think, Greb's run in the year 1919, going 45-0 and defeating Bill Brennan 2x, Battling Levinsky 4x, Billy Miske, Mike Gibbons, Jeff Smith, Leo Houck x3, and Mike McTigue, his run in the year 1919 alone is better than some Hall of Famers entire career resume. That's what we're dealing with when we talk about Harry Greb, he was that great. Hell, there's a book written about his run that year.
This is one of the greatest boxing photos I've ever seen, it's a photo of James "Red" Mason spitting water on Harry Greb to cool him down after a training session, Red Mason was Greb's longtime manager and trainer.
It's interesting, the negative for the photo in the above post is currently for sale on eBay for the price of $300+shipping, I'm really not 100% sure if it's an original negative or some type of duplicate copy, but it's still pretty cool.
There's another Harry Greb item on eBay as we speak, this original type 1 photo of Greb, it's a photo of Greb with a load of boxing gloves. It's an absolutely sick image because fighting Greb was indeed like having a load of boxing gloves dropped on you. It's been authenticated by PSA and the price is $650+shipping, far too expensive for penniless peasantry such as myself, most Greb items are, but that's because a lot of people realize how great he truly was and the pricing of his collectibles command respect.
Another one of my favorite photos of Harry Greb, stepping out of a car prior to his fight with Mike Gibbons, hat and bag in hand, a crowd of people waiting to get a glimpse at a true bada$$.
This image of Harry Greb was used on his 1991 Kayo and his 1991 All World trading cards, it's probably my overall favorite image of him, he's dressed in all Black, a sick pose, looking right at the camera. Interesting story, a couple of years ago, the type 1 original photo of this image popped up on eBay for sale, it was an auction and I decided to try for it. So the auction started off, and the price stayed reasonable, affordable for my price range for days, I thought, damn, I might actually have a shot at this puppy. At the time I was ignorant about the way eBay auctions worked, the sniping and all that stuff, and on the final day of the auction, up until the last few minutes, the price was still affordable for me. Then bam, the snipers showed up and it went from about $120 to over $800 in an instant. It was fun while it lasted though, and it was super cool seeing that treasure actually hit the auction block and being able to participate in it.
Harry Greb and his wife Mildred, notice she's holding a cloth to his right eye. Harry Greb is widely believed to have suffered the eye injury that led to permanent blindness in his right eye during a fight in 1921. The injury occurred during a bout with light heavyweight Kid Norfolk on August 29, 1921, when he was thumbed in the eye. While this initial injury caused a retinal tear, some accounts suggest the full retinal detachment (and complete loss of sight) happened in a subsequent November 1922 fight with Bob Roper. Greb kept the blindness a secret from the public and most physicians, reportedly by memorizing eye charts for physicals, and fought the rest of his legendary career (approximately his last 80 fights) with sight in only one eye. This photo was believed to have been taken after the injury occurred. His wife Mildred passed away in 1923 from tuberculosis, Greb was 26 years old at the time and it was devastating to him, she was his high school sweetheart.
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Johnny "Honey Boy" Bratton should be in the Hall of Fame in my opinion, hopefully the powers that be will do the right thing one day and induct this great Gladiator from Chicago.
The great Johnny "Honey Boy" Bratton.
Former lightweight, light-welterweight and welterweight champion Barney Ross was born Beryl David (or Dov-Ber) Rosofsky on New York's Lower East Side in 1909.
One of the toughest fighters in history, Ross was never knocked out in 81 fights, against the best fighters of his generation.
He was lightweight and light-welterweight champion when he defeated Jimmy McLarnin to win the welterweight crown in 1934. Ross and Henry Armstrong are the only two fighters to hold three world titles simultaneously, although some historians question the recognition of Ross's light-welterweight title at that time as the division was in it's infancy.
His heroism during the second world war further enhanced his legend.
After the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor in 1941, Ross enlisted in the U.S. Marines and became a much-decorated veteran. He was 32-years-old and had to obtain a special waiver on the usual requirement that Marines be 30 or under.
Although he was assigned to work as a boxing instructor, he requested that he be sent into combat. He was sent to Guadalcanal Island, one of the most brutal U.S. military engagements against the Japanese.
On November 19, 1942, Ross and three comrades were attacked by Japanese troops while on patrol. His three fellow Marines were wounded and Ross shepherded them into a crater where he protected them throughout the night. He fired over 200 rounds of ammunition and was credited with killing seven Japanese snipers and 10 probables. By the morning, two of his colleagues had died and though wounded, he managed to carry the sole survivor to safety. For his brave efforts, Ross received the Silver Star, Purple Heart, and a Presidential Citation.
The great Benny Leonard, posing at Stillman's Gym in New York in 1931.
"The Gypsy King" Tyson Fury making his entrance in his throne before his second bout with Deontay Wilder in 2020.
Jersey Joe Walcott training with the heavy bag, sick image.
Marcel Thil, the French middleweight mauler from the 1930s.
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Music break.
"The Brockton Blockbuster" Rocky Marciano working the heavy bag.
Lupe Pintor, "El Grillo de Cuajimalpa," 1970s and 80s two-division champion, works out wearing only one glove.
Mike Gibbons, "The St. Paul Phantom", one of the greatest middleweights in history, in fact, one of the greatest fighters in boxing history. The man holds a win over Harry Greb for Christ's sake. He was a defensive wizard, that's why they called him the Phantom, because of his ability to avoid punches and counter punch. The thing about Mike Gibbons, he had good knockout power but didn't like to use it, he was never looking to hurt his opponents, just outthink them, outwit them, and he was great at that. He was only defeated three times in his entire career, and had a granite chin, he was never knocked out in 133 fights.
