Jess Willard (December 29, 1881 – December 15, 1968) was a world heavyweight boxing champion known as the Pottawatomie Giant.
He won the heavyweight title from Jack Johnson in April 1915 which earned him the nickname "The Great White Hope". He was known for his great strength and ability to absorb tremendous punishment, although today he is best known for his title loss to Jack Dempsey.
Willard held the championship for more than 4 years but only defended his title once as few people dared to challenge him. Today his reign is considered the 11th longest in the heavyweight division. He lost the title to Jack Dempsey in 1919 and to this day the fight is considered the worst beating any man has ever received in the history of boxing. Willard was knocked down for the first time in his career during the first round and another 6 times before the round was over; he suffered a cracked skull, broken ribs, shattered jaw, broken nose, four missing teeth, partial hearing loss in one ear along with numerous cuts and contusions. Jess fought for two more rounds before retiring on his stool due to the injuries he received in the first round, relinquishing the title. It is one of the most controversial fights in boxing history and many thought Dempsey had something in his gloves during the first round to act as a knuckleduster to weaken the big Willard down.
At 6 ft 6 1⁄2 in (1.99 m) and 235 lb (107 kg), Willard was the tallest and the largest heavyweight champion in boxing history, until the 270 pounds (120 kg) Primo Carnera won the title on June 29, 1933, and the 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) Vitali Klitschko won the WBC title in 2004.
Read more about Jess Willard: Boxing Career, Later Years
Famous quotes containing the word willard:
“Every woman who vacates a place in the teachers’ ranks and enters an unusual line of work, does two excellent things: she makes room for someone waiting for a place and helps to open a new vocation for herself and other women.”
—Frances E. Willard (1839–1898)