Daniel Cann

In boxing beating a legend or following a legend is a tough thing to do. Sandy Saddler knew all about that. As a result he has perhaps never quite received the acclaim his talents deserved. An eye injury prematurely ended his career and arguably he never quite got the breaks. One thing that cannot be questioned is that Saddler undoubtedly belongs in the Parthenon of featherweight greats. He had fearsome punching power, great physical strength and stamina and that essential element that separates the great from the good: mental toughness.

Born Joseph Saddler (the Sandy was a nickname given to him by a boxing publicist who decked him out in tartan shorts and a tam-‘o-shanter for an early publicity photo) to a very tall West Indian father and American mother on 23 June 1926 in Boston. The family moved to Harlem, New York City when Saddler was three and it was on these mean streets that he grew up and developed into the outstanding athlete he would later become.

At five feet eight and a half inches tall and with a reach of 70 inches (more like a light heavyweights reach) Saddler cut an unusual figure as a featherweight. The writer AJ Liebling described him as being ‘built like a bundle of loosely-jointed fishing poles, but they are apparently pickled bamboo; he takes a good punch and his thin arms never seem to tire.’

He may not have looked much physically, maybe even weedy, but Saddler was made of iron and despite being skinny, like Thomas Hearns years later, Saddler had tremendous almost freakish hitting power as his 103 knockouts in 144 wins will attest.

He liked to train after school and although a keen basketball player he was best with his fists and he ultimately became a successful amateur at flyweight and bantamweight with the Police Athletic League club at the age of 16. Under the guidance of trainer Dick Bruno he developed into a solid and gifted fighter, so much so that it became hard to match him as his reputation grew. He lost only three or four of fifty contests and unsurprisingly with amateur opportunities drying up he turned professional relatively young just shortly before his eighteenth birthday.

Jimmy Johnston had managed an impressive stable of fighters including world champions and he was impressed by the lanky youth with bags of potential. Jimmy’s brother Bill took the managerial reins and ultimately Charley another Johnston brother would take on Saddler’s career. Charley’s stable included light heavyweight great Archie Moore so Saddler was in good company. Moore and Saddler got along well together and Saddler said ‘Archie taught me how to punch from the balls of my feet.’ Plenty more technical advice would be imparted onto the young featherweight and the two men would later play instrumental roles in a certain young heavyweight’s career called George Foreman, but that’s another story.

Unfortunately Saddler was stopped in three rounds by Jock Leslie in only his second fight, in 162 fights this was the only time Saddler would fail to last the distance. He did not dwell on the defeat for long and maintained a hectic schedule; in his second year as a pro he scored fourteen consecutive wins all by knockout, seven of them in the first round. The only way now was up!

It took Saddler over four years and an incredible 94 fights to earn a top world ranking and an opportunity to take the crown from the excellent champion Willie Pep. Pep’s guaranteed purse left little for Saddler but he knew if he won the title the financial rewards would soon follow, only the clever defensive great stood in his way. Pep was heavily favoured and despite his power and intimidating height and power Saddler was the big underdog. He therefore caused a sensation when he marched right through Pep, scoring the first ever knockdowns of the champion’s career en route to a fourth round stoppage. On 29 October 1948 Sandy Saddler had served notice to the world that he had arrived and was a force to be reckoned with.

Fifteen weeks later the return was held at Madison Square Garden and this time it would prove to be a different fight. Pep had far more respect for the four years younger and much taller champion. Instead of bringing a cocksure lackadaisical attitude to the ring he was fired up and sharp. Pep put on one of the great exhibitions of pure boxing, dazzling the stalking Saddler with speed, footwork and clever defensive skills to take a hard fought but clear points win.

Pep kept the frustrated Saddler waiting eighteen months before the third contest. The Harlem fighter kept busy by posting over twenty wins. He wanted to be in top condition for the inevitable rubber match. At long last the third fight held at Yankee Stadium, New York City in September 1950. It was one of the biggest non-heavyweight promotions in history as 38,781 fans paid a record $262,150 to see the two featherweights in action.

Pep boxed brilliantly again behind a frantic left jab, ever wary of the threat of Saddler’s powerful fists. He was right to be wary as in the third round a Saddler left hook dropped him for a count of nine. Pep recovered to continue his points stealing safety first boxing and Saddler had to work very hard to land his heavy broadsides at the elusive target. A body shot made Pep wilt late in round seven and despite a columnist from ‘The New York Times’ remarking that for Pep round seven was ‘a magnificent exhibition of the boxing skill that has been his characteristic for ten years of ring warfare’ Pep stunned the large crowd and the media by announcing that he would not be coming out for the eighth round. The corner retirement raised plenty of eyebrows not least Saddler who contemptuously said that Pep had bottled it. Pep’s official reason was a dislocated shoulder. This seems to be a genuine claim as the usually highly active Pep went on a four month hiatus from the ring, an eternity for him. It did not matter, Saddler had won the title back and it felt good.

