Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1916-03-25
BY Associated Press


New York March %. - With the
wagering close to three to one in his
favor, Jess Willard, heavyweight
champion of the world, will meet
Frank Moran in a ten-round node
cision bout here tonight for the larg
est purse ever offered for a contest
of this scheduled duration. The two
by Tex Rickard, the promoter of the
match. OF this sum> the title holder
will draw down SAT. 500 and his appon-
ent $23,750. Notwithstanding the size
of the purse, Rickard will clear a
handsome profit on the venture since
every seat in Madison Square Garden
has been sold and the receipts are
estimated at more than $4,000.
Although Willard is topheavy fa-
vorite, interest in the outcome of the
bout is intense, and the greatest gath
ering of fight fans that ever thronged
into and about the Garden is eX-
pected at that historic show hall this
evening when the principals enter the
ring. Few large bets have been placed
on the contest owing to the difference
in the odds and acknowledged physi-
cal advantages possessed by Willard
over Moran. Hundreds of small wag
ers on the result and on various angles
of the fight have been made between
friends both in this city and among
the large delegations of spectators
from other cities of the East, South
and NIiddlewest.
Moran and his camp followers as
sert that the Pittsburgh heavyweight
will win from Willard in decisive fash
ion on points If not by a knockout,
but the great majority of the boxing
enthusiasts cannot be convinced that
the Kansas cowboy will fall a victim
to Moran's rushes and blows. 1t is
pointed out that the conqueror of Jack
Johnson is physically superior in
every respect to his opponent and
that in a bout of but ten rounds it
will be little short of a ring miracle for
Moran to stretch The champion on the
floor for the count.
Equal i'll Ability
In boxing ability the two pugilists
are conceded TO be about equal but
beyond that point Willard has mark
ed advantage over Moran in almost
every department of glove fighting as
well as in physical makeup. He will
outweigh Moran by close to fifty
pounds stand between five and six
inches above the Pittsburgh slugger
and have a longer reach of more than
six inches, than Moran. Both are eX-
tremely powerful hitters in proportion
to their size but here again Willard's
greater physique and strength give
him a wide margin over Moran. The
later is the more aggressive boxer of
the two, but the champions towering
height and ability to block with his
long arms mitigate against the
chances of the smaller pugilist landing
a knockout blow to the head. The
task of reaching Wizards body is
not so difficult but in all his bouts to
date the Kansas man has shown abil-
| ity to take very hard blows in his
midsection without slowing up. From
defensive standpoint Willard is con-
sidered to be one of the best equipped
boxers of his division in many years.
His Best Blows
| He is equally formidable offensive
! ly when aroused, but, as a rule, lacks
the aggressiveness necessary to win
from an opponent of Muran's caliber
in ten rounds or less. Ills best blows
are a short left jab and a righthand
uppercut. These blows. he uses al
most continually and owing to his
long reach and great strength the
punhes carry terrific power when Will
lard puts full force into them. I'm
der pressure he can and does fight
with other blows and carries a knock
out in either hand when mixing saw
agely. n his awkward and ponder
Gus style Willard is almost as fast on
his feet as Moran although he sell
dom uses footwork to avoid an OPP
ponent. At close quarters he should
be able to hold Moran safely, al
though the latter will be dangerous
if he can tear loose long enough to I'm.
cover his ability and power as an in
fighter.
Both pugilists virtually completed
their training on Thursday and each
claims to be in perfect condition fol
the battle. Moran has been on edge
for the bout for close to two weeks
and his trainers have had more diff.
Guilty in holding him to physical form
than Willard's handlers. The cham
pion was slow to round into condi.
tion since he had been out of the rims
for almost year while Moran, be-