What was the nickname of the reigning, retired heavyweight champion at the time of the Fitzsimmons vs. Sharkey Heavyweight Championship boxing match?
Fitzsimmons vs. Sharkey The Fitzsimmons vs Sharkey Heavyweight Championship boxing match between Bob Fitzsimmons and Tom Sharkey was awarded by referee Wyatt Earp to Sharkey after Fitzsimmons knocked Sharkey to the mat. Earp ruled that Fitzsimmons had hit Sharkey when he was down, but very few witnessed the purported foul. The fans at the December 2, 1896 fight in San Francisco booed Earp's decision. It was the first heavyweight championship fight since James J. Corbett, the prior champion, had retired from boxing the year before. The fight may have been the most anticipated fight on American soil that year.
Les McAteer Les McAteer ( (1945--) 19 1945 (age (2017)-(1945)-((11)<(08)or(11)==(08)and(30)<(19)) ) ) born in Birkenhead is an English amateur and professional light middle/middle/light heavyweight boxer of the 1960s and '70s who as an amateur won the Amateur Boxing Association of England (ABAE) 1960 Schools Intermediate title, boxing out of Birkenhead, and won the Amateur Boxing Association of England (ABAE) 1962 Junior Class-B title against K. Kemp (West Ham Boys' Club), boxing out of Willaston Birkenhead ABC, and as a professional won the British Boxing Board of Control (BBBofC) Central Area middleweight title, BBBofC British middleweight title, and Commonwealth middleweight title, and was a challenger for the BBBofC British middleweight title, and British Commonwealth middleweight title against Johnny Pritchett, and European Boxing Union (EBU) middleweight title against Tom Bogs, his professional fighting weight varied from 153+3/4 lb , i.e. light middleweight to 164 lb , i.e. light heavyweight. Les McAteer was managed by Johnny Campbell (circa-1905 — 2 May 1994 (aged 89)).