The challenger opened the fight aggressively, landing lefts to the head and rights to the body. Over the next two rounds, he continued to score with left jabs and right hands, while Baer answered with hard body punches.
Through the first five rounds, Braddock outworked the champion. Baer landed occasional heavy punches, particularly to the body, but spent too much time posing for the crowd, clowning, and loading up on single shots instead of cutting off the ring.
Baer’s strongest rally came in the sixth and seventh rounds. A crushing uppercut in the sixth briefly buckled Braddock’s knees, and another booming right hand in the seventh stunned the challenger along the ropes. Many expected the fight to turn at that point.
After weathering Baer’s best attack, Braddock returned to landing his jab and right hand as the bout moved into the championship rounds. Baer landed occasional heavy punches but was unable to erase the deficit.
The 15th round was fought mostly at close range. Braddock landed several clean punches before the final bell, and the fight went the full 15-round distance. The judges awarded Braddock a unanimous decision, making him the new world heavyweight champion.
The victory became one of the biggest upsets in heavyweight championship history. Sportswriter Damon Runyon later gave Braddock the nickname “Cinderella Man,” which remained associated with him for the rest of his life.
His reign lasted until June 22, 1937, when Joe Louis stopped him in the eighth round to win the heavyweight championship. A contract tied to that fight gave Braddock a percentage of Louis’s future earnings, providing financial security after his boxing career. Baer never regained the championship and continued fighting until retiring in 1941.
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