Henry
Hank, One of Boxing's Forgotten Warriors
By Dan Cuoco
There are many stories of
past greats and famous boxers that have been written and rewritten over the
years. But what about the many who fought and made a name for themselves but seem
to be forgotten as the years pass by. Henry Hank is one of them.
Henry was born Joseph Harrison in Greenville,
Mississippi on February 9, 1935. He moved to Detroit with his parents when he was 6 years old. He later changed his
name to Jusuf Salaam when he embraced Islam in 1971, near the close of his
professional career. Young 18-year-old Harrison took the name Henry Hank out of admiration
for triple crown hall-of-famer Henry Armstrong.
Hank was a murderous punching middleweight with an
aggressive style. In the late 1950s and early 1960s he was considered pound for
pound one of the hardest punchers in boxing. He was always moving forward with
his right hand cocked and ready to explode, and his left hand held below his
waist ready to counter. He created an air of tension and excitement whenever he
entered a ring. He fought with the cold cockiness of a man who knew exactly
what he could do.
Inconsistency was his biggest downfall. He was
either knocking guys out, or clowning his way to defeat. He was capable of
having an off night when least expected, especially against clever boxers. The
pattern was always the same. Henry would let them get away with murder in the
early rounds; they usually would build up a points lead while he was enjoying
himself; then, by the time he would get around to trying for a knockout he
either had lost steam, or his opponent had solved his style. On other occasions
he would come out firing in the early rounds and win by early knockout. It
seemed he had to get hurt or cut, or knocked down, or not like his opponent to
go all out. If he had a killer instinct who knows what he could have
accomplished.
Henry made his professional debut 17 days after his
18th birthday on February 26, 1953 in Detroit against former
University of Michigan boxing champion Del Monroe. Monroe was also making his professional debut and was dropped
three times in the first round, the final time for the full count. A splendid
turnout of 10,124 on hand to witness Pat (Spunky) Lowry against Detroit’s Tommy
Leedle left the arena talking about Henry’s impressive and devastating debut.
Henry was just as devastating in his next two fights as he overwhelmed Earl
Battle in one round and battered Toledo Golden Glove champion Bob Wilson
helpless in the third round.
After a five month layoff the inexperienced Hank,
3-0-0 (3), came in as a last minute replacement against 24 year-old Jed Black.
Black was a highly decorated amateur with an impressive professional record at
the time of 20-1-0 (14). Henry gave a very good account of himself before
losing a six round decision in his first start over four rounds. Henry finished
the remainder of the year unbeaten with one stoppage win and two decisions.
Henry continued to hone his skills in 1954 winning
two out of three decisions over fellow prospect Larue Harvey, fighting a draw
with highly acclaimed amateur star Rudy Gwin, and stopping highly regarded
Henry Bronko and Gene Poirier. His one round stoppage of Poirier was quite
impressive because Poirier had never been stopped before and counted former
welterweight champion Tony DeMarco among his victims.
Less than three weeks after stopping veteran Jesse
Gray in four rounds, Henry was pitted against future welterweight champion
Virgil Akins in his first eight rounder. The 26 year-old Akins entered the ring
with a record of 23-13-0 (10) compiled over seven years in the ring. Needless
to say, the more seasoned Akins won handily. Akins showed he could punch
efficiently from any position. Henry was dropped for nine counts twice, from a
right cross in the first round and from a beautiful left hook in the third.
Defensively Akins blocked most of Henry’s punches or rolled with them. Although
he lost, it was an important learning experience. The 19 year-old Hank’s record
at the end of his second year as a professional stood at 14-3-1 (10).
1955 was not a good year for 20 year-old Hank. He engaged in five fights, winning two by
knockout and losing three by decision. He started the year off with a bang by
scoring a clean-cut second round knockout over dangerous Chuck Coleman
before dropping three straight six round decisions to Leffie Walker, Lloyd
Triplett and Gordon Wallace. Henry was favored over both Walker and Triplett,
but for the first time began to display his occasional lackadaisical approach
to boxing that was to unfortunately define his career. He allowed both
opponents to jump out to big early leads cocksure that he would land a big bomb
to end the fight at any time. Against the seasoned Wallace, the former Canadian
light-heavyweight champion, Henry was unlucky to come out on the short end of a
split decision. On July 28th he traveled to Pittsburgh and stopped
Bob Stecher in three rounds. He did not
return to the ring again until March 1956.
