The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1923-05-23
OVERCONFIDENC
LOST LEONARD
BOUT FOR KILBANE:
leather Champ Tells His Side
Of Bout With Light
Meight Champ.
BY JOHNNY KILBANE
Copyright. 1923. by NFA Service Inc. in
United States and all foreign cOun-
tries that have copyright laws
Reproduction Is prohibited

tries that have copyright laws.
Reproduction is prohibited
I We often heard it said of myself
that Johnny Kilbane hand picked
his opponents. No charge made
against a boxer was ever more un-
just. have never failed to meet a
real featherweight contender in all
my eleven years as champion. and
have repeatedly gone out Of my
division because there We're no logical
foatherweights left.
One Of the first times I did this was
for KID Williams. in 1915. He was
then bantam champ and he was
good in those days But I made
weight for him. and fought him a six
round no decision match.
/ gave him everything but a clout
on the head with the Woolworth
building, and although l didn't knock
him out. no newspaper denied that
won haudily.
Then came Freddie Welsh Practi-
cauy every boxing critic in the coun-
try said ! made Welsh look like a
novice They were right too 7 gave
Welsh and awful heating for ten
rounds. and would have won the light
weight championship had the feht
been TO a decision.
/ mention all this merely TO dis
prove the bolts shot in my direction
so long that / wouldn't meet any ono
] didn't know 10 be a set-up Is a
lightweight champion a set-up"
Three weeks after beat Welsh
Benny Leonard met him Leonard
won the title but / have no doubt
that It was the licking 7 gave Fred
die that weakened him and left him
q mark for Leonard.
My fight with Leonard told a off
ferent story, however.
Let's review the situation I'm nor
trying to establish an abb for the
knockout Benny was credited over
me; I'm merely giving my side OF
It as It never has been published
before.
I had licked Welsh Benny had
licked Welsh what then was easier
than for me 20 lick Benny? Sounds
logical doesn't IT.
OverConfldenCe Costly
The same overconhdence that filed
George CLANCY before his fight with
me came over me before my Leonard
esca pade at Philadelphia felt
had the lightweight title in my hands
And l made the fatal mistake Of en-
tering the ring with that thought.
Leonard IS a real fighter. make no
mistake about that He knows all
the stock tricks and has invented a
few Of his own And besides that he
had Just won the title, and was fight,
ing like a tiger to protect It, some
thing he has done admirably
made a rush at Benny and LETT
myself unprotected believing it
would all be over soon. Instead he
crossed with a smash TO the heart
and Jaw that left me grOggy. Then
we played a more careful game. In
the second round neither Of us did
particular damage, and when the
third came ! again was filled with
the overcOnfdence that loses fights
I thought his first punch in the first
round a fluke, and so ] waded in
again. But once more l mot a stone
wall travelling at seventy miles an
hour 1t hit me over the left eye and
left ma dizzy.
! hung on, and was clearing my
head. when the bell sounded We
went to our corners. I had been sit !
ting In mine half a minute when
Jimmy Dunn, my manager. threw
in the towel, in token Of defeat. 7
was not knocked out, and easily
could have recovered myself in the
time one gets between rounds.
But Benny got a knockout. and
that's that 1t is the only time in my
life in the ring anyone has Knocked"
me out, and It took a great fighter
In class many pounds heavier than
I. to do it. He weighed 1877 and
1874
It certainly isn't anything to be
ashamed Of.
My fight with Leonard was the
last big one before the war broke
and what I did then, I will tell about
in my next article
The relationship between boxing
and bayOneting is told by Johnny Xii }
bane i'm his next article.