#OnThisDay in 1892 James J Corbett defeated the iconic John L Sullivan to become the first world heavyweight champion under Queensbury Rules at the Olympic Club in New Orleans. In his 1926 book, The Roar of the Crowd: The true tale of the rise and fall of a champion, Corbett recounted his memories of the historic contest in front of 10,000 fans: “When we came up for the twenty-first round it looked as if the fight would last ten or fifteen rounds longer. Right away I went up to him, feinted with my left and hit him with a left-hand hook alongside the jaw pretty hard, and I saw his eyes roll. . . . Summoning all the reserve force I had left I let my guns go, right and left, with all the dynamite Nature had given me, and Sullivan stood dazed and rocking. So I set myself for an instant, put just 'a little more' in a right and hit him alongside the jaw. And he fell helpless on the ground, on his stomach, and rolled over on his back! The referee, his seconds and mine picked him up and put him in his corner; and the audience went wild.” It was Sullivan's only defeat and his last fight #boxing #BoxingNews #BoxingHistory #JamesJCorbett #SullivanCorbett (at New Orleans, Louisiana) https://www.instagram.com/p/BnasknvBlbH/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=redl41tc3p89
