Tommy Farr

Tommy Farr
Data
Birth Name	Thomas George Farr
Weight class	Heavyweight
nationality	Welsh
birthday	March 12, 1913
place of birth	Tonypandy , Rhondda , Wales
Date of death	March 1, 1986
style	Left-hand boom
Combat Statistics
Struggles	179
Victories	95
Knockout victories	25th
Defeats	43
draw	22nd

Tommy Farr (born March 12, 1913 in Tonypandy , Rhondda , Wales , † March 1, 1986 ) was a British (Welsh) boxer .

Career

Farr grew up in the Welsh Tonypandy near Rhondda in Wales . Like many young people from this area, he threatened to have to work in one of the country's coal mines as a boy. He therefore decided to become a boxer and began playing this sport at the age of twelve. He played his first fight on December 18, 1926 with a six-round win over Jack Jones. Over the next few years he played several fights almost a month, all of which served to build a career as a boxer. He grew into the light heavyweight division by 1932. He later fought in the heavyweight division, but was a relatively "light" heavyweight throughout his career, usually weighing between 85 kg and 88 kg in his fights.

Due to his good training, Farr was a technically well-versed boxer, who made up for his lack of clout with his speed. On July 22, 1933 Farr denied in Tonypandy against Randy Jones his first championship fight. It was about the Welsh light heavyweight championship. Farr won this fight after 15 rounds on points. On September 14, 1934 he successfully defended this title in Trealaw, Wales, against Charlie Bundy by winning points after 15 rounds.

On February 4, 1935 Farr got the chance in Mountain Ash, Wales to fight Eddie Phillips for the British light heavyweight championship. However, he disappointed his supporters, who mostly came from the buddies of the Welsh coal mining area and lost after 15 rounds on points. Nonetheless, Farr continued on his path and achieved two great successes in 1936. First, on January 15, 1936, at the Royal Albert Hall in London, he defeated the former world light heavyweight champion, the American Tommy Loughran over ten rounds on points, and then on April 2, 1936, he also defeated the US world numbering boxer Bob Olin over ten laps safely on points. After these two victories, he appeared for the first time in the world rankings among the ten best heavyweights.

On May 18, 1936, Farr won the right to challenge a title fight for the British and Empire heavyweight championships by defeating Tom Wilde. This fight then took place on March 15, 1937 in Covent Garden in London. Farr defeated the South African Ben Foord, who was also well known in Germany for his fights against Max Schmeling and Walter Neusel, over 15 rounds on points. He was British and Empire heavyweight champion.

The following months of 1937 were the climax of Farr's career. Just one month after his victory over Ben Foord, he defeated ex-world champion Max Baer on April 15, 1937 in London , who had only seen one "build-up opponent" in Farr over twelve rounds on points and won on June 15, 1937 in the Harrington Arena to London against the German Walter Neusel by knockout in the third round. With victories over Foord, Baer and Neusel, he had climbed so far in the world rankings that he could challenge world champion Joe Louis . This fight took place on August 30, 1937 at Yankee Stadium in New York City in front of 32,000 spectators. After his defeat by Max Schmeling on June 19, 1936, Joe Louis had eight knockout victories in a row and on June 22, 1937 won the heavyweight world title by knocking out Jim Braddock in the eighth round . The fight against Farr was his first title defense. Farr did what no one expected in this fight. He got by smoothly with Joe Louis and lost the fight after 15 rounds only on points.

In the following fights of his career, Farr never regained the form he was in the fight against Joe Louis. He stayed in the United States and lost the next four fights, all held at Madison Square Garden in New York City, against Jim Braddock, Max Baer, Lou Nova and Clarence Burman on points. After the fight against Zachary Nicholas in Barnstaple, Devon, which he won by knockout in the third round, Farr resigned. He was only 26 years old.

Ten years later, financial difficulties forced Farr to make a comeback. From 1950 to 1953 he played another 16 fights, of which he won 11. He defeated such good people as the Belgian champion Robert Eugene, the Italian Giorgio Milan, the Austrian ex-European champion Josef Weidinger (Joe Weidin), but also lost to the American Al Hoosman . After a knockout loss in the 7th round against his compatriot Don Cockell on March 9, 1953 in Nottingham , it was in this fight for the right to challenge the British heavyweight champion, Farr ended his career for good.

Farr was then an innkeeper in Sussex and a welcome and acclaimed guest at all major boxing events in England .

Championship fights from Tommy Farr

• 22nd July 1933, victory over Randy Jones in the fight for the Welsh light heavyweight championship,
• September 14, 1934, points victory over Charlie Bundy in the fight for the Welsh light heavyweight championship,
• 4th February 1935, point loss to Eddie Phillips in the fight for the British Light Heavyweight Championship,
• March 15, 1937, points victory over Ben Foord , South Africa , in the fight for the British and Empire heavyweight championships,
• August 30, 1937, lost point to Joe Louis , USA , in the fight for the world heavyweight championship,
• 7th July 1951, knockout victory in the 6th round over Dennis Powell in the fight for the Welsh heavyweight championship

Individual evidence

1. ↑ http://home.st.net.au/~dunn/usarmy/boxermtisa.htm

Web link

Record from Tommy Farr