Credit: IBHOF
Although he never became a champion, Mike Gibbons is considered by many boxing historians to be one of the top ten middleweights of all time. Gibbons learned to box at the YMCA in his native St. Paul. He turned professional at the age of nineteen with a third-round knockout of Roy Moore and was unbeaten in his first fourteen fights before losing a decision to Jimmy Clabby. A footwork wizard who could wear an opponent out with his defensive maneuvers, Gibbons could punch hard, too. As a young fighter, he built a reputation that put him in line for the middleweight championship.
In 1912, the middleweight division had no recognized champion. More than half a dozen fighters, including Gibbons and Eddie McGoorty, claimed a right to the title. Gibbons signed to fight McGoorty with the winner to be declared champion. The heavier McGoorty was the favorite by far, and Gibbons employed his ring choreography not to beat McGoorty but to keep him from winning. Gibbons constantly backpedaled and put on a great display of footwork but he did not really fight. The newspapers awarded McGoorty the decision, but the fight's lack of action kept him from gaining general acclaim as the titleholder. Asked by a reporter why he had not fought more vigorously, Gibbons replied, "Because you and every other writer said that McGoorty would beat me, simply because he was ten pounds heavier than me. I decided to prove you were wrong, and that he couldn't lay a glove on me. And he didn't. That's all I cared about."
Gibbons continued to fight successfully after the McGoorty fight, and proved his mettle in a 1916 match with Hall of Famer Jack Dillon. At the time, Dillon was reputed to have the best punch in all of boxing. For ten rounds, Gibbons eluded Dillon's attack and countered beautifully when Dillon missed him. Gibbons won every round of the fight, according to those at ringside.
Gibbons fought for another six years, taking on Harry Greb, among others. Even the blurringly fast Greb was confused by Gibbons, by then known as the "Phantom of St. Paul." Greb shouted to his manager, "From now on, match me with one guy at a time."
Minnesota Boxing Hall of Fame - Old Timers
Mike Gibbons, "The Saint Paul Phantom", is regarded by boxing historians as the greatest fighter ever to live from the state of Minnesota, and one of the greatest fighters of all-time. The top two boxing historians are universally regarded as former Ring Magazine founder and editor, Nat Fleischer; followed closely by fellow historian, Charley Rose. Fleischer rated Gibbons as the #9 Middleweight in history, while Rose rated him even higher at #4 of all time. He is no doubt, Minnesota's all-time pound-for-pound king, per general consensus, and endorsed as such by the great George D. Blair.
He began his athletics in wrestling at the YMCA in downtown St. Paul, and it was here that he met an athletic instructor by the name of George Barton. It was a meeting that would change the course of the rest of his life. Barton, a former boxer, saw real athletic talent in Gibbons and encouraged him to try his talents with boxing. Gibbons was a natural. Barton tuned him pro in late 1907 against Newsboy Brown, a fight in which he won a 6-round decision. Boxing was illegal in Minnesota at the time, making it not only difficult to line up fights for Gibbons, but also extremely risky. Getting caught, carried with it a penalty of 7 years in jail and/or a $1,000 fine (about $23,000 today). So-called, "sneak fights" were often staged in barns, small halls, or on barges on the Mississippi. But his knack for evading punches, and his accuracy in delivering them, was quickly beginning to get Gibbons both exposure and notoriety.
From 1910 to 1921, Gibbons fought 106 fights without an official loss, facing all the top contenders of the day. Notice that the word, "contenders" and not "champions" was used here. It is a historical fact, that three world champions publicly evaded Mike Gibbons like a leper. They were George Chip, Al McCoy, and Frank Klaus. And these weren't just cases of wise managers protecting their champions (although that was true), Chip, McCoy, and Klaus wanted nothing to do with Gibbons themselves. Gibbons was commonly called the "uncrowned champion," as none would fight him with their titles at stake. Chip fought Gibbons three times, but not until years after his title reign was over. McCoy faced Mike once, and one time was enough to convince him that he best never do it again, as Gibbons gave McCoy a boxing lesson over 12 rounds. McCoy won the Middleweight crown from Chip just two months after his loss to Gibbons, but with his butt (and his ego) still sore from the whipping he had incurred from the St. Paul Phantom, he never looked Gibbons' way again. No one wanted to fight Gibbons. Why? Well, first off…you were probably going to lose. Secondly, you were going to look wholly unskilled in the process, throwing your best stuff and rarely connecting. And last, but not least; Gibbons was dangerous. Unlike the vast majority of history's defensive gurus, Gibbons had a bit of a punch. He could hurt you; especially with his right.
Indeed, the man known throughout the globe during the first quarter of the 20th Century as the greatest defensive genius of his time, also possessed a top-rate offense as well. Unlike most defensive guru's who seem to lack a punch, the same cannot be said of Gibbons. In matches where he knew he would have an official verdict, he ended things more than half of the time-an impressive KO ratio to be sure. In Gibbons' own words in 1919 before his super-fight against Mike O'Dowd, "I am a boxer, and almost without exception all my matches have been boxing matches of the no-decision variety. I have been employed by various clubs to display such skill as I have as a boxer, and it never has been part of my agreement to knock out my opponents. The men I have met have been in the same business; like me, they make their living at it, and I have on many occasions outpointed opponents whom, perhaps I could have stopped if had I wanted to. But I never could see the necessity for trying to win all my fights in this way. So, because of this, my record is not so impressive as those of other boxers who try to make every round the last one of their bouts. On several occasions though, I have tried to stop my opponents, and generally I have succeeded."
