Archie Moore vs Yvon Durelle II

Archie Moore retained the world light-heavyweight championship with a third-round knockout of Yvon Durelle at the Montreal Forum on August 12, 1959, settling their rivalry far more quickly than he had done eight months earlier. Moore weighed 174 pounds, and Durelle weighed 173 pounds. Referee Jack Sharkey counted the Canadian out at 2 minutes 52 seconds after the challenger had been sent to the canvas four times during the round. The attendance was 11,555, and the gate amounted to $140,519, then a record boxing receipt for Montreal. Judges Leon Germain and Johnny Gow had Moore ahead by scores of 10-8 after two rounds, while Rene Ouimet had the contest level at 9-9.

The return had been demanded by the events of their first meeting at the same arena on December 10, 1958. On that occasion Durelle had dropped Moore repeatedly during the opening round and again in the fifth, only for the champion to recover, wear him down and knock him out in the 11th. The contest contained eight knockdowns between them and was voted the Canadian Press sporting event of the year. Durelle’s early success had made him a national figure and had also established him as the most dangerous challenger to Moore’s reign. The rematch, therefore, drew a larger crowd and a considerably higher gate than the first contest.

There was no comparable disorder at the beginning of the second fight. Moore boxed cautiously but without the uncertainty he had shown in December. He kept his hands high, watched Durelle’s right and avoided remaining directly in front of the challenger after punching. Durelle advanced with his customary strength but found fewer openings. Moore’s greater reach enabled him to work from outside, and his steadier position allowed him to counter whenever Durelle attempted to rush into range. The opening round was competitive enough for Ouimet to score it evenly, but the other two officials already preferred the champion’s cleaner work.

Moore increased his control during the second round. Durelle remained aggressive, but his attacks were less orderly than those which had caused such damage in their first meeting. The champion gave ground when necessary, then returned with short, accurately placed punches. He did not permit Durelle to build momentum or force him into extended exchanges along the ropes. Germain and Gow each scored the first two rounds 10-8 for Moore, while Ouimet’s 9-9 total indicated that the action had been closer than the eventual result might suggest.

The decisive change came in the third. Moore began finding Durelle with heavier counters and, once the challenger had been hurt, attacked without allowing him time to recover. Durelle was knocked down four times during the round. He rose from the early falls and attempted to continue, but each return to his feet left him less steady and less capable of defending himself. Moore remained composed, chose his openings and did not waste punches. The contrast with the first contest was complete: Durelle, who had once driven the champion repeatedly to the floor, was now being punished whenever he tried to stand his ground.

After the fourth knockdown, Durelle was unable to beat Sharkey’s count. The time, 2:52, left only eight seconds in the round. There was no dispute over the conclusion and no need for the judges’ cards. Moore had defended the championships recognised by both the National Boxing Association and the New York State Athletic Commission and had done so with a result which removed the uncertainty left by their first struggle.

The outcome did not diminish Durelle’s performance in the original contest, which remained one of the outstanding challenges mounted against Moore during his long reign. It did, however, demonstrate the champion’s capacity to study an opponent and correct earlier mistakes. Moore did not give Durelle the stationary target or the free opportunities he had received in December. He controlled the distance, remained alert to the challenger’s right hand and struck decisively when Durelle’s defence opened. Moore later remarked that the fight had been difficult even though he had made it appear easy. The record supports the second part of that judgement: after surviving one of the hardest championship contests of his career in their first meeting, he ended the return in less than nine minutes.

I see this rematch as proof of Archie Moore’s intelligence rather than simply his punching power. In the first fight, Durelle dropped him four times and came close to taking the title. Eight months later, Moore gave him none of those same openings.

Durelle was strong and brave, and he carried genuine power, but he was fairly basic once Moore denied him a stationary target. Archie controlled the range, kept his shape and made the Canadian pay whenever he rushed in. By the third round, Moore had read him completely.

Four knockdowns followed, with Durelle counted out at 2:52. The finish was ruthless, but it had been prepared through discipline and positioning rather than wild aggression.

That is what separated Moore from ordinary champions. He could survive disaster, study what went wrong and return with the answer. Durelle produced the greater drama in their first meeting; Moore supplied the final authority in the second.