Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-06-29
MANY FIGHTS SCHEDULED
TO TAKE PLACE. JULY 4
Best Bout of All Is That Booked Between
Richie and Rivers in Frisco
Other Gossip.

at 133 pounds and il was up to him to
keep it at that weight. but he has seen
! mt TO boost it up a pound and thereby
| opens the way for still another boost by
matching up with Packey Mcfarland and
| Freddy Welsh the British champion
| The latter won his title at 80 pounds,
which is the limit in his country. and
therefore he has always stood ready 70
match up at that poundage. Mcfarland
has always been kept out of the running
by the claim that he could not make the
lightweight limit At 13J Packey can do
business very nicely and make the weight.
1T Is really too bad that we have not
got a boxing association in this country
to control the sport and be able to nego-
tiate for just such change in weights as
has been suggested above. AS 1t is every
thing is left to the boxers. and they jug
gle the weights to suit or fit their own
cases.
However. there are few who would not
recognize Joe Rivers as lightweight cham
pion in case ne defeated Richie. but 1t
always leaves that loophole for technical
that the British weights are the best yet
advanced, and IL would be good thing
To have the lightweights at 135 and the
feathers at - with the bantams at lis.
That would leave the little fellows for a
special class around IL. the same as the
British have now. Ii is the same with
most of the middleweights just now.
Most of them are trying to push the
the foreign weight, and it looks as though
they will succeed. That is why a national
association is so badly needed in this
country-to control the scale of weights
and arrange a uniform set of rules.
For three years Freddy Welsh. the
British lightweight champion. has been
trying TO get on a championship match in
this country. but without success. In 1910
he came over here and tried to match up
with Battling Nelson and then Wolgast
but never succeeded in getting near his
goal until 1911. when he was matched up
with Wolgast at Los Angeles. The illness
of Wolgast at the eleventh hour prevent
ed the contest and Willie Richie was
substituted. Welsh winning the bout on
points.
Then came the match between Richie
and WolgaSt for the title and Willie won
it, Welsh. unable to get title match
here, returned to England to try to
wipe out the defeat he suffered previous
~ a the hands of Mat Wells for the
British title. Freddy finally got his rival
into another match and November II,
1872 he turned the tables, defeating
Wells. Later he defeated Hughie Me-
hogan of Australia and thereby won the
lightweight championship of Europe and
also Australia
With the title of two countries at his
belt Freddy returned to the states and
once more began campaign for the title
match and this time ii looks as though he
will succeed for from reports received
by the writer he will meet Richie in a
worlds championship match at a point
near Vancouver. B. c., Labor day. 1t
will be the first real international match
OF the kind since Kid Lavigne fought in
England some years ago. OF course this
all depends upon Ritchie winning from
Rivers at Frisco. July A.
The scene of the encounter will be at
Brighouse. about eight miles out of Van
couver. and the arena will seat over 1908
people. The match is as good as made
now-tt all depends upon the outcome of
the big holiday bout The weight WILL in
all probability. be 135 pounds. which will
suit both nicely, although Welsh can
make 1S3 without any bother
IL the boys do come together it will be
a contest worth seeing, for each has a
different style of boxing which means
that good bout will result. Welsh has
more cleverness than Ritchie while the
latter is the more aggressive and strong
er-the proper combination to bring about
crackerjack battle. 1t will also decide
once and for all time the worlds cham.
plon in the lightweight class