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AT THE RINGSIDE By Barney Nagler NEW YORK,N.Y., June 1. The awful truth is that Hurricane Jackson can become the world heavyweight champion. He is going to "have the chance at the Polo Grounds on a night in July and odds aside, he could come away the most important fist fighter around, up to and including Sugar Ray Robinson. There was a time when the possibility of the Hurricane reaping the wind of victory in a title bout made grown men pull in their sails and tack to p"ort. Now, however, even the most matured observer says what the heck, hes, a fighter, Isnt he, and wliy shouldnt he become the .heavyweight champion? A question requires an answer, and here it is: He should not become the heavyweight titleholder because he is not quali--fied by anything but physical endowment. A champion, in a preciously real sense, is more than a man of muscles. He is a guide and perhaps a preceptor, and stands out in his community. AAA It will be difficult to equate the Hurricane with these qualifications. He has neither grace nor standing. He is, at best, the animal, as some have called him, up to and including his owner-operator, Lippy Breidbart, and there is no disposition here to .present him as a paragon of rectitude and dignity. However, the notion is that he will not burden an already heavily-bent business if he should upset Patteison. The hijinx in which he has been known to indulge will take on a new aspect if he becomes cham- pion. His deviltry will be regarded as colorful and his idiosyncrasies as cute, as the poets say. He will be a champion, after all, and nobody questions a champions behavior. In our time there have been champions possessed of little class. They have not been able to unhinge boxing from the sports, scene. Indeed, boxing has survived war and famine, insult and injury, investigation and invective. It will survive the Hurricane. AAA To be sure, it will not be without its shoals. The Hurricane will not "be able to carry his weight in public. Television and personal appearances will put him on the verbal spot. He will be put upon to speak out in full view of the clientele. He will not carry the ball as well as Rocky Marciano, to mention one, or Patterson himself, to mention the current champion. There was a time when it was said, and believed, that boxings prosperity was in direct ratio with the quality of the heavyweight champion. For example, the business andor sport flourished in the time of Joe Louis reign. He brought to the business a dignity of person that was reflected in his magnetism at the gate. Neither Jackson nor Ratterson comes close. . Louis was a picture in rhythm, a man so marvelously articulated in his heyday he thrilled the audience simply by walking across the ring before the start ofa bout to shake his rivals hand. His happy days are not too distant to be forgotten by those who saw him in action. They came away from his bouts unmindful of the abuse he had heaped on the" opposition, unworthy or-otherwise. Instead, they remembered Louis as they remembered a ballet. Now can it be said that Jackson might cause such responses among the customers? Of course not. Jacksons double uppercut, his jig-style, his rightleads, his inability to make an opening by jabbing and hooking all add up to a lack of style. The nicest thing to be said about his ring manner is that he is unorthodox, which is a euphe-J mism for unskilled. His bout with Patterson last June was closely fought, perhaps only because the winners right hand was fractured in the course of the argument. Only when he went back to his dressing room garbed in victory did Patterson realize he had fended off Jackson despite a -broken paw. His heart wasnt fractured, however, and he went on Continued on Page Fifty-One I AT THE RINGSIDE By BARNEY NAGLER Continued from Page Tvo to knock out Archie Moore -to become champion. At any time, in any league, Patterson would be an outstanding champion. As a f ighter, that is.He has poise, punch, purpose and skill. He has condition. He even has learned how to move around in public and speak his piece lucidly. He is a champion. The wonder here is whether Jackson can become one outside the ring as well as within the ropes.
