BOXING.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2694, 27 December 1909, Page 6

BOXING.

NOTES

Jim. Griffin, tho Maorilander, made his first match after his--'return to Australia with Joe Costa, whom he met at the Sydney Gaiety, on Dec. .7, Griffin iwas badly beaten and was counted out in tho match round. He has evidently lost his old dash. Win or lose in his contest with- “ Bob” Fitzsimmons, Bill Lang, the present holder of the title, will meet Bill Squires for the resident heavyweight championship of Australasia, at the Stadium, on January 2. A match has been aranged between) Bill Squires and Arthur. Cripps, the middle-weight champion of Australia. This contest will be decided at the Stadium on February 2. It will be remembered that Squires and Cripps met prior to the former’s departure to America, and that Cripps gained the decision on a foul' in the fourteenth round, thus gaining -’the distinction of being the only man who had-a decision against Squires prior to his'defeat by Tommy Burns at colma for the world’s championship. Concerning the Lang-Fitzsimmons fight, the “Bulletin” says Feeling is very muqh divided, the patriotic bruisefollowers claiming that if Fitz. wins it will be, after, allj .a case of an Australian being outed by a man who is virtually an Australian. 'But it will certainly be a dreadful thing if the best we have goes down to a battle-scarred veteran like Fitz. It is going to be a struggle between mature age and upleiv • did 'sdmcg on the one side, and youth and coMklefftbje force..on the otter* • Apropos of the Fitzsimmons match the following testimony from Jim Jeffries is of interest:—-“The hardest puncher I ever ran up against was Bob Fitzsimmons. My goodness! How that man could punch! I caught one wallop in our second match that made mo think of home and mother! If Fitz had only been a little bigger he would have achieved even greater fame than lie has alrofady clone. But. at that 1 don’t think lie would ever have beaten me, for, to tell .you the truth, it was 1 practically impossible to hurt me when I was in my prime.*' 1 ’ ,