The Long Count Fight
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The Long Count Fight, or the Battle of the Long Count, was a
professional boxing Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional fights are supervised by a regulatory auth ...
10-round rematch between world
heavyweight Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling. Boxing Professional Male boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 2 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation an ...
champion
Gene Tunney James Joseph Tunney (May 25, 1897 – November 7, 1978) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1915 to 1928. He held the world heavyweight title from 1926 to 1928, and the American light heavyweight title twice between 1922 and 1923 ...
and former champion
Jack Dempsey William Harrison "Jack" Dempsey (June 24, 1895 – May 31, 1983), nicknamed Kid Blackie and The Manassa Mauler, was an American boxer who competed from 1914 to 1927, and world heavyweight champion from 1919 to 1926. One of the most iconic athl ...
, which Tunney won in a unanimous decision. It took place on September 22, 1927, at
Soldier Field Soldier Field is a multi-purpose stadium on the Near South Side, Chicago, Near South Side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. Opened in 1924 and reconstructed in 2003, the stadium has served as the home of the Chicago Bears from the National ...
in
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
. "Long Count" is applied to the fight because, when Tunney was knocked down in the seventh round, the count was delayed due to Dempsey's failure to go to and remain in a neutral corner. Whether this "long count" actually affected the outcome remains a subject of debate.


Background

Just 364 days before, on September 23, 1926, Tunney had beaten Dempsey in ten rounds by unanimous decision to lift the world heavyweight title, at Sesquicentennial Stadium in
Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
. The first fight between Tunney and Dempsey had been moved out of Chicago because Dempsey had learned that
Al Capone Alphonse Gabriel Capone ( ; ; January 17, 1899 – January 25, 1947), sometimes known by the nickname "Scarface", was an American organized crime, gangster and businessman who attained notoriety during the Prohibition era as the co-foun ...
was a big fan of his, and he did not want Capone to be involved in the fight. Capone reportedly bet $50,000 on Dempsey for the rematch, which fueled false rumors of a fix. Dempsey was favored by odds makers in both fights, largely because of public betting which heavily tilted towards Dempsey. The rematch was held at Chicago's
Soldier Field Soldier Field is a multi-purpose stadium on the Near South Side, Chicago, Near South Side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. Opened in 1924 and reconstructed in 2003, the stadium has served as the home of the Chicago Bears from the National ...
, and would draw a
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of $2,658,660 (). It was the first $2 million gate in entertainment history. Tunney received a record purse of $990,445. The match was broadcast by announcers Graham McNamee and Phillips Carlin to more than 60
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
radio stations. Despite the fact that Tunney had won the first fight by a wide margin on the scorecards, the prospect of a second bout created tremendous public interest. Dempsey was one of the so-called "big five" sports legends of the 1920s, and it was widely rumored that he had refused to join the military during
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
. He actually had attempted to enlist in the
Army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...
, but had been turned down; a jury later exonerated Dempsey of
draft evasion Conscription evasion or draft evasion (American English) is any successful attempt to elude a government-imposed obligation to serve in the military forces of one's nation. Sometimes draft evasion involves refusing to comply with the military dr ...
. Tunney, who enjoyed literature and the arts, was a former member of the
United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...
. His
nickname A nickname, in some circumstances also known as a sobriquet, or informally a "moniker", is an informal substitute for the proper name of a person, place, or thing, used to express affection, playfulness, contempt, or a particular character trait ...
was "The Fighting Marine". The fight took place under new rules regarding knockdowns: the fallen fighter would have 10 seconds to rise to his feet under his own power after his opponent had moved to a neutral corner (i.e., one with no trainers). The Dempsey camp requested the new rule, which was not yet universal, be used. Dempsey, in the final days of training prior to the rematch, apparently ignored the setting of the new rule. Also, the fight was staged inside a 20-foot ring, which favored the boxer with superior footwork, in this case Tunney. Dempsey liked to crowd his opponents, and normally fought in a 16-foot ring that offered less space to maneuver.


