Gene Tunney became world heavyweight champion one hundred years ago today, beating Jack Dempsey by unanimous decision over ten rounds in Philadelphia on September 23, 1926.
More than 120,000 spectators attended the fight at Sesquicentennial Stadium. The occasion belongs among boxing's great mass gatherings, but its result is often remembered through the controversy of a different night.
The Long Count came in their September 22, 1927 rematch at Chicago's Soldier Field. After knocking Tunney down, Dempsey delayed going to a neutral corner, holding up the referee's count under the rules used for that fight.
Tunney retained the championship in Chicago, having won it in Philadelphia the year before. Today's centenary marks the original title change and gives the first meeting its own place in the rivalry's history.
Reporting sources: Smithsonian record distinguishing both bouts; Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia; BoxRec first-meeting record
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This page is an original Sporting Page summary. The reporting remains with Smithsonian record distinguishing both bouts.
Read at Smithsonian record distinguishing both bouts
