77 years ago
Sugar Ray Robinson vs Chuck Taylor
Date: 19th December 1947
Venue: Olympia Stadium, Detroit, Michigan
Title: World Welterweight Title
Sugar Ray Robinson
(
83
-
1
-
1
)
Weight: 146½ lbs
Chuck Taylor
(
23
-
8
-
2
)
Weight: 144¾ lbs
On December 19, 1947, Sugar Ray Robinson and Chuck Taylor took center stage at the Olympia Stadium, Detroit, Michigan.
Sugar Ray Robinson, hailing from Harlem, New York, came into the fight boasting an impressive record of 83-1-1. His opponent, Chuck Taylor, a resident of Coalport, Pennsylvania, boasted a commendable record of his own, standing at 28-3-2. Robinson was defending his World Welterweight Title for the second time.
Robinson, who lived in Detroit as a youth, honed his skills at the local Brewster Recreation Center.
Chuck Taylor, had served in the U.S. Army for 36 months during World War II, even boxing in front of President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Britain’s Winston Churchill in a bout at Fort Benning. Entering the professional boxing circuit, Taylor triumphed in his first nine professional bouts and won 14 of his first 15 fights.
Weighing in at 146½ lbs, Ray Robinson showed his polished boxing skills against Taylor, who tipped the scales at 144¾ lbs. Robinson's smooth footwork and piercing jabs were making their mark on the less experienced challenger, but Taylor gave everything he had while the bout lasted.
The difference in experience and boxing acumen between the two fighters began to show. Despite the aggressive stance adopted by Taylor, he was constantly outsmarted by Robinson's superior skills and experience. This disparity became more evident in the sixth round when Taylor took a heavy shot and went down, only to pick himself up at the count of nine, but referee Johnny Weber decided to halt the bout at 2:07, signalling a Technical Knockout victory for Ray Robinson.