Henry returned to the ring in 1956 after an eight
month layoff with renewed energy and enthusiasm. In his first bout back he
stopped 23-year-old Cleveland prospect Rudy Gwin in four rounds to avenge an
earlier draw. In April he returned home to Detroit an avenged another blot on his
record with an eight round decision over Leffie Walker and in July he put away
Chuck Craig in two rounds. The veteran Charley Cotton of Toledo, OH stopped
Hank’s four fight win streak with a ten round decision in Toledo on September
28th. The 25 year-old
Cotton, 31-11-1 (20), coming off of two decision wins over Joey Giardello was
just too experienced for the still young 21-year-old Hank.
Disillusioned with boxing, Henry only fought once in
1957 winning an eight round decision Leffie Walker on June 15th in
Bay City, Michigan in their rubber match.
1958 turned out to be Henry’s breakout year.
Returning to the ring after an eight month layoff and only appearing in his
second fight in 17 months Henry avenged his last defeat with an eight round
decision over the crafty Charlie Cotton.
He then went on an eight fight knockout streak with knockouts over
George Boddie, Sherman Williams, Rudy Ellis, Joe Fusco, old foes Charlie Cotton
and Leffie Walker, Charlie Glover and Sherman Williams again. In the first William’s
fight, Williams was coming off an impressive win over previously undefeated
Detroit knockout artist Jimmy Remson. Henry had no trouble with Williams and
put him away in the first round. Henry
followed with the biggest win of his career when he knocked out highly touted
South Haven, Michigan prospect Rudy Ellis in the fourth round. The streak ended when another hot and cold
fighter Ernie Burford, 17-4-0 (9) out hustled him in Detroit on November 25th.
But, two weeks later Henry avenged yet another defeat when he outscored Burford
in a ten rounder in Toldeo, Ohio.
Henry returned to Toledo to start his 1959 campaign
and again knocked out George Boddie (only Boddie’s third knockout loss in 27 fights
– he went the distance twice with Del Flanagan, and once with Spider Webb) and
outpointed tough Philadelphian Jimmy Beecham.
Then it was off to New Orleans for a series of fights that would carry
him through the end of the year. First
up for Henry was the veteran Charley Joseph. The 26 year-old Joseph had a
record of 49-10-2 (18) and owned victories over Spider Webb, George Benton,
Charlie Cotton, Holly Mims, Willie Vaughn, Milo Savage, Charley (Tombstone)
Smith, and Jimmy Beecham. In 61 professional fights he had never been
stopped. The fight turned out to be an
exciting affair with Hank hammering away at Joseph with devastating results in
the early rounds. However, Joseph came back strong to take a good lead into the
ninth because he was busier while Henry was only flurrying toward the end of
each round. Henry came out fast to start the final round and dropped Joseph
with a left hook. Joseph got up without a count and claimed it was a slip. The
referee scored the fight for Hank 6-3-1, while the two judges had Joseph ahead
5-4-1. The decision was unpopular with the fans and they were immediately
rematched.
Three weeks later they were at it again. A highly
motivated Hank gave Joseph a terrific beating and the fight was stopped in the
sixth round. This was the first time Joseph was stopped in 62 fights. This
victory made Henry a local idol in New Orleans and matchmaker Lou Messina
quickly capitalized on his popularity.
Following the two Joseph fights, Henry was matched
with the very capable and experienced 26 year-old Californian Willie Vaughn.
Vaughn kept close to Henry for nine rounds and had an insurmountable lead.
Henry realizing that his only chance for victory was by knockout pulled it off.
Just seconds into the final round Hank caught Vaughn with a terrific left hook
to the jaw. Vaughn’s head hit the canvas with a thud as the crowd of 3,644
jumped to their feet yelling and screaming. Willie rolled over at the count of
six in an effort to beat the ten count but to no avail. Then came his fight
with Neal Rivers of Las Vegas. Rivers, like Vaughn, was more than holding his
own with Henry for nine rounds. But in the tenth, “Hammering Hank” let go with
his famous left hook and dropped Rivers on all fours. Rivers, game as they
come, survived a nine-count, and ran into another battering. Bleeding from nose
and mouth, and his right eye closing fast, the referee stopped the fight with
only 20 seconds remaining.
