Evening star., 1961-03-14
Sudden Kayo by Patterson in 9th
Leaves Ingo Used Up as Rival
Swedish SIugger
Says He's Not
Ready to Quit
BY BILL FUCHS
Star Staff Writer

StaA 6t0AA "AAteA
MIAMI BEACH, Mar. IA
Heavyweight Champion Floyd
Patterson has used up Ingemar
JohanSSon as an opponent, but
the colorful, controversial Swede
refuses to call it a career.
I'm not old enough to lay
Off" says lingo, who at the
age Of % has had three cham
pionship fights against Patter-
son and shows a 1-2 record
for his efforts.
Unbeaten Sonny Liston, beg
ging for a crack at somebody
Of stature, is waiting in the
wings, and JohanSson says he'll
oblige. "I'll fight as long as
I like it," lingo says.
Patterson, who knocked Jo-
hanson out of the title picture
with a right hand at 2:45 of
the sixth round of last nights
bout here, thinks lingo should
60 home.
1--WE said this before and
I'll say it again." Patterson
remarked after last nights VIC
tory. whoever loses should
sit in the background"
Floyd Wants Action
At a press conference today,
Patterson said he hoped to
defend his title again this sum-
mer.
This once-a-year routine
is for the BIRDS" Floyd said.
Regardless of the income tax
situation, I want to fight again
this year. There are several
good contenders. I don't know
which one I would fight"
Patterson said that Henry
Cooper, the British champion,
ranks high on the list of pos
sible opponents.
Floyd's suggestion that Jo-
hanson should move into the
background will not go over
well with the fun-loving lingo,
who must be credited with fill
ing in a naked void in the
world of boxing. For 81 months
the span of his time in the
sun-he gave the anemic heavy
weight division a series of rich
transfuSions.
Whether he can come back is
conjectural. He came from
nowhere two years ago and was
removed from the picture in a
most bizarre and unexpected
manner, the way the lights
suddenly go out in a storm.
At a time when Patterson
appeared to be on the defensive,
Alright chop landed on the back
Of Johansson's handsome head
and dropped the challenger to
one knee. .
Misses by Fraction
He rolled over and then be-
gan to climb upward, like a
toddler climbing stairs. He
missed making it to his feet by
a fraction of a second, and the
crowd was left with the inn
preston that this could not be
all-surely it couldn't end this
way.
Now Patterson is a champion
for sure. He was that June
night in 1859 when he climbed
into the ring in Yankee Sta
dium, fully expecting to demol-
iSh the upstart Swede who
mixed his training with ro-
nance, and dancing in the
moonlight.
But the "toonder" of Ingo's
self-publicized right hand
smashed Patterson senseless in
the third round.
This set the stage for a box
ing first. One year later in the
Polo Grounds Patterson became
the first heavyweight to regain
the title as he knocked out lingo
in the fifth round.
All Of which led up to last
nights rubber meeting in Con-
vention Hall, Miami Beach's
first heavyweight championship
fight in 81 years. lingo weighed
in at 20612.' Patterson weighed
19434.
lingo Starts Fast
For brief few moments in
the first round, it looked like
lingo was going to do it all
over again in the same fashion !
that he destroyed the champion
by crashing him to the deck
seven times in that first battle.
With spring in his style, lingo
stuck a left and right to the
face of the stoic- like, waiting
champion. Then lingo let fly
with a left and followed with
a right that put Patterson
down. For the first time in a
heavyweight title fight the
mandatory eight-count was not
waived, and for Patterson that
was a welcome pause.
Seconds later another right
decked Patterson again. But
before the first round ended,
Johansson, too. suffered the
frustrating sensation of getting
smacked off his feet. A left |
hook by Patterson did it, and
See FIGHT, Page Alt