Gibbons' spent his entire career avoided by title holders-too good for his own good. It was not until 1919, when the Phantom was slowing down just a bit and coming nearer to the end of his career, would he get his only chance at winning a world title. The opportunity would come from fellow St. Paul native, Mike O'Dowd. O'Dowd had been the champion for two years and having already defended his crown six times, O'Dowd was game enough to give his Gibbons a shot. Officially the contest was a no-decision fight, as Minnesota had legalized prizefighting in 1915, but did not allow official decisions, hence the newspaper decisions of the time. O'Dowd's title would still be on the line, but only if Gibbons could knock out the champion-those were the rules of the day. No one had ever knocked either fighter out before, so a knockout was not likely for either man. Nevertheless, the world had waited for years to see Gibbons get a shot at the title, and his fight with O'Dowd was so big, that trains from all across the United States and Canada were booked full to St. Paul for the affair.
Gibbons was elusive and boxed well that evening, but he lost the verdict. With his best days behind him, O'Dowd's youth and over-aggressive style proved to be a little too much for Gibbons. The event set the Minnesota record for attendance with 9,559 people; and financially as well, with a gate of $41,846. Adjusted for inflation, this figure amounts to roughly $575,000 in today's money. Gibbons fought O'Dowd two more times, winning one of them, but both contests were after O'Dowd had lost the title to Johnny Wilson on a controversial decision. Gibbons finished his career in 1922 after knocking out Danny Fagan. He began having vision problems and his doctors told him that he could go permanently blind if he continued his ring career. He quit on the spot, and never turned back. He finished with a combined 133 fights and was never knocked out. If you account for the unofficial newspaper verdicts, his record reads as 113 wins, 9 losses, and 9 draws. A remarkable record in a remarkable era.
Mike is an inductee of both the World Boxing Hall of Fame and the International Boxing Hall of Fame.
More photos of the legendary Mike Gibbons.
Awesome drawing of Mike Gibbons a guy on Facebook did using the above photo.
Mike Gibbons (left) sparring with his brother Tommy Gibbons, Tommy was an all-time great light heavyweight, and like his brother Mike, Tommy had a granite chin. One difference between them though, Tommy had brutal knockout power and wouldn't hesitate to use it. Two all-time greats right here.
Great shot of Mike Gibbons.
1927 York Caramel Prizefighters Mike Gibbons, I would absolutely love to own this card, this set is one of the rarest boxing card sets on this planet.
This is just a beast of a photo, Mike Gibbons and his brother Tommy Gibbons pose atop a Manhattan roof in the 1910s.
Mike Gibbons (left) facing off with Jack Dillon before their bout.
Another great shot of Mike Gibbons in a fight pose.
One last good photo of Mike Gibbons.
You know, it's fascinating that we actually have surviving footage of Mike Gibbons, his fight against Packey McFarland in 1915 and his fight against Mike O'Dowd in 1919 both survived time and are available for viewing on YouTube. Watching Gibbons on film you can tell right off the bat that you're watching an all-time great, a clever, scientific-minded fighter that would raise hell in any era. Here are some highlights of Mike Gibbons, "The St. Paul Phantom."
World welterweight champion Sugar Ray Robinson stopped Hans Stretz, ex-middleweight champion of Germany, in five rounds in Frankfurt on Christmas night, 1950.
And within 30 seconds of the fight, 29-year-old Sugar Ray showed his class by flooring Stretz with a left hook. It was the first of seven knockdowns.
It was Robinson's fourth knockout win from five fights in 29 days and the victory over Stretz came during a 91-fight winning streak, which also saw Sugar Ray win the world welterweight title shortly before Christmas in 1946.
''When I came out of boxing, it was Iike a bereavement. Every morning I had got out of bed at 6am to train, even on Christmas Day, and now I was getting up at 6am with nothing to do. My trainer once warned me that the toughest fight I wouId ever have would be out of the ring adjusting to life, and he was right.''
''One year I asked Mama what she wanted for Christmas, she laughed and said, 'Fifty thousand dollars!' I knew she was kidding but I asked her why anyway. 'Because those most money I've ever seen in one place is five hundred' she answered, 'Just to see what it Iooks like.' On Christmas morning Mama opened a present under the tree and found $50,000 in cash. I made her keep it.
A year later when I asked her what she wanted for Christmas, she stuck a finger in my face and said, 'What I don't want is any more money!' She told me a string of stories about what had happened when people found out she had that sort of money.
Old relatives she'd never even heard of showed up at her door. Close family she thought she knew began arguing about who should get what, and Mama wasn't even in those discussions. People all over the neighbourhood Iined up for some.
If she'd honoured all those requests it would have taken about $20 million, so although she didn't even mind giving most of it away, she had to say 'no' an awful lot. And when she did, you would have thought she was snatching food out of their mouths or kidnapping their children.
They got mad, they called her names, they refused to look at her in the grocery store, all because she wouldn't give them this 'extra' money that they seemed to feel she was obligated to parceI out for the asking.''
Time for some music, a masterpiece from the 80s. Hey, the 80s left us, we never left the 80s.
Sonny Liston on the cover of Esquire magazine dressed as Santa Claus in December of 1963.
Sick photo of Kostya Tszyu, "The Thunder from Down Under", 1990s and 2000s two-time junior welterweight world champion, originally from Russia but proudly fighting out of Australia.
One of the sport’s most disciplined and devastating technicians, Tszyu unified the division, ruled with an elite jab and a lethal right hand, and became a national sporting icon in Australia.
