Panama Joe Gans

Panama Joe Gans

Panama Joe Gans was a black boxer who was the penultimate holder of the World Colored Middleweight Championship.^[1] Born Cyril Quinton on 14 November 1896 in Barbados, British West Indies and raised in the Panama Canal Zone, the 5'7" Quinton originally fought out of Panama and then New York City. He named himself after African American boxing great Joe Gans, the first black fighter to win a world boxing title. He fought at between 147 and 160 lbs.

Panama Joe won the Lightweight Championship of Panama and the Middleweight Championship of South and Central America. On December 12, 1916, though barely twenty-one years old, he soundly defeated Abraham Jacob Hollandersky, a former holder of the Panamanian Heavyweight Championship, in 20 rounds in Panama City. ^[2] Panama Joe won the World Colored Middleweight Championship from George Robinson in Madison Square Garden on October 8, 1920. It was the first time two black boxers were featured on a fight card at the Garden.

He defended the title thrice in 1923, racking up no decisions (and thus keeping his title) against Whitey Black on May 14 in Detroit and against Tiger Flowers in Toledo, Ohio on May 25. He knocked out Willie Walker via a 9th round K.O. in New York City on June 30.^[3]

He lost his title to Larry Estridge^[4] in a fight at Yankee Stadium on July 26, 1924. Estridge successfully defended the title against Gans at Queensboro Stadium in Long Island City, Queens, New York on August 11 of that year. It was his sole title defense. The title went into abeyance after Tiger Flowers became the first black boxer to win the world middleweight championship when he defeated Harry Greb in 1926.

References

1. ↑ "Panama Joe Gans". BoxRec. Retrieved 24 May 2012. 
2. ↑ "Abraham Jacob Hollandersky". BoxRec. Retrieved 31 March 2015. 
3. ↑ ""Panama" Joe Gans". Cyber Zone Boxing. Retrieved 24 May 2012. 
4. ↑ "Larry Estridge". BoxRec. Retrieved 24 May 2012.