7. Teddy Yarosz Decisions Vince Dundee for the Middleweight Title, 1934
Early in his career, Monaca’s Teddy Yarosz was called the “new Pittsburgh windmill,” but Yarosz was the opposite of the brawling Harry Greb. Also dubbed “the Polish Kid” and “the Polish Panther,” he was once described by a Pittsburgh sportswriter as “a craftsman with the gloves.” When he won the middleweight title against Vince Dundee, the fight drew a record 28,000 fans at Forbes Field. Yarosz lost his crown several months later to Babe Risko after suffering a serious knee injury, but he bounced back and eventually fought as a light heavyweight. As a light heavyweight, he defeated Archie Moore and fought three memorable bouts against Billy Conn. Yarosz lost the first two matches on controversial split decisions, but then defeated Conn in their third meeting. One of his last fights was against Ezzard Charles, who would later fight Jersey Joe Walcott at Forbes Field for the heavyweight championship.
Yarosz Wins Middleweight Title
Split Decision Gives Monacan Crown in Tame 15-Round Battle
28,000 Crowd Sees Teddy Slap Way To Indifferent Triumph; Vince Unimpressive Until Closing Stanzas
The middleweight championship of the world came back to the Pittsburgh district last night at Forbes Field when Ted Yarosz of Monaca won the official decision over Vince Dundee of Newark, the champion, in 15 rounds of as tame fighting as any important championship event ever saw.
It was not a clean-cut victory that Yarosz scored by any means, and he looked unimpressive as he backed away from the champion, scoring his points with light flicking lefts for the most part, and only infrequently opening up with his right hand, and seldom putting on the spurts that twice before accounted for decisions over Dundee.
Officials Disagree
The officials were divided in their opinion, Judge Dr. George McBeth and Al Grayber, the referee, voting for Yarosz, and Judge Leo Houck, of Lancaster, an imported judge, casting his ballot for Dundee. With the judges splitting, the referee had the deciding vote and his vote gave the Monaca boy the championship.
By a slight margin, it seems to this reporter, Yarosz won in the count of rounds, six of them and four for Dundee, with five counted even, but against this count was the fact that the champion did virtually all of the pressing forward as Yarosz circled away and only on one of two occasions did the challenger flash championship stuff in the winning.
Ted Tires at Finish
At the finish it seemed to be a confident, charging Dundee and a Yarosz who seemed a little tired who were winding up as a tame a championship as recent records disclose.
With 28,000 or so fans watching, and most of them, it is fair to assume, partisans of the Pittsburgh district fighter, the lack of enthusiasm was appalling as Yarosz contented himself with flicking light lefts to the jaw and missing an untold number of punches to the body and head.
What saved Yarosz, of course, was that the champion, a veteran with his future behind him, was unimpressive, too, lacking a punch of any power, and fighting a cautious battle until the closing rounds.
Neither One Hurt
Not once in the proceedings was either man seriously hurt and both left the ring unmarked, this being due to the light hitting that marked the affair from virtually the beginning to the end. That there was little to choose between them is evidenced by the doubt at the end of at least five of the rounds, resulting in draw verdicts in this account. There were other rounds, too, where a single punch swayed the balance in favor of one man or the others.
With the biggest crowd in the town’s history all set to cheer for this home boy, the silence at times was appalling and the suspense as announcer Ray Elberle called for official ballots, to read there from, was an indication of the doubt existing in the minds of the fans. There was no robust or exultant cheering, either, as the popular Yarosz was acclaimed the new champion, for as the fates would have it, they caused him to put up one of his least impressive performances in the big moment.
Monaca’s Teddy Yarosz became the world middleweight champion in 1934 with a 15-round decision over Vince Dundee. (Post-Gazette archives)
Cautious at Start
Yarosz, coming in at 157½ pounds, looked fresh and strong, although not completely eager, while Dundee, who enjoyed a spell of success after he had been thought through two years ago, came in at 158½ pounds, looking a little concerned but wearing also a defiant, determined air.
Opening in the fight, both were so cautious that only the light lefts, which were to mark the fight for the most part, set the session apart from a friendly little argument.
Yarosz took up his backing away, flicking a left as he circled backward, while Dundee pursued him, none too viciously, but looking for an opening. Yarosz managed to put in a right hand to the head, but it was not a convincer.
It was in the second that Yarosz gave hopes to his followers that it was going to be a repetition of his first two victories over Dundee when, after starting out tamely, he put on a characteristic spurt, sending in a flurry of strong lefts and a couple of solid rights to Dundee’s jaw, which seemed to spell business.