Chris Eubank's win over Nigel Benn in 1990 was so brutal that his coach Ronnie Davies never wanted either men to go through it again.
"After the fight, I said to Barry Hearn, 'No two men has to go through that again.' It was horrendous, the punishment they took. We're in the corner and you could hear the power going in and they're going, 'Is that what you've got, you're punching like a girl! Is that what you've got?'
"It was brutal. Yeah, it was horrible."
It's fascinating, Nigel Benn and Chris Eubank were both middleweights and they were both from the UK, they had a very bitter rivalry, Nigel Benn hated Chris Eubank and didn't hide the fact, he once said he detested Eubank but he respected him. Great photos of Nigel Benn getting in Chris Eubank's face before their second fight.
The first fight between Harry Greb and Gene Tunney on May 23, 1922, was a brutal, one-sided affair where Greb won a 15-round unanimous decision and the American light heavyweight title, inflicting Tunney's only career loss through a nearly 70-bout career. Greb, a whirlwind of aggression, broke Tunney's nose in the first round and opened severe cuts over both eyes, leaving the future heavyweight champ a bloody mess, though Tunney's courage saw him last the entire fight.
"The toughest fight I've ever had was against Harry Greb; I had a very bad time that night, it was on the 22nd of May 1922. I had my nose broken in the first 10 seconds and both of my eyes opened in the 2nd and 3rd round. Ooh, it was a pretty sorry affair. I had to go 15 rounds that way, it was pretty bad "
Credit: The New York Times Archives
GREB TAKES TITLE FROM GENE TUNNEY; Pittsburgh Boxer Wins American Light-Heavyweight Championship in the Garden. NO QUESTION AS TO VICTOR Big Crowd Receives Decision Without Dissenting Voice After 15 Hard Rounds. LOSER IS A SORRY SIGHT Greenwich Village Fighter Badly Battered at End of Match, While Opponent Is Unmarked.
May 24, 1922
A new American light-heavyweight champion was crowned last night in Madison Square Garden, and in the coronation a qualified rival for Georges Carpentier, world's light-heavyweight champion, was produced. Harry Greb, the Pittsburgh boxer, dethroned Gene Tunney, Greenwich Village idol, in a spectacular battle. It was announced that 9,214 spectators paid to witness the bout. The gross receipts were $58,914.12. Greb weighed 162¼ pounds and Tunney 174½.
Greb, a human perpetual-motion machine, if ever there was one, received the decision of Judges Tommy Shortem and Eddie Hurley and Referee Billy (Kid) McPartland when the gong clanged the end of the fifteen-round struggle. There was no question as to the winner. The crowd acclaimed Greb almost without a dissenting voice. In defeat Tunney was a sorry sight. Shorn of his title the big Greenwich Village boxer presented a pitiable spectacle as he crossed the ring to shake the hand of his conquerer. Blood poured from a nasty gash over Tunney's left eye where an old cut was ripped open early in the fray as the heads of the combatants collided. The tireless fists of Greb had cut a gash over Tunney's right eye and the beaten champion's nose and mouth were bleeding freely-evidence of the relentless attack of the sprightly Greb, who never ceased his assault from the time the opening bell sent the men on their way until the gong clanged the end of the battle as Greb drove a straight left to Tunney's mouth.
Shows No Trace of Battle.
Greb, on the other hand, was unmarked. He was breathing rather heavily, as was natural after the energy spent as he battered his way to the title. But otherwise the Pittsburgher showed no trace of the ordeal and presented a striking contrast to the man from whom he had just gained the leading honors in the ring's 175-pound division.
Greb's persistent, unrelenting offensive won the battle and the title for the lad from Pittsburgh. Not a damaging puncher, boasting none of the destructive punching power ordinarily associated with a man of his weight, Greb made up for this shortcoming in his ability to keep ever on the move, always tearing in, bull-like, without regard for consequences, supremely confident of his own ability and disdainful in the face of his rival's fire. Had Greb possessed crushing force in his blows, it is possible he would have been returned the victor by a knockout. Certainly, he battered Tunney enough with both hands to support the belief. But, because of Greb's lack of hitting strength not an indication of a knock- down came, although the bout was a thriller. Greb carried off twelve of the rounds beyond a question. Not a round went to Tunney. The Greenwich Village idol appeared entitled to an even break in the honors of the third, fourth and seventh. But, though he fought back with all the tenacity and courage at his command, Tunney was outpointed convincingly in every other round.
The tireless Greb completely flustrated his rival with his windmill-like assault. The Pittsburgher's attack was aimless and without accurate direction, In the strict analysis, but it was steady, consistent and active—and it piled up an overwhelming margin of points for Greb. The victor entered the ring a 3 to 1 favorite to win the decision. Greb justified these odds by his work on the battle platform.
Unable to Stem Attack.
Tunney tried with every ounce of strength and every trick of the trade at his command to offset the speed and remarkable activity of his rival. But the defending champion could find no defense for the rain of blows which met him at every turn, and was completely at sea during the fifteen rounds. Finding it impossible early in the battle to stand off and keep Greb at bay, Tunney sought to flail away with both hands as did Greb. But Tunney is not built like Greb, nor has he the wonderful agility and stamina of the Pittsburgh boxer. Tunney had advantages in height, weight and reach, but they availed nothing in the face of Greb's furious assault. It In Greb was a whirlwind in action from the time the bell released the men from their respective corners. He rushed Tunney all about the ring and flayed the local boxer with a two-fisted attack before which Tunney retreated. It was a new experience for Tunney. It was not within his scope to halt the human hurricane in front of him. In the first round Greb brought the blood from Tunney's nose with an overhand left hook which described a half circle before landing.
