Tommy Farr
| Tommy Farr | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Statistics | |
| Real name | Tommy Farr |
| Rated at | Heavyweight |
| Nationality | British |
| Born |
12 March 1913 Clydach Vale, Rhondda, Wales |
| Died | 1 March 1986 (aged 72) |
| Stance | Orthodox |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 137 |
| Wins | 84 |
| Wins by KO | 24 |
| Losses | 34 |
| Draws | 17 |
| No contests | 2 |
Thomas George Farr (12 March 1913 – 1 March 1986) was a Welsh boxer from Clydach Vale, Rhondda, nicknamed "the Tonypandy Terror". Prior to 1936, he had boxed in the light heavyweight division, in which he was the Welsh champion, he became British and Empire heavyweight champion on 15 March 1937. He challenged for the world title against Joe Louis in the same year and gave Louis one of the toughest fights of his career, hurting him numerous times and lasting the full 15 rounds on his way to a wide unanimous decision loss, which was booed by spectators. Farr is considered to be one of the greatest British heavyweight fighters ever. Farr was inducted into the Welsh Sports Hall of Fame in 1997.
On 30 August 1937, Farr fought world heavyweight champion Joe Louis at the height of his career at Yankee Stadium, New York City; he gained respect despite losing a controversial points decision after 15 rounds. Louis, one of the greatest heavyweights of all time, had knocked out 8 of his previous 9 opponents and proceeded to knock out his next 7, but was fearlessly attacked and hurt by Farr. The 50,000 crowd booed when Louis was awarded the decision after referee Arthur Donovan, Sr. had seemingly raised Farr's glove in victory. Seven years later, in his published account of the fight, Donovan apologised for the 'mistake'. "Mistakes" hardly ended there, however. Donovan's own scorecard, had 13 rounds going to Louis. Though mixed accounts in main tell us Louis deserved the nod, 13 frames out of 15 prompted these words from a British sportswriter: "The verdict is that of a man either blindly partisan or afflicted with astigmatism. It is a verdict that justifies the beliefs that nothing short of the annihilation of Louis would have given Farr victory. That Louis won may not be disputed, but as I read the fight, there was only a fractional difference in his favour at the finish."
Self-selection bias of "how close" the fight between Farr and Louis, continued for many years. In The Encyclopedia of Boxing, as compiled by Gilbert Odd in the 1980's, Tommy's listing concludes its thumbnail on the championship bout with "...Louis came back strongly and clinched a narrow points verdict." The actual ferocity of the battle and its level of competition, seldom contested, may be summed up by Tommy Farr, later on in life: "When I talk about that fight, my nose still bleeds."
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