The New York herald., 1921-07-05
CARPENTER AND
GIBBONS TO FIGHT
Rickard Announces He Will
Match Them for Bout on
Labor Day.

Georges Carpenter, whose popularity
In this country greatly increased despite
his defeat last Saturday in his match
with Jack Dempsey. will be offered
match with Tom Gibbons on Labor Day,
provided his injured right hand mends
sufficiently to permit him to enter the
ring, Tex Richard announced last night
Tom Gibbons, Americas foremost
light heavyweight. has been selected as
opponent for the Frenchman. and Rick
ard believes such match would prove
nearly as great a drawing card as the
battle of a century" last Saturday
Mr.. Rickard declared last night, in his
office in Madison Square Garden,
where the noted promoter has one of the
largest swimming pools In the world,
that he intended to see Carpenter and
his manager some time during the lat
ter part OF this week. Mr.. Rickard in
| timated he was ready to talk business.
although he would not admit that he had
made arrangements with Gibbons.
There is small fear that Gibbons VIII
not seize an opportunity to meet the
French idol in "Boyle's Thirty Acres" on
Labor Day. He has already expressed
| a desire to meet Carpenter and Car
pentier has declared Willingness to meet
| Gibbons The Frenchman is anxious
! for another match with Dempsey. but
! admits he must meet some OF the lesser
| lights in this country first.
| M. RiclSard said he had no intention
of matching Jess willard, former heavy
weight champion, with Dempsey He
| said such match would be folly. as he
has received information that the for
mer champion is not in any condition
| to reenter the ring.
| "Of course" said Mr.. Rickard "f
| willard will prove to me that he is in
| condition to fight, I will gladly match
him with the champion
No willard match.
| Mr.. Rlckard believes. however, that
the former champion has no intention
whatever of reentering the ring. and for
| that reason intends to pay no attention
| to Wilard's request for return match.
| Two years have elapsed since Willard
| lost his title to Dempsey, and in that
time It is doubtful il he has worn
| pair Of boxing gloves. He has aged and
| would have difficulty in getting into
condition to meet Dempsey, who proved
| by his work last Saturday that he is in
as good condition as he was two years
| ago, when he decisively whipped the
! Kansan.
| II would be an uphill fight for Will
| lard TO get back into condition and those
who know him well say it would be i'm
| possible.
! Mr.. raickard, ~ he sat In his office
| last night and watched the thousand or
two thousand persons swimming in the
huge pool, was in n taltative mood.
The promotes has no intention of dis
'mantling the worlds largest arena. On
the contrary. he hopes 20 stage bouts at
least every two weeks. He intends to
give the fans an oportunity to view the
champions OF the various divisions In
action and has several bouts In mind,
including return match between Pete
Herman and Joe Lynch. It will be re-
nlembered that Lynch defeated Herman
for the championship of the bantam
weight class at Madison Square Garden
last winter In bout that was filled with
action. Richard also hopes to match
Benny Leonard with Lew Tender, and
| is looking for an opponent for Johnny
Wilson.
When asked II he would seek to bring
Johnny Kilbane into the ring. Mr.. Rick
ard said he would IL Kilbane would show
he wanted TO fight Several matches
| have been offered Kilbane during the
! last few months. but he has always
evaded them. He has been in the ring
on one or two occasions, but always had
! an easy mark" for an opponent.
VIII Retain Arena.
| From his conversation. Mr.. Rickard
clearly showed that he intended TO do
business at the big arena. He realizes
4 he has gained the confidence of the
| sporting element and does not care to
lose 1t by matching men who are not
| in condition. or who do not intend TO
offer their best when In the ring. He
intends to play above board, as he did
in his big match, and thereby leave no
openings for the reformers and blue
! l-w" advocates to cause trouble.
If Carpenter is matched with Gibbons
II will be for the light heavyweight
championship Of the world, as Carpen-
| tier is the present holder as O result
| OF his victory over Battling Levinsky
| during q previous visit to this coun-
try. Gibbons weighs the same as the
| Frenchman--172 pounds-and is a scien-
tific boxer as we'll as a. fighter who
| can mix when mixing Is necessary. He
has been fighting steadily during the
last two years and has showed marked
Improvement until he now outclasses
his field. He always has proved will
ing boxer and Is q good drawing card.
Accountants and bookkcepers. who
have been working night and day since
the last ticket was sold to the big fight
last Saturday, completed their task last
night and Promoter Rickard was able
to announce the gross receipts. They
were si,625,3S which Is by far the
largest amount OF money taken in at
any boxing exhibition. The receipts at
the Dempsey willard match, staged In
Toledo. amounted to s452.oo0 and was
then considered tho largest gross re-
ceipts for any fight or course, Mr..
Rickard will have tremendous expenses,
and he said last night he would not be
able to announce the net receipts for
several days. He also was unable TO
announce the exact number OF persons
who witnessed the bout.
But Mr.. Rickard Is sure TO produce
ledger account that Will show receipts
far shead of expenses. To begin with
ne had to pay the two fighters $500, 900,
Dempsey receiving 100000 and Car
penticr 100000. The next largest ox-
pensc was for the construction of the
arena and II In said to have cost $780,
600. Then, there are numerous other
expenses. Nobody but a fight promoter
knows how the expenses mount up, ex-
| penses that seem to come from out OF
the sky, but which are legitimate.
The announcement OF the gross re-
celpts proves that the public demanded
the big match and that Rickard is the
greatest promoter OF the day. II not of
ALI time. When the match was first
entertained, men whose business In to
pror1otc mammoth affairs declared such
an undertaking was impossible. Du
Richard just smiled and believed Il
could be accomplished. The gross re-
| ~