The fight

Tunney was, by most accounts, dominating the fight from rounds one to six, using his familiar style of boxing from a distance while looking for openings and, at the same time, building a points lead. Up until the end of round six, nothing indicated this fight would be far different from their original meeting. In round seven, however, the 104,943 in attendance witnessed a moment that would live on in boxing history. With Tunney trapped against the ropes and near a corner, Dempsey unleashed a combination of punches that floored the champion. Two rights and two lefts landed on Tunney's chin and staggered him, and four more punches put him on the
canvas Canvas is an extremely durable Plain weave, plain-woven Cloth, fabric used for making sails, tents, Tent#Marquees and larger tents, marquees, backpacks, Shelter (building), shelters, as a Support (art), support for oil painting and for other ite ...
. It was the first time in Tunney's career that he had been knocked down. Apparently dizzy and disoriented, Tunney grabbed on to the ring's top rope with his left hand. Dempsey, who often stood over downed opponents and rushed back at them after they got up, looked down on Tunney. Referee
Dave Barry David McAlister Barry (born July 3, 1947) is an American author and columnist who wrote a nationally Print syndication, syndicated humor column for the ''Miami Herald'' from 1983 to 2005. He has written numerous books of humor and parody, as we ...
ordered Dempsey into a neutral corner to no avail; Dempsey remained standing near Tunney, observing his opponent. This gave Tunney precious seconds to recuperate. By the time Dempsey finally walked to a neutral corner, Tunney had been down for around 3 to 8 seconds. Barry could not start to count on Tunney until Dempsey reached the neutral corner, but he was still able to count to nine before Tunney got up. Some believe that if Dempsey had responded to the referee's order in time, he would have likely regained the world heavyweight crown with a seventh-round knockout. The validity of this argument has been debated to this day. In the fight film, a clock was superimposed that recorded Tunney's time on the floor as 13 seconds, from the moment he fell until he got up. Because of this delay, it became known as "The Long Count Fight". By the eighth round, Tunney had resumed boxing from a distance, and he floored Dempsey with a punch. This time, however, the referee started counting right away, before Tunney had moved to a neutral corner. Tunney then dominated the final two rounds and went on to retain the world title by a unanimous decision. After the fight, Dempsey lifted Tunney's arm and said, "You were best. You fought a smart fight, kid." It was Dempsey's last career fight, and Tunney's next-to-last.


Controversy

Controversy over the match promptly erupted. A significant factor in prolonging the controversy was that, at the time, U.S. law prohibited the transportation of boxing match movies across state lines (the law had been passed in 1912 in reaction to
riot A riot or mob violence is a form of civil disorder commonly characterized by a group lashing out in a violent public disturbance against authority, property, or people. Riots typically involve destruction of property, public or private. The p ...
s that broke out after Jack Johnson's 1910
victory The term victory (from ) originally applied to warfare, and denotes success achieved in personal duel, combat, after military operations in general or, by extension, in any competition. Success in a military campaign constitutes a strategic vi ...
over
James J. Jeffries James Jackson Jeffries (April 15, 1875 – March 3, 1953) was an American professional boxer and List of world heavyweight boxing champions, world heavyweight champion. He was known for his enormous strength and stamina. Jeffries fought out of ...
; the fight had been filmed, though it was banned in some areas of the United States.) As a result, almost nobody was able to see the counts for themselves. Once the law was repealed, and it became possible for many to watch the footage and judge the fallen fighters' alertness (particularly Tunney's), the controversy dwindled. To this day, however, boxing fans argue over whether Dempsey could or should have won the fight. What is not in dispute is that the public's affection for Dempsey grew in the wake of his two losses to Tunney. "In defeat, he gained more stature," wrote the ''
Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...
's'' Shirley Povich. "He was the loser in the battle of the long count, yet the hero." Tunney said that he had picked up the referee's count at "two," and could have gotten up at any point after that, preferring to wait until "nine" for obvious tactical reasons. Dempsey said, "I have no reason not to believe him. Gene's a great guy." Dempsey later joined the
United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and Admiralty law, law enforcement military branch, service branch of the armed forces of the United States. It is one of the country's eight Uniformed services ...
, and he and Tunney became good friends who visited each other frequently. Tunney and Dempsey are both members of the
International Boxing Hall of Fame The International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF), located in Canastota, New York, right next to exit 34 of the New York State Thruway, honors boxers, trainers and other contributors to the sport worldwide. Inductees are selected on ballots cre ...
. In March 2011, the family of Gene Tunney donated the gloves he wore in the fight to The Smithsonian's National Museum of American History.Curry, John
"Gene Tunney’s Boxing Gloves from ‘The Long Count’ Donated"
3MoreRounds.com, March 21, 2011


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Long Count Fight Boxing matches involving Jack Dempsey Boxing in Chicago 1927 in boxing 1927 in sports in Illinois September 1927 sports events in the United States Events at Soldier Field Boxing matches in the United States Heavyweight championship matches Boxing controversies Nicknamed sporting events