Background
Boxing as a sport was illegal for some of it’s history. With it first popping into prominence as bareknuckle prizefighting in England. The sport in the beginning had no rules. no weight divisions, and no regulations. This would all begin to change, as with public support and the sport’s popularity rising, it would mean that it would have to be legalize. This would mean the beginning of regulations,, weight divisions and having rules made.
The Superstars of this Era
This period of boxing in general has sparse recordings of fights; however, what it doesn’t have in recorded fights, it does have in star power. With some famous boxers coming from this era of heavyweight boxing. Which includes Joe Louis, Jack Johnson, Rocky Marciano, Jack Dempsey, and Gene Tunney. This era would see the beginnings of legendary fighters such as Floyd Patterson and Sonny Liston.
This era would be defined by the “everyman” boxer. You would have legendary boxers such as Jack Johnson, Jack Dempsey, and Joe Lewis being symbols of their time. Jack Johnson would push racial boundaries at the height of the Jim Crow era. Jack Dempsey would represent the “everyman” of America during the struggles of The Great Depression. Joe Louis would represent the struggles of America during World War 2, with his famous duology against Max Schmeling, who was German, being symbolic of WW2.
Conclusion
This era of heavyweight boxing would come to an end when Rocky Marciano would retire undefeated at 49-0 in the year 1955. He still remains the only heavyweight champion to retire undefeated.
With the ending to the early era of boxing come a new era. This era is more commonly known as “The Golden Era”, and as the name implies this era would see the heavyweight division in a prosperous age.