It seems that Robert Cohen’s last death passed under the radar in the sports press. This Frenchman won the title of World Bantamweight in 1954, defeating Chamroem Songkitrat in a demanding 15-year-old Bangkok. Cohen, who died at the age of 91 on March 2, had a great record, broken only with defeats in his last three competitions in 1955–1959.

Algeria-Żyd, Cohen survived the persecution of Vichy’s pro-Nazist regime in the French war before he became the eighth boxing champion in this country. It is best to remember him older fans of Great Britain for winning in 1954 on John Kelly, in which he took the European title Bantam in a scale only seven months before the victory of the world title. Kelly won 21 competitions in a row and looked like places. He won the European title, defeating the Scottish demanding man Peter Keenan at points at King’s Hall in Belfast in a very sturdy competition. Kelly’s first defense against Cohen absolutely revealed the lack of experience and defects.

BN header “Cohen annihilated Kelly”, says everything. He reports that “this competition was not as much as punishment, and 20,000 pairs of Irish eyes watched terrified terror, how the Frenchman with the destruction of gloves shattered their idol once, two, six times earlier, fortunately it ended.” Kelly never recovered after this defeat, losing twice as much this year by knockout before retiring three years later at the age of 25.

It was not for the first time that British fans had the opportunity to see Cohen in action. In 1953 he fought twice in Belle Vue, Manchester, winning the victory in the sixth round over Teddy Peckham of Bournemouth, and then beat this great miniature South African, Jake Tuli, at points before the crowd of capacity in 10 times. At that time, Cohen was assessed as a leading claimant for the title of the world, and British fans were impressed.

After the victory over Kelly, Cohen stayed in Great Britain and won two more competitions in April 1954, beating both Eddie Carson and Manny Kid Francis with simple points in two entertainment 10-ranges. During the last competition against the British boxer, Cohen was adapted to the Roy Ankrah in Paris in December 1954, three months after he became the world champion. Ankrah, a highly qualified boxer from Ghana, was a great favorite in Great Britain, but a real reservoir came against the world champion. He was constantly beaten before he retired on the stool after the bell finished the fourth round. BN informed that Cohen was “faster, much more aggressive and extremely capable, perfect fighting machine.”

In 1955, Cohen was involved in boxing policy, almost the same as today. The National Boxing Association deprived him of the title, when within 90 days he did not defend him against Mexico, Raúl Macías within 90 days. The world of boxing was stunned by this decision, no more than NatLeischer, who stated that he wrote the original contract for the fight for the title in Bangkok: “In this it was agreed that the winner would sign the defense of the championship and that the signing would take place within 90 days. Signing, not fighting.”

The Fresh York Sports Committee got stuck with Cohen as a master, and the Frenchman defended his title in September 1955 in Johannesburg against Willie Toweel, a member of a great fighting family, which included Vic, Jimmy and Allan brothers. Cohen dropped his man three times in the second round, but he had to settle for a draw at the end.

The following year, the Frenchman lost the title of world champion in Italy, Mario d’Agata, he was detained in cuts after seven rounds of close fight in Rome. The hereditary little warrior then retired with a record of 36 wins, four losses and three draws in a shiny career and it is unhappy that his passing was by many.

I recently scanned an senior copy of the Ring magazine since April 1974, and my mind was passed by something I forgot. The assessment of weighty delicate this month was replaced by the following: Champion-Bob Foster, 1. John Conteh, 2. Len Hutchins, 3. Tom Bogs, 4. Victor Galindez, 5. Max Smith.

I suspect that five of these names still mean something, even for state-of-the-art fans, but who is at number 5? It is tough to believe that a warrior from the northeast, then a very impossible area with a only handful of professionals, a man managed by Tommy Miller, whose stable contained a long list of journeymen, and a boxer who never got smelling in a British title can be so highly rated among the world élite. BN was not so nice, because at no time in any of their ranking lists Max appeared in the world top ten in boxing, at that time the weekly rival BN, he assessed Max at level 24 at the end of 1973. So what is Nat Loubet saw in Max to evaluate him so much?

Maxa was a service technician in one of the elite units in the country. During service, both Royal Navy and the Combined Services Championships in 1967 and 1968 won as the royal infantry. He was also the champion of ABA in 1967 and had to withdraw from the final of 1968 with a hand injury, leaving Ray Brittle as a master of this year.

With such an excellent amateur pedigree, he was very wanted as a professional, and when he signed a contract with Arthur Boggis’s manager in August 1968, he became the first vigorous soldiers who could professionally hurt for many years. He fought 10 times for Boggis in 1968–70, winning seven and losing three.

