Boxer's Breath

Bob Montgomery, Philadelphia Negro challenger for Beau Jack's lightweight crown, stood naked in a noisy gathering. He was weighing in for his 15-round bout with Jack (TIME, Nov. 23, 1942) last week in Manhattan's Madison Square Garden. To be eligible, he could not tip the scales at more than 135 Ib. And he was tipping them.

Even though he was trained to the minute and had not eaten solid food nor had a drink of water all morning, he registered slightly more than the 135-lb. mark. Chick Wergeles (rhymes with Hercules), Beau Jack's voluble little manager, let out a roar of protest. William Brush, of the Department of Weights & Measures, called it 135 Ib., maybe a slight bit over, but explained that the crowd around the sensitive scales would cause enough extra pressure to account for this.

Wergeles fumed. He said the fight was off. He said Jack would fight, but not with the title at stake.* Thereupon Montgomery, with his championship chances in jeopardy because of a fraction of a pound, took a long breath and held it.

"One thirty-five."

That night, before a crowd of 19,066, Montgomery won a split decision over Beau Jack and regained the lightweight championship. He won by some cool, canny boxing--and by holding his breath.

*The title at stake was the New York State Athletic Commission version of the lightweight "world championship." The National Boxing Association, recognized by 37 states, also has a "world champion" lightweight, Sammy Angott, who fights once more before meeting Montgomery March 31.

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