Tom Allen (boxer)
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Tom Allen was a British bare-knuckle boxer who claimed the Heavyweight Championship from 1873, when he defeated Mike McCoole, until 1876, when he lost to Joe Goss. For much of his earlier career he fo
Allen circa 1869
Jem Mace
Heavyweight champion, Mike McCoole
Allen in later life, circa 1897
Bare-knuckle boxing
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Bare-knuckle boxing is a full-contact combat sport in which participants box without any form of padding on the hands. The sport, as it is known today, originated in 17th-century England and, although
Tom Allen (boxer)
…Rules promulgated in 1843. Fine scientific boxing with a calculated defense involving feints with the arms and forward foot were rarely a feature of bare-knuckle boxing in the 1870s, nor necessary with the undisciplined nature of London Prize Ring Rules. These rules also outlawed head butting, holding the ropes…
Irish-American fighter John L. Sullivan
Depiction of bare-knuckle boxers George Godfrey vs. Joe Lannon in chancery
Tom Molineaux (left) vs Tom Cribb in a re-match for the heavyweight championship of England, 1811.