Pep’s people clamoured for a return but after he had been treated, Saddler kept them waiting for a year. He went back on the road and won many non-title contests but was surprisingly beaten by promising young lightweight boxer Del Flanagan on points over ten rounds in Detroit. Undeterred Saddler posted impressive stoppage wins over Diego Sosa in Havana, Cuba and Lauro Salas. His travels took him to Buenos Aires, Argentina where he fought three times and once in Santiago, Chile before losing on points to Paddy De Marco in another non-title fight (Saddler had previously beaten De Marco by stoppage in nine rounds so this was a surprise).

It was now time to face old enemy Pep. This time the fight was held at the Polo Grounds, New York City on 26 September 1951. There was little love lost between the two men. Saddler thought that he had been discriminated against racially in his long journey to the title and was unhappy at his reputation as a ‘dirty fighter.’ He claimed that he was held so much by opponents that he frequently had to wrestle to break free.

The three Pep versus Saddler affairs had been brutal and ruthless but the worst was saved for the fourth and final meeting. In this contest the two men fouled each other repeatedly. Saddler was twice wrestled to the floor at the end of the fifth and again in the eighth. Both men fell over in the sixth. Even the referee Ray Miller was brought down in the seventh as he tried to break up a clinch. A sterner referee would have been justified to throw out both of the men and it could have been a disqualification or ‘no contest’ it was that unedifying a spectacle. A deep cut had been opened under Pep’s eye in the second round and his right eye was nearly swollen shut by the end of the ninth, Pep claimed courtesy of a thumb.

Saddler’s manager Charley Johnston was arguing with one of the three judges when Pep’s corner decided that he would not be coming out for the tenth round. Saddler won the fight and the series three wins to one, but both men were suspended from boxing for six months by the disgusted New York State boxing commissioners. Saddler had kept the title and seen off Pep again but both men had won little respect. Both men subsequently admitted years later in separate interviews that they made each other lose their heads such was the needle that existed between them. Their series of fights were true grudge matches.

It was a sad unsavoury end to a classic rivalry and Saddler had a bad spell of losing three fights in a row. De Marco outpointed him again and so to did George Arajulo. He was then disqualified in four rounds against Canadian Armand Savoie in Montreal. He was back on form against Irish-American Tommy Collins who he defeated convincingly in five rounds in the intimidating atmosphere of Boston on St Patrick’s Day. This fight was notable as Saddler was floored for the first time in his career (140 fights up till then) before getting up to win.

Saddler was called up for two years army service, the only reigning world champion to be called up in the Korean war and thus lost two years of his career at his peak and big ring earnings. He took all of this without complaining but it must have been a bitter pill to swallow. When he did resume his career in 1954 he scored an impressive ninth round stoppage of Bill Bossio in New York City. He fought eight more times that year including a six knock out of contender and European champion Ray Famechon of France in Paris, France. Saddler was never scared of fighting in an opponent’s back yard even when champion.

On 25 February 1955 he outpointed the ‘interim’ world featherweight champion Teddy ‘Red Top’ Davis over fifteen rounds in New York. The years of hard campaigning and the enforced two year hiatus began to take their toll and Saddler dropped ten round decisions to lightweight contender Joey Lopes and the Filipino sensation, Flash Elorde.

Saddler gave Elorde a shot at the world featherweight title and the two met in San Francisco in January 1956. After a bloody battle that drained and tested both men Saddler emerged victorious by virtue of a gutsy thirteenth round stoppage. This tough encounter proved to be Saddler’s last big win. Two fights later he was in a taxi which was involved in an accident and Saddler’s bad luck struck again as he sustained serious eye damage which ultimately and tragically forced him to announce his retirement from the ring at the age of just thirty in January 1957.

He finished his career with an outstanding record with most of his defeats the result of dubious point’s decisions in his opponents’ home town. He was one tough man with an intimidating, uncompromising and thoroughly professional manner. He did it all the hard way and proved himself a worthy great champion in an environment that was not always welcoming to him as champion. He described why he never received the recognition he deserved for beating the legendary Pep thus: ‘It’s just plain ol’ prejudice.’

As the years have passed he has at last received the recognition that was due him. He later became a highly respected boxing trainer, working as the physical director of the National Maritime Union in New York. He also worked the corner of world heavyweight champion George Foreman, with his brother Dick Saddler and Archie Moore. Failing health finally forced him to give up the corner work but he has in later life enjoyed the accolades his career deserved. Despite the enmity between them when Pep and Saddler were both guests at the Induction Weekend at the International Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota, New York he was warmly greeted by his old foe. They seemed to have finally buried the hatchet. Their names will forever be linked in featherweight boxing folklore. Saddler deserves to be remembered as one of the best.

World Title Fights: 9 Won: 8 Lost: 1

Career Fights

Won: 144 Lost: 16 Drew: 2 Knockouts: 103