A round by round account of the first fight between Harry Greb and Gene Tunney, the only loss of Tunney's career.
Some publications that appeared after Greb's victory over Tunney.
I would love to do a profile on Harry Greb for this thread, but the truth is, I don't even know where or how to begin to cover such a great and complex fighter and man, he was a legend and arguably the greatest pound-for-pound fighter that ever lived, his resume is the greatest in boxing history, he fought and beat more Hall of Famers than anyone. I'll let Dan Morley of Boxing News online explain Greb.
Harry Greb beat the best and lived a rollercoaster life
By: Dan Morley
2nd January, 2025
Continuing his GOATs of boxing series, Dan Morley looks over the career of one of boxing’s greatest.
THE mythical claim of Greatest of All Time is an argument that will take place forever. Many opinions differ on who rightfully deserves their place amongst the pinnacle of boxing greatness and it’s difficult to compare eras, considering the natural evolution of the sport since the turn of the 20th century.
However, I believe there are nine fighters throughout history whose body of work gives them the strongest claim to GOAT status. Men whose achievements border on mythical, compiling resumes beyond belief and dominating in a manner that has never been surpassed at the peak of their powers whilst avoiding no challengers and remaining active.
You may have already read about the likes of Roberto Duran and Willie Pep. In this series, I will be covering each of these nine men’s careers and stating why I think their claim to the ‘Greatest Ever’ is so impactful. This is not to discredit any of the other legendary fighters who aren’t on this list. I simply believe what these men achieved and the manner in which they did so is just in a bracket of its own.
Today, I’ll be covering perhaps the most fascinating fighter of all time, ‘The Pittsburgh Windmill’ Harry Greb.
Harry Greb
Record: 261-16-19 (49 KOs)
Years active: 1913-1926
Harry Greb lived fast and died young. In his 32 years of life, he dodged bullets, drove cars manically and fought 299 professional fights, not including his brutal public exhibitions. Greb, in his prime, was a complete anomaly, fighting constantly in bouts ranging anywhere from 10 to 20 rounds and beating practically every major name from welterweight to heavyweight.
It’s important to note no footage has survived of any of Greb’s fights, but from the accounts of all of the greats who witnessed him, he was extremely active (Teddy Atlas states that in today’s landscape, he would’ve broken the punch stats machine) and very elusive.
He swarmed fighters early on in his career and attacked at an unrelenting pace for the duration of long fights. It’s also worth noting he wasn’t a huge puncher, which makes his unprecedented dominance across so many weight classes even more fascinating. Toward the latter stages of his career, after suffering horrendous injuries, he altered his style using more dirty tactics.
His resume is the most impressive ever, with 33 victories over 16 different international boxing Hall of Famers, ranging from welterweight champions to some of the greatest heavyweight champions ever.
In total, Greb fought in well over 60 fights against world champions and Hall of Famers. To put it into modern context, he has over 20 more victories against Hall of Famers than either Mayweather or Pacquiao. The great Jimmy McClarnin is second all-time in different Hall of Famers defeated with 13, three behind Greb.
Early on in his career, whilst learning the professional craft, Greb suffered the majority of his defeats and draws, honing a record of 53-8-11 after 73 fights. Once he hit his peak, the ‘Smoke City Wildcat’ went on an absolute war path of dominance that has never been matched.
Across his next 164 fights in a six-year span, he lost just three times and avenged every defeat. The pinnacle of that peak was his staggering 1919, where across 12 months, he achieved a perfect 45-0 record, defeating many of the greats of the era.
Greb had intended to extend that streak further, but illness and injury forced him to take out a few months of the year. The unbeaten streak would ultimately extend to 52-0 before Tommy Loughran defeated him. He responded with another 50-plus fight unbeaten streak, meaning at his best, he lost just once in over 100 fights, competing across a stretch of what would be five weight divisions today.
Through these years, he dispatched many of boxing’s greatest fighters countless times. He hospitalised legendary heavyweight world champion Gene Tunney in the first of their five-fight saga, brutalising ‘The Fighting Marine’ in the only defeat Gene ever suffered across 80-plus fights.
Hall of Famers in Battling Levinsky and Jeff Smith suffered six defeats to Greb each, Tommy Loughran four defeats, Tommy Gibbons two defeats and Leo Hauck three defeats. During his run as a middleweight contender, he was refused a shot at the title.
Therefore, after dominating at light-heavyweight, he decided to gun for Jack Dempsey’s heavyweight crown, where he defeated heavyweight title challenger Bill Brennan and leading heavyweight contenders Billy Miske, Gunboat Smith and Kid Norfolk. Despite being the leading contender for Dempsey’s heavyweight crown, the fight was never made – Greb publicly sparred Dempsey, giving the champion a brutal beating in front of a crowd.
Eventually, after 239 fights, Greb finally became the world middleweight champion, which he held for two years and 56 fights. Throughout his reign, he defeated the incredible Mickey Walker, a dual-weight world champion (who Bert Sugar ranked among the 10 greatest fighters of all time) in the most brutal 15-round war of the 1920s.
Supposedly, the pair fought again on the streets later that evening. Two weeks later, Greb defeated one of the best light-heavyweights ever in Maxie Rosenbloom over 15 rounds. In their rematch, he lost the title to the brilliant middleweight champion Tiger Flowers, having won the first bout, which brings up another important factor in judging Greb’s career. He never drew the colour line.
