Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1916-03-25
WILLARD 2 TO l FAVORITE
IN BIG BOUT WITH MORAN
,.,,Iausd from PaFc one

s..uausa from Psge Ons
"a The dear old public is keeping off
hout and saving its money TO pur-
~ esss tickets from the spectators
!, that, the inhabitants of this village
,,neling with expectancy, and quite
~ s.w unfortunates in the outside world
rev iew.oInine their ears for tidings from
ae ss,nasjde The 10-round, no-decision
tne .,. hoIween the giants is the most inn
patno pnn, contest staged since the Jeffries-
pole.an disaster in Reno some time ago,
goa'syt s .ot only that, the purse is the larg-
snu ...sr ~ offered In the history of pugilism
~ short bout.
y xruiord win receive S55,1OO win, lose
ssavv and Moran gets S26,750 under the
ssme harsh conditions
willard Favorite
r. e the consensus of opinion of the
.rmsrous experts that Willard will be an
.ssy winner over Moran, put there are a
-. sas n The minority who take the opposite
lsr s'r THE champion has the advantage
y hs,sht reach and weight but Moran
~. tbat dogged determination, gameness
w wicked fight-hand punch to offset
~. handicaps. Willard is inches
'a,iar than his opponent. His reach is 6
,sesss longer and he weighs so pounds
more.
mus Il can be seen that Jess has
...mandous advantage TO begin with. for
tis height and reach will keep Moran
,-,sssng during the first few rounds. His
IN lab is a wonderful defensive and Of
fensive weapon, for he can hold 1t out
s,rairbt and keep Moran at a safe dis
lance while he inicts terrible punish
s,snt If willard could land his left
rontnuously the challenger would not get
oiose enough to even touch him. The
ADDITIONAL inches in reach would make
M battle look like one between a war
ship carrying guns that will kill at 90
miles against one equipped with guns that
can carry but 15 miles.
B,it this does not mean that Willard
viii not be hit. There Is such thing
as lodging blows in the ring, and Moran
4 one Of the cutest little dodgers in the
business. He will get inside of willards
lsft leads, and when he does. he will land
few punches which are likely to shake
the champion.
less Defense
Much has been written about wilIard's
defense Exuberant boosters have watch
ed the tltleholder in his training bouts
with Hemple and Walter Monihan and
then declared that Jess cannot possibly
be hit. That is true when he boxes with
his sparring partners. He has been work.
ing with this pair for nearly two years.
and knows their every move. Jess an
tcipates every lead they make and for
that reason looks good in practice.
; We watched Willard 1ox last Thursday
and his work was excellent against Hem
pie and Monihan. But when he mixed
with Boer Rodel, ham boxer who has
I'm, fp, n,,1t
a different story The Boer landed many
telling blows on the jaw and body and
seemed to have little difficulty in pene-
tratlng that much-advertised defense.
Rodel is eight inches shorter, weighs
about 1S0 pounds and worked more like
a champion than the big fellow.
Now, If Rodel can hit willard, what
will Moran be able to do? Frank says
he can defeat any man that he can hit
VIII he be able to hit Willard hard
snough to measure him longitudinally on
The floor for 10 seconds? 1t is this un-
certainty that has made the big battle
Iuch an interesting affair.
Moran Wide Open
Then we can take a look at Moran.
Ie is one of the most open fighters in the
uslness and can be hit with little trou-
lie. In all of his previous bouts he has
cen willing to take seven or eight punch
8 to land one. Coffey battered him all
ver the ring for eight rounds in the last
uss and had a big lead on points before
rank slipped over the sleep-producing
lallop.
Willard will be able to do the same
hing as Coffey He should land many
lows with his long left If he carries the |
ght to his opponent and jab Moran's |
cad off before the bout has progressed |
cry far. Moran stands with his left |
tretched out like a man cropping for |
omething in the dark and seems ready !
. push it into the face of his foe in
tead Of hitting. His right fist is drawn |
ack ready TO let go at any instant. He |
epends on that one blow to win his bat |
es, He telegraphs this blow, however,
'r he jumps forward. sets himself and |
hen draws back his arm. A straight left j
ID will stop it.
Following up the grand old dope, it |
inst be admitted that both men will wal
p each other, and it will be a question |
: TO who can stand the most punishment. |
loran can take it, he has proved time |
nd again. But what about Willard? Is |
able to stand the gaff? Can he hit |
ard enough to knock out Moran? Can |
oran hit hard enough TO knock out Will
rdl
God or Bad?
II will be either one of the most sensa-
onal bouts ever staged in this country. |
most disappointing affair. 1t will |
good or bad. with no middle course pos
nle' Both men are walters" They
As the other fellow to carry the fight
them, allow the other fellow to wear
nsef out and lay back for an opening
shoot across the deciding punch. Neither
aggressive. Neither is noted for his
lshy boxing.
Willard will not carry the fight to
oran. He is defending his title. and it
up 70 the challenger to take 1t from
u. Therefore, Moran must carry the
Ihl TO Willard. The fighting spirit Frank
'ssesses, backed by his punch, will make
Ln a dangerous foe even for Willard, IL
sse are put to the best advantage.
moran adopts the slam-bang tactics
ca by Battling Nelson and Joe Wolcott.
VIII have a good chance to beat Will
70. III not, his chances are reduced at
81 30 per cent.
Looking over the records we can find
enlng In the previous bouts that shows
eepuonal ability on the part Of either
~ willard jumped into prominence
aeh ne won that questionable battle
- LfIu HU II T.4