Johnson

Jack Johnson and Stanley Ketchel
Oct 6th, 1909

<-- Ketchel throws a left hook, leaping to get at the taller Johnson.

In the second round, Johnson aggressively goes after the smaller Ketchel. Again, Johnson's claim that he was only doing an exhibition and Ketchel tried to sucker punch him is suspect...

Ketchel and Johnson seperate from an exchange ... Ketchel is cocking his right for the "sneak" punch.

Actually the punch is so obvious it's hard to imagine why Johnson would claim it was a "sneak" or "sucker" punch. It was one of many hard punches thrown by both men for 11 prior rounds.

Ketchel lands a terrific overhand right...

... Johnson trying to beat the count. He's really hurt and having trouble rising.

Ketchel rushes in wide open and Johnson catches him with a tremendous right cross. Notice Ketchel's right foot going back on the heel from the impact.

   This fight was a mismatch if one measures fighters only by size. In the case of Stanley Ketchel, his fighting spirit gave him a fighting chance against much bigger men. Jack Johnson was the dominate heavyweight of the world at this time and entered the ring weighing 209 pounds. Ketchel weighed in at 160 pounds.
    Johnson claimed the fight was supposed to be just an exhibition and that Ketchel played him false by throwing a "sucker punch" in the 12th and dropping the heavyweight champion. However, a study of the film shows a different story. Johnson as much as Ketchel was fighting for real from round one. The first damaging punch of the fight was in Round Two when Johnson hit Ketchel with a powerful right cross and dropped him for an eight count.
   As to the legend that Johnson picked Ketchel's teeth out of his glove while watching him being counted out in the 12th round, in the film no such thing happens. Jack does wipe one glove with the other, but he uses his RIGHT glove (that landed the punch) to wipe off the LEFT glove.

Note Johnson leans back on his right leg and pulls his body and head back, one of his defensive tactics. Ali would later use a similar pull away move.

In the film there's not doubt that Johnson wiped off his left glove and not his right, even if the captures don't show it as well. Old timers at ringside told and retold the story probably without ever seeing the film of the fight. In their minds they saw Johnson picking Ketchel's teeth out of his right glove, but it just didn't happen.

(I bought this fight on 8mm almost 30 years ago and hadn't watched it in many years. In my mind I "saw" the teeth being picked out of the glove, too, when I discussed the fight, but I was as wrong as the Old Timers who saw the fight)

If Ketchel did lose teeth from the punch, they weren't picked out of Jack's glove while he watched Stanley being counted out.

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