In an era where black fighters were outright avoided due to the colour of their skin, Greb gave many black fighters of the era, such as Tiger Flowers, Kid Zulu, Kid Norfolk and Jack Blackburn, a chance to fight.
After defeating Flowers, Greb even made it his priority to personally ensure Flowers’ safety by waiting outside his door to prevent any racial attacks from angry fans, taking the champion to his train and ensuring he boarded safely.
Having covered his dominance and success, it’s worth noting that Greb was also one of the toughest fighters to ever step in the ring. He was stopped just twice across his career, one via KO in only his eighth pro fight and the other due to a broken arm. What makes the Greb legend far more fascinating is the fact he maintained an inhuman level of activity whilst dealing with so many severe injuries, yet still never lost.
In just the first half of his career, Greb suffered a broken hand twice, broken nose twice, broken arm, broken ribs, ankle ligament damage, multiple split lips, boils which became infected, severe flu, multiple cuts, ear infection, run over by a car and split his head open in a Turkish Bath.
He also had to stay inactive when serving in the navy in the First World War and many other injuries occurred in the second half of his career, most notably being permanently blinded in one eye in his fight against Kid Norfolk, which he kept a secret until his death.
Greb packed more into 32 years than many could in multiple lifetimes, suffering great tragedy, losing multiple siblings and his wife, often being called upon to see off local troublemakers in bars, evading bullets when a gunman fired upon his friends, supposedly tussling with the mob when they offered to bribe his fights and most famously driving like a maniac, which ultimately led to his downfall.
Following a car crash which broke his nose, Greb headed to the hospital to receive minor nose surgery in a procedure that would take his life. He was just 32 years old. His great rival, Tiger Flowers, would pass away the following year similarly due to nose surgery at 32.
Whilst living one of the wildest lives of any pugilist in such a short space of time, he’s also left a legacy that, in my opinion, has never been surpassed and arguably never been matched.
Greb’s victories over Hall of Famers and world champions are as follows:
Gene Tunney, Battling Levinsky 6x, Mickey Walker, Tiger Flowers, Jeff Smith 6x, Frank Moody, Jack Dillon 2x, Billy Miske, Mike O’Dowd, Mike Gibbons, Leo Hauck 3x, George Chip, Al McCoy, Kid Norfolk, Tommy Gibbons 2x, Tommy Loughran 4x, Maxie Rosenbloom, Jack Blackburn, Mike Mctigue 2x, Johnny Wilson 3x, Jakob Bartfield 3x, Bill Brennan 4x and Eddie McGoorty. Scoring 49 wins out of the 70 fights he would have against those listed above.
Another article about Harry Greb.
Cox's Corner Profiles
Harry Greb, The Human Windmill...“A Perpetual Motion Machine.”
By: Monte D. Cox
Harry Greb, World Middleweight Boxing Champion 1923-1926, was the ever in your face nightmare, the supreme swarming style fighter. His Cyber Boxing Zone bio notes that "Greb was called “The Human Windmill” due to the constant flurries of punches he threw as well as the fast pace he kept throughout his fights." He had unending stamina, and he kept coming and you could not stop him. He had great hand speed and an iron chin. He was a whirlwind in action from the moment the opening bell rang. He could wear down any opponent given enough rounds. He sapped the energy out of his foes and battered them mercilessly from all directions. He was a ruthless master of infighting and was not adverse to using dirty tactics. Greb stayed in shaped by fighting often averaging about 22 fights a year, and in 1919 fought 45 times. At his peak he weighed between 158 and 165 pounds at 5 ft. 8in., and he often fought men who outweighed him by as much as 40 to 80 pounds. Many consider Greb as the greatest middleweight champion ever.
Historian Eric Jorgensen stated, “Greb may have been the greatest fighter, pound-for-pound, who ever lived. Certainly, he was among the top 2 or 3. He combined the speed of Ray Robinson, the durability of Jim Jeffries, the stamina of Henry Armstrong, and the unbridled ferocity of Stanley Ketchel with a will to win unsurpassed in the annals of sport. At his peak, he was unbeatable, defeating virtually every middleweight, light heavyweight and heavyweight of his generation. A great, great fighter.”
Greb’s record is virtually unbelievable. How many fighters can claim to have a record like that of Harry Greb? He defeated 18 men who held, had held, or would hold world championships, and this at a time when there were only 8 divisions in boxing and one champion in each division. The 5 middleweight champions that Greb defeated were Mike O’Dowd, George Chip, Al McCoy, Mickey Walker, Tiger Flowers and Johnny Wilson from whom he won the title. He also defeated 4 middleweight title claimants Eddie McGoorty, Frank Mantell, Jeff Smith and Bryan Downey. Greb defeated 7 light heavyweight world champions, Mike McTigue, Jack Dillon, Battling Levinsky, Tommy Loughran, Jimmy Slattery and Maxie Rosenbloom and one future world heavyweight champion, Gene Tunney whom he fought five times. Count ‘em! 5+4+7+1=18 champions who lost to Greb. Remarkable!