Ted landed one particularly good right hand in this flurry, which slowed up the champion, and Ted won the round with something to spare.
Third Round Even
In the third round there was little done by either boy, Dundee apparently counting himself doing well by bobbing his head like a cork in water as Yarosz missed a series of light lefts to the face and only toward the finish of the round caught Dundee with lefts that carried a little authority. There was so little done, however, by either boy that the round was scored at even.
In the fourth, Yarosz was short with many an attempt to land his left and Dundee was kept so busy avoiding them that he failed to score himself. Yarosz seemed for a second or two to be in for a big moment in this round when he crowded the champion into a neutral corner and, holding him out with his left, prepared to measure him with his right, but the cagy Dundee, whose defense throughout was pretty good, ducked into a clinch and escaped harm. What little was done in the round was done by Yarosz, but that was nothing to write home about.
Vince Makes Ted Miss
In the fifth Dundee had Yarosz missing again and pressing forward. He caught Yarosz with lefts in the head and which made up in number what they lacked in fury. Dundee, a little discouraged, put on a little steam in the following session and was rewarded with finding Ted with his light left hand punch.
Yarosz scored a good right hand to the jaw at the close of this round, making Yarosz miss often and the occasional punches Vince delivered brought him up to even terms with the challenger.
The next round was so tame that neither boy outdistanced the other, light-hitting lefts again marking the session, with Yarosz circling away and Dundee pursuing him but apparently not so eager to catch up with his quarry. Yarosz chanced a few rights and while a couple landed with fair power the boys were pretty much even at the finish.
Teddy Opens Up
Yarosz now came forward with his most consistent drive although it lacked the flavor of his usual medicine, but he managed to find Dundee with enough lefts to roll up sufficient points to capture the eight and ninth rounds. Both boys were on the defense throughout these two sessions with Yarosz winning only because he was less so than his foeman.
The tenth was another tame session and both boys scored about evenly with their indifferent left hands, either to the face or body and after Yarosz managed to eke out a few points, still circling away, with his flicking left halting now and then his retreat.
Many Missed Punches
Dundee evened the score with a left-handed attack. The number of missed punches began to assume by this time, alarming proportions.
Only because Dundee was seemingly satisfied with his progress in defending his title—he had not yet been hurt and was trading light left for light left—did Yarosz manage to scratch out enough points in the eleventh and twelfth rounds to maintain a slight margin over the visitor. In the thirteenth Dundee made his best bid for victory, opening up with two swell rights that caught Yarosz on the jaw and putting more power into his lefts to the head and stomach than he had attempted before. He was rewarded by seeing Yarosz’s head bob around a bit after those two rights and he took the round with lots to spare.
The fourteenth was even, lacking, as most of the other rounds, any flashy stuff by either boy, and bringing back the monotonous repetition of light left to the head, another light left to the head, each about breaking even in such exchanges.
Yarosz Begins to Lag
Then in the fifteenth Dundee showed to greater advantage than he had done previously, not because of any particular blows he struck, but because he seemed to have Yarosz by this time out-conditioned. Ted was stumbling awkwardly about in the clinches and some of the extremely optimistic Dundee rooters began calling for a knockout. If Yarosz had gone down, and that did not seem to be even a remote possibility, it would have been though exhaustion coming from missing so many punches and from his continual backward circling.
Dundee was a disappointed boy as the decision was announced and the enthusiasm in Yarosz’ corner was not as spontaneous as that which usually marks the winning of a great victory.
Yarosz’ dressing room was barred to all but handlers and close friends for quite some time after the fight.
The fight last night was by far the least interesting of the three the boys have now put up.
There were never, it is safe to conjecture, so many silent fans at ringside at there were last night.
It was a very disappointing fight and the explanations from the winning side and the rage of the losing side will be something to look for in the future.
On what they showed neither boy could have complained if the decision went against both, if such a thing were possible.
Vince Complains to Referee
Not a knockdown was scored and the only moment of fighting passion came, to soon pass away, when Dundee complained to Referee Grayber, Yarosz was knocking his punches into foul territory, and another fleeting second when, after Yarosz had struck Dundee when the champion indicated he was set to break clean, the champion shook his head in scorn and considered making it a rough and tumble fight. But he reconsidered and took up the same old pace.
The night was an ideal one for the biggest spectacle in the town’s history and Forbes Field was early presented a lively scene as the champion and challenger climbed into the lighted ring to engage in batter.
The fight was handled well by the men in charge and the crowd got a kick out of greeting Jack Dempsey, who refereed two preliminary bouts.