Sport: Slugfest

Nobody knew exactly what to expect from Tony Zale, the 32-year-old middlweight champion from Gary, Ind. He had not defended his title since joining the Navy in 1942. But Rocky Graziano, the 24-year-old challenger from Manhattan’s lower East Side, was a known quantity: he was rough & tough.

Right at the start of last week’s title bout in half-filled Yankee Stadium (crowd: 39,827), Tony showed that he was going to slug it out Rocky’s way. Midway in the first round he lashed a right uppercut and a left hook to the challenger’s jaw. Rocky went down for a count of four. In the next round he gave Zale the pounding of his life. Standing flat-footed at close range, he swung right after right, often starting with his fist at knee level and finishing with it flush against the champion’s jaw. Finally, at the end of the round, Tony proved that he was human by going down. The bell saved him.

By the sixth round Champion Zale had a bleeding lip, red welts over both eyes, a buzzing head, a chipped bone in his right thumb. Graziano’s only apparent wound was a bloody nose. Groggy but still game, Zale suddenly launched a tigerish attack on Rocky’s midsection. The challenger crumpled, gasping for air, and a following left hook floored him. When he finally got his wind back, he jumped up full of fight, but it was too late.