The Minneapolis journal., 1902-07-19
THEY FAVOR JEFF.
Local Sporting Men Think He Will
Beat Fitz.
THINK THAT AGE WILL TELL
Gallant Old Australian
Fighter.

Jeffries and Fitzsimmons only five days
away, there Is a remarkable dearth OF
interest among local sporting men In the
outcome of the battle. Hardly a bet OF
consequence has been made, and men who
ordinarily follow closely the trend Of af-H
fairs pugilistic actually confess Ignorance
of the exact date of the mill, when asked
for their opinion Of the result,
Needless to say, the great balance OF
opinion is on the side Of the champion.
Nothing succeeds like success, and this is
true of nothing so much as of fighters
The holder of the title always has the
long end of the betting, regardless OF form
or other conditions that usually influence
the gambling fraterity. -.
The general opinion among local sports
is that Fitzsimmons is too old man to
endure a grueling battle such as he is
sure to get from the burly champion,
apd three years ago admit that he has
certain ability of winning fights, whether
his style of fighting commends itself to
the eye or not. The champions great
ability to stand punishment is also quoted
as a point in his favor. You couldn't
knock that big brute of Jeffries out
with a pickax," is remark frequently
heard in discussions of the coming mill.
On the other hand, there is surpris-
ingly large number Of men who: still have
confidence in the gallant old Australian.
They maintain that Fitz was over
confident, and underesttma ted his oppon-
ent when he met Jeffries three years ago.
The time that has elapsed since then,
they say, will have little effect on man
so we'll preserved as the ex-champion, and
they think that he will rush Jeffries from
the start and send him to the mat before
the younger mans superior strength,
weight and endurance has had an oppor-
tunity to tell in the result. They also
say that the fast life Jeffries has been
leading will tell upon him. -.
Oscar Gardner, the Omaha Kid" him
self the hero Of 536 battles, and who
holds the unprecedented recordDof hav-
says that Jeffries has cinch. II cant
see anything to it but Jeffries,'' he said
to-day II give him just six rounds to
put Fitz on the grass. Why, just con-
slider the odds in his favor. He is six
teen years younger than Fitz: he is fifty
pounds heavier, and he Is. his equal IN
ring generalshtp, and can hit a harder
punch Now, can you show any ad-
vantage that Fitz has to Offset these
handicaps? Fitz isAover forty years old,
and certainly he is not as fast as ne
was ten years ago.. -. x = -
r, Different Proposition Now. ~
5s,eI grant you that Fitz was not properly
prepared to meet Jeffries three years ago
at conev island. He underestimated his
opponent, who did not show up as ne
should x Every, one who is conyersapt
with ring affairs will admit that. But
granting that, Jeffries is a very different
man from what he was in 1893. He has
been through three championship battles,
has met the best men In the ring, and II
he ever is to know the game, he must
IT, I1or hon
getting older every year., and the years
tell on him much more than they, do on
man of the age of Jeffries.' r.
"The public generally thinks Jeffries Is
q big, clumsy fellow, with hard punch
and a great capacity for standing punish
ment. Now, that is all mistake. You
would be surprised to see haw active jef-
fries really Is. He is the quickest Dig
man I ever saw and the cleverest. Cor
bett is quicker and shiftier, but Corbetf
is much lighter and smaller man. The
difference between them is that Corbett
Is a big clever fellow with big streak
of yellow, and Jeffries Is q fight er:, When
the two fought in New York two years
ago, Jeffries made a monkey OF him.
| 'The newspaper men al said that II the
fight had gone the limit, Corbett would
have secured the decision. That Is nom
sense. When a man is lighting on the
defensive, according to all the rules OF
pugilism, he is getting the worst OF 1t,
and the referee must decide against him.
Now, Corbett, whenever he hit Jeffries,
was always thinking Of getting away
again, and consequently he lost the force
of his blows. Besides that, three out of
four blows that he struck we're not given
| to- inflich punishment on Jeffries, but to
keep Jeffries away from Corbett. He was
| on the defensive all of the time. IA .ts<
The same way when Jeffries fought
Sharkey. Why, he only had one hand
/ then, but he made Sharkey look like a
schoolboy with that one. The pictures
| of the fight show Sharkey the aggressor.
but they do not show that Jeffries Let
1.-The sailor come on, and then knocked him
away with his one hand when he came.
| That beating Sharkey got from Jeffries
was the thing that put him out of the
going, and enabled Rubin to whip him
some eight months later. =. q:
.I consider the bout about a twenty to
one shot, and while nothing in the result
4 OF prize fight ought to surprise any
body, / shall be very much surprised II
Fitz lasts more than six rounds against
the champion" ~
j Billy Edwards Favors JEFF.
Billy Edwards, of the Metropolitan the
ater, one of the best informed men in the
! city upon matters pugilistic, said:
~ cannot see anything but. Jeffries in
the fight. Provided the fight three years
ago was on the square, as / believe It was
you must concede that Fitz stands less
chance now than he did then. Fitz Is q
grand old fighter, but he has gone back
/ Undoubtedly. No ter how we'll pre-
served he is, he cannot do the amount OF
work and show the same amount Of GIN
ger that he did, when he was % or 80
On the other hand, Jeffries is right in his
prime, and ought to be better now than
! he ever was.
s.There are lot Of stories being cir
/ culated about the fast life that -Jeffries
i has led since he became champion, but
4 such stories are bruited about In regard
to every champion. and should not be
i given too much credence. The reports
!. from Jeffries' training quarters say tina;
1 he is in magnificent condition and If he
/ is even fairly we'll prepared I think his
! youth and strength will enable him te
stand the gaff better than Fitz. .
Fitz in a Walk. a
George E. Kent, the well known patror
of sports, thinks that Fitz will win in q
i walk. He said:
/ 81 can't seess how Jeffries can possibl!
i get anything over the old man, and ex.
4 pect the red-haired fellow to whip him IL
4 Just about eight rounds Now look a
4 the proposition. Fitz is man who out
4 side OF the ring does not know. mucl
i more than 10-yea-old boy. He is a per
i feet child in many ways. but In the rint
4 he is the past master. He has harder
i punch than Jeffries, and he will not b.
| over confident as he was in 1899. WheI
1 they met at. Coney Island Fitz thought b.
had some easy money. He thought he hal
1 Jeffries whipped, and he did have hin
II xsfb{ hut "a Ua tpd In, Le a