To really understand the era one should know that because of the “No Decision” rules that prevailed at the time the champions were not always the best fighters, there were many uncrowned champions during this period. There were so many great fighters that Greb met and defeated more first tier boxers than any other champion in history. He beat Mike Gibbons, considered by many ring historians among the top 10 all time middleweights. He beat George "Ko" Brown who twice went 20 rounds with the legendary Les Darcy. He defeated master boxer Tommy Gibbons, a light heavyweight and a truly clever mobile fighter who could feint, jab, move and do it all. He won a narrow verdict over Kid Norfolk who Jack Dempsey was accused of drawing the color line against. He beat Charlie Weinert who went on to beat heavyweight slugger Luis Firpo in a No Decision match. He also defeated heavyweights like Bill "Ko" Brennan who fought Jack Dempsey for the world title. He decisively beat Brennan in every one of their meetings to the point where it can be argued that he didn't lose a single round. Greb annihilated former "white heavyweight champion" Ed Gunboat Smith knocking him out in the first round. Greb decisioned Billy Miske who a year later would fight Dempsey for the heavyweight title. Greb beat Willie Meehan who once won a 4-round decision over Dempsey. Greb also beat several of Dempsey's favorite sparring partners like Larry Williams and Chief Clay Turner. Reigning light heavyweight champion Georges Carpentier avoided Greb like the plague. Tex Rickard was very eager to match Greb and Carpentier and even offered Carpentier a huge purse to meet Greb for the light heavyweight championship but he refused.
The question of Harry Greb's greatness cannot be disputed by the unbiased observer. His record is impeccable. The argument that one cannot know how good Greb was because there are no available films of him (except a training video) hold to an untenable argument. Historians and collectors of vintage films understand Greb's greatness based on his record and the many existing films of his opposition. There are films of Mike Gibbons, Tommy Gibbons, Tommy Loughran, Jimmy Slattery, Mickey Walker, Bill Brennan and Gene Tunney, all outstanding fighters whom Greb bested. One can see how good these fighters were and know that Greb defeated them. Further there are the newspaper accounts, with some of the bigger fights featuring round by round descriptions of the action in the ring.
Whenever great fighters of his era discussed Greb they mentioned three outstanding qualities that qualify him as the greatest swarming fighter of history. First of these was his great speed. Second of these was the relentless pace he set by the sheer volume of punches that he threw. And lastly was his impregnable chin, which is an essential ingredient to the successful swarming fighter.
Heavyweight champion Jack Dempsey said that Greb was “The fastest fighter I ever saw. Hell. Greb is faster than (lightweight champion) Benny Leonard.” In 1920 Greb, who was in training for Billy Miske, sparred Dempsey a few rounds. The sparring sessions were so good that thousands of fans showed up just to watch. According to eyewitnesses Greb “slapped the crouching heavyweight champion around, and bounced away before Dempsey could do more than cock a punch.” Jack Kearns, Dempsey’s manager, ran Greb out of camp. There was much talk of a Dempsey-Greb match for the heavyweight championship, but it never came off. It seems Jack Kearns was unwilling to take the chance.
Fighting Greb was like fighting a man with eight arms. “He was never in one spot for more than half a second,” said Gene Tunney, “All my punches were aimed and timed properly but they always wound up hitting empty air. He'd jump in and out, slamming me with a left and whirling me around with his right or the other way around. My arms were plastered with leather and although I jabbed, hooked and crossed, it was like fighting an octopus.”
Greb would swarm over his opponents with his blazing fast hands while throwing punches from all angles. Veteran fight manager Dan Morgan said, “He threw so many punches that the breeze from his misses gave opponents pneumonia. He tossed leather from all directions in fusillades, barrages, salvo’s, and volleys. Naturally being so fast and throwing so many punches he was not a knocker-outer. To shoot a real shock punch a fighter must get set, be more or less stationary for a fraction of a second. Greb was never still in the ring, so most of his knockouts were of the TKO variety.”
Greb threw so many punches, from so many angles and for so many hits that he would have drove today’s “punch stat” counters crazy. One of his opponent’s Pat Walsh said after their fight, “I thought somebody had opened up the ceiling and dumped a carload of boxing gloves on me.”
Harry had the proven tough chin needed to absorb the heavy punch of much larger men. In around 300 professional fights, which included dozens of bouts against heavyweights, he was stopped only twice, once in his first year of fighting, and once when he broke his forearm throwing a punch at Kid Graves.
Greb’s most famous victory is his win against Gene Tunney for the American light heavyweight title. Greb handed Tunney the only official defeat of his career in their first meeting. The May 24, 1922 NY Times reported, “Greb, a human perpetual motion machine if there ever was one received the decision of the judges Tommy Shortem and Eddie Hurley and Referee Billy McPartland.” The Times reported, “Tunney tried with every ounce of strength and every trick of the trade to offset the speed and remarkable ability of his rival. But the defending champion could find no defense for the rain of blows which met him at every turn.”
Grantland Rice, one of the top sportswriters of the time wrote, “Harry handled Gene like a butcher hammering a Swiss steak. How Gene survived 15 rounds I will never know.” Tunney himself said, “Greb gave me a terrible whipping. My jaw was swollen from the right temple down the cheek, along the chin and part way up the other side. The referee, the ring itself, was full of my blood. If boxing was afflicted with the commission doctors that we have now, the first fight probably would have been stopped and no one would have heard of me today.”
Greb and Tunney fought 4 more times and they were all good competitive closely contested fights and one must remember that Tunney was the naturally bigger fighter in all of these contests. Their second fight was highly controversial. Tunney won the decision in their rematch which many called the worst decision in New York history. Some sportswriters at the time declared that it called for an investigation. William Muldoon, NY State Athletic Commissioner, said in the Feb 24, 1923 NY Times “The verdict was unjust” and “(Muldoon) declares that Pittsburgh boxer (Greb) should have received decision.”
According to historian Steve Compton Gene Tunney won the the rubbermatch fair and square. The fourth bout in Cleveland was cast for Greb by 2 of 3 Cleveland papers with the third calling it a draw, and the fifth bout went to Tunney.