After a good start, the loss of losses with Roy John, Dervan Airey and Bunny Johnson was derailed. This last defeat was particularly disappointing because he was knocked out in three rounds in Empire Pool, Wembley, on Undercard of Henry Cooper-Jack Bodell for the title of British heavyweight.

Maxa packed him for a moment, and when he returned, in 1973 with the modern manager, Tommy Miller, was rejuvenated. He won nine competitions in a row and it was these fights that led him to his world assessment. Starting two good victories over space, defeating Harry Scott in five and Ade Ajasco in six, then said Sid Falconer, Graham Sines and Bunny Sterling, within eight rounds. Until now, BN has finished fifth in Great Britain. Then he stopped Falconer in four, then met American Eddie Duncan in the 10-Rund in Belle Vue, Manchester in October 1973. It was a fight that convinced the ring of its quality.

Duncan was no stranger to Great Britain. In September 1972, he became the first man who defeated John Conteh, and also attracted here from Johnny Franham before he overtook Rossendale Banger, Phil Matthews. Max managed Duncan with relative ease, experiencing an early attack to gradually work out his man. BN informed that “the judge of course decided that Smith’s durability exceeded the spectacular but rarer hit in Philadelphians.”

Max continued this victory with the victories of points over Roy John and Bob Tuckett, and at the end of 1973 BN took three place in Great Britain, behind Conteh and Chris Finnegan. By the way, when the Ring magazine placed Max on the fifth, Finnegan was behind him at the eighth number. In 1974, Max was detained by a cut-off eye against German, Karl-Heinz Klein, and then stopped at three by Avenemmar Pealta in Austria. His last fight took place in 1975, when he stopped again in the third by Steve Azel for the title of the community of nations. He never got a British title, and today, at almost 80 years senior, Max still trains every day in his own gym in Stockton. He was a warrior of the ranking around the world.

The flying weight division almost extinct in Great Britain in the 1960s. At the end of the decade, the British rankings mentioned John McCluskey as a master and ton of Barlow from Manchester, as a number one claimant.

It was, there was no number two because there were no other vigorous fly weight. This position remained the same for the next seven years before Charlie Magri a bit revived the division. I suspect that many good amateur fly scales did not pay off because of it, without money that you can earn as a professional if there was no one to fight.

Mickey Abrams, Maurice O’Sullivan, Martin Lawless, Lee Skevington and Peter Wakefield would make excellent professionals if they could have such an opportunity. When Barlow turned around in 1963, the situation was a bit better. During the BN he took only the top ten on every weight, and for the division of the fly weight they mentioned only four contenders. There were several other tiny men in the area, but BN probably did not think they were good enough to evaluate them.

Today there will be many who remembers Tony well because he was an vigorous participant in boxing around Manchester in many respects after the end of the ring career. He was popular as a warrior because of the exhilarating competitions in which he took part, and was popular as a man because of his readiness to aid everyone when he withdrew from the ring.

He was a good amateur, ABA finalist in 1962, who represented his country three times. He was one of the two men who won the very robust Russian team in 1962, when Great Britain fell by eight duels to two. The program of notes for this international was described as a seriously striking, 21-year-old Gravedigger. When he changed his professional the following year, he found it hard for the manager Stan Skinkiss, winning only eight out of 12 competitions this year.

In 1964 he was undefeated for six, but he had to fight one of his opponents, a kid of Hassan from Nigeria, three times due to the lack of available men on weight. The following year, he became the best contender, together with Alex O’Neill, with the master Walter McGowan, before he was used by John McCluskey after losing the eight round in November 1965 McCluskey became the nemesis of Tony, defeating him all four times, including two duels to the British title. In 1967, John defeated Tony in Hall Free Trade, Manchester to win the title recently abandoned by McGowan, who recently won and then lost the title of world champion.

In the great fight BN announced that “McCluskey came out a sprint to action in eighth place and before Barlow knew what was going on, there was the cores around the ring. He broke the engagement, McCluskey hit his man on the ropes, and when he went down, feinging with his left, and then landed right to the point She hit the floor, and he was disappointed, and his head was disappointed, which was disappointment, which was, which was disappointment, which was not able to defeat the count. “

When they both met again for the title, in 1969, this time in Solihull, Barlow fought the champion from the very beginning. After some penalties Mancunian McCluskey began to take control in the middle of Contest, and 10. Barlow solved. The judge, Roland Dakin, stopped him at 13, and Barlow protested, but it was obvious that there would be only one winner.

Tony Barlow left the game after another competition, lost from Orizu, to take his place among the pantheon of excellent little men produced by his hometown. Unfortunately, Tony died at a relatively newborn age 69 in 2009.