Joe Louis will go down as one of the greatest heavyweights of all time, but one man who has an equally inspiring story, sent him to the canvas in a thrilling fight.
Joe Louis retired in 1951 with a record of 66-3. Louis was stopped by Rocky Marciano in his final fight, and lost to Ezzard Charles and Max Schmeling, though he avenged the latter.
Louis, who had an 11-year title reign, holds wins over Jersey Joe Walcott, Lee Savold, and Tony Galento, who once fought an octopus.
He also defeated Jim Braddock, also known as ‘The Cinderella Man’.
The Cinderella Man dropped Joe Louis in penultimate fight of his career
Jim Braddock had built a record of 35-5-6 ahead of his fight with light-heavyweight champion Tommy Loughran, whose record was 91-15-7. He lost the fight on points, a loss which marked the downfall of his career.
Braddock won just three of his next 10 fights, and his career began to fade into obscurity.
He was nicknamed ‘The Cinderella Man’ due to his rise from obscurity, giving his career a resurgence following a series of losses. His rise saw him face and defeat heavyweight world champion Max Baer in 1935 in a huge upset.
Braddock’s record at the time was 49-25-7, to Baer’s 40-7. It was after this monumental win that Braddock set up his fight with Louis.
Despite his losses and his age, Braddock gave a good account of himself against Louis, dropping him in the very first round.
Ultimately, Louis, who avoided Kid Violent, was too much for Braddock, and stopped him in the eighth round. This was the last loss of Braddock’s career.
Joe Louis tried to leave the ring after worst performance of his career
In 1947, Louis faced Jersey Joe Walcott in front of 18,000 people in Madison Square Garden, New York.
He won by split decision, but was dropped twice, once in round one, and once in round four. According to BoxRec he was so disgusted with his performance that he attempted to leave the ring as soon as the fight ended, even before the results were announced.
He was restrained by ringside handlers and was announced the winner, though a ringside poll of 32 boxing writers saw 21 score the bout in favor of Walcott.
Louis left no doubt in their rematch a year later, defeating Walcott by knockout in the eleventh round.