One of Greb’s greatest fights was his victory over welterweight and future middleweight champion Mickey Walker at the Polo Grounds in New York in 1925. Walker, himself an all time pound for pound great said in Peter Heller’s In This Corner, “Harry Greb was the greatest fighter I ever fought. He was one of the greatest that ever stepped in the ring.” The July 3, NY Times reported, “Greb retained his world middleweight title when he battered his way to the decision…in as savage and furious a ring encounter as either boxer has ever experienced.” The Times continued, “Walker left the ring badly used up. He had a split lip, a bruised and battered nose, and a cut under his right eye which was puffed and almost closed. Greb was unmarked, although he absorbed punishing blows to the body through every round.” The entire bout was fought at an extremely fast pace. Walker started off well in the early rounds but by the 6th Greb was firmly in charge. There was seesaw action in the mid to late rounds. The champion finished strongly taking the final "championship" rounds, nearly knocking Walker out in the 14th.
What is even more amazing is the fact that Greb fought most of these great fights while blind in one eye. He suffered a detached retina after being thumbed in his 1921 fight against Kid Norfolk. For five years he fought half blind.
When he finally lost the title to Tiger Flowers the split decision was a controversial one. The rematch was even more controversial. When Joe Humphreys announced Flowers as the winner by split decision with the judges, but not the referee, voting for him, the fans stormed the ring, littering it with bottles, hats, paper and everything they could find to throw in protest. Jim Crowley, the referee, walked over to Greb saying “Tough, Harry, a tough one to lose. It was your fight.” Gene Tunney who watched the affair said, “Harry won by a substantial margin. It was an unjust decision.” William Muldoon also said Greb had won, adding, “but the decision will stand. If we (The New York Athletic Commission) reversed it, the Negro people might think they were being discriminated against.”
Two months later Greb died. He was injured in an automobile accident and complained of dizziness and breathing difficulty. He would later die on the operating table as he tried to get his nose repaired so he could breathe better.
Harry Greb was the ultimate aggressive swarming style fighter, only Henry Armstrong can compare to him in terms of the volumes of punches he threw and the killing pace that he set. Not even Armstrong can compare to Greb in terms of his speed, maneuverability and durability. Greb’s perpetual motion fighting made him as dominant as any fighter who ever lived and his awesome record is virtually unmatched in the annals of boxing history.
Thanks to historian Steve Compton who is researching a book on Harry Greb for several contributions made to this article.
It's amazing to think, Greb's run in the year 1919, going 45-0 and defeating Bill Brennan 2x, Battling Levinsky 4x, Billy Miske, Mike Gibbons, Jeff Smith, Leo Houck x3, and Mike McTigue, his run in the year 1919 alone is better than some Hall of Famers entire career resume. That's what we're dealing with when we talk about Harry Greb, he was that great. Hell, there's a book written about his run that year.
This is one of the greatest boxing photos I've ever seen, it's a photo of James "Red" Mason spitting water on Harry Greb to cool him down after a training session, Red Mason was Greb's longtime manager and trainer.
It's interesting, the negative for the photo in the above post is currently for sale on eBay for the price of $300+shipping, I'm really not 100% sure if it's an original negative or some type of duplicate copy, but it's still pretty cool.
There's another Harry Greb item on eBay as we speak, this original type 1 photo of Greb, it's a photo of Greb with a load of boxing gloves. It's an absolutely sick image because fighting Greb was indeed like having a load of boxing gloves dropped on you. It's been authenticated by PSA and the price is $650+shipping, far too expensive for penniless peasantry such as myself, most Greb items are, but that's because a lot of people realize how great he truly was and the pricing of his collectibles command respect.
Another one of my favorite photos of Harry Greb, stepping out of a car prior to his fight with Mike Gibbons, hat and bag in hand, a crowd of people waiting to get a glimpse at a true bada$$.
This image of Harry Greb was used on his 1991 Kayo and his 1991 All World trading cards, it's probably my overall favorite image of him, he's dressed in all Black, a sick pose, looking right at the camera. Interesting story, a couple of years ago, the type 1 original photo of this image popped up on eBay for sale, it was an auction and I decided to try for it. So the auction started off, and the price stayed reasonable, affordable for my price range for days, I thought, damn, I might actually have a shot at this puppy. At the time I was ignorant about the way eBay auctions worked, the sniping and all that stuff, and on the final day of the auction, up until the last few minutes, the price was still affordable for me. Then bam, the snipers showed up and it went from about $120 to over $800 in an instant. It was fun while it lasted though, and it was super cool seeing that treasure actually hit the auction block and being able to participate in it.
Harry Greb and his daughter Dorothy looking through a magazine together, Greb was a good man, a family man.
Harry Greb has a meal while resting up.
Harry Greb stands across from one of the most bizarre fighters of all time, Bob Roper, who has a snake around his neck.
Harry Greb and his wife Mildred, notice she's holding a cloth to his right eye. Harry Greb is widely believed to have suffered the eye injury that led to permanent blindness in his right eye during a fight in 1921. The injury occurred during a bout with light heavyweight Kid Norfolk on August 29, 1921, when he was thumbed in the eye. While this initial injury caused a retinal tear, some accounts suggest the full retinal detachment (and complete loss of sight) happened in a subsequent November 1922 fight with Bob Roper. Greb kept the blindness a secret from the public and most physicians, reportedly by memorizing eye charts for physicals, and fought the rest of his legendary career (approximately his last 80 fights) with sight in only one eye. This photo was believed to have been taken after the injury occurred. His wife Mildred passed away in 1923 from tuberculosis, Greb was 26 years old at the time and it was devastating to him, she was his high school sweetheart.