On August 10th Henry headlined another
card, this time against the very cagey Holly Mims of Washington, D.C. Mims,
46-18-6 (11), who had met the best in his division held victories over Johnny
Bratton, Jose Basora, George Benton, Spider Webb, Jimmy Beecham, Lester Felton,
Milo Savage, and Willie Troy. He also drew with Bobby Dykes and Bobby Boyd,
while losing competitive decisions to Sugar Ray Robinson, Rocky Castellani,
Joey Giardello, and Ronnie Delaney. In
70 fights he had never been stopped or badly hurt in a fight. Mims used his
exceptional boxing and defensive skills to walk away with a unanimous decision.
A month later Henry had a return match with Neal
Rivers, Henry had an easy go this time around. He dropped Neal in the second
round, gave him a good pasting in the third and dropped him for the full count
in the fourth with a left hook.
Two
months after losing a decision to Holly Mims Henry was back in the ring with
him in a 12 rounder. Henry kept his record intact of not losing to the same
fighter twice as he wore down his 30 year-old adversary with a relentless
attack. The win over Mims propelled him
into the ratings for the first time. For the rating period ending October 1959,
Henry entered in the number nine slot.
Two weeks after defeating
Mims he was matched with the dangerous George Benton. The 26 year-old
Philadelphian entered the ring with a record of 36-5-1 (19). His victims
included Holly Mims, Charlie Joseph, Lester Felton, Joe Dorsey, Clarence Hinnant, Young Beau Jack and Bobby Boyd.
Henry built up an early lead and entered the final round with a clear
margin. But in the tenth he went after Benton as if he needed the round. He
caught George with a left and a right causing George to hold on. Henry broke away from the clinch and buckled
Benton’s knees with a left hook and had Benton helpless on the ropes when the
final bell came to his rescue. The decision in Henry’s favor was unanimous.
Henry’s final fight for the year in New Orleans was
against the number three ranked world light-heavyweight contender Jesse Bowdry
of St. Louis. The 21 year-old Bowdry was a murderous puncher with a record of
27-3-0 (22). Bowdry, with a nine pound advantage in weight, entered the ring a
heavy favorite. Henry shocked Bowdry and his handlers with a tenth round
knockout victory. Bowdry, insisting that he took Hank lightly asked for an
immediate rematch. Six weeks later the two met in Chicago in a nationally
televised fight. Henry was making his national TV debut and became an instant
hit. In one of the best fights seen at the Chicago Stadium in years, Henry
hurled bombs at Bowdry with such accuracy that he stopped him in the sixth
after having him on the floor three times, twice in the third round and once
again in the sixth round before referee Frank Sikora stopped the fight without
bothering to count Bowdry out.
Less than a month later Henry, now the number fourth
world ranked middleweight contender, was back on TV against number five world
ranked light-heavyweight contender Sixto Rodriguez of San Anselmo, CA. The 22
year-old Rodriguez, who was also the California light-heavyweight champion,
entered Chicago Stadium with a record of 23-2-2 (5) for their nationally
televised fight.
Hank again excited Chicago fans and a nationally
televised audience with an exciting and explosive performance. Noted boxing
journalist Robert Thornton: “Hank fights like a combination Bob
Satterfield-Clarence Henry, driving in all the time, right hand cocked way back
ready to explode.”
Henry came out trying for a kayo with every punch,
but the shifty Rodriguez made him miss his punches by just a hair. In the
fourth a cocky Hank dropped both his hands to his sides and shoved out his chin
and defied Rodriguez to hit him. Sixto tried his best, but Henry wouldn’t
budge. In the sixth Henry finally got to Sixto when he staggered him with a
right hand. Henry moved in for the kill and jolted Sixto with a left hook that
sent him into the ropes and followed up with another right hand that spun him
around. The referee jumped in at this
juncture and called a halt to the fight before Henry could any further damage.
The hot Hank was now off to
San Francisco to meet former top ranking middleweight contender Rory Calhoun of
White Plains, NY. The 25 year-old Calhoun came into the fight with a record of
43-9-2 (21). His victory ledger included Dick Tiger, Rocky Castellani, Joey
Giambra, Bobby Boyd, Franz Szuzina, Randy Sandy, Yolande Pompey, Ralph (Tiger)
Jones, and draws with Joey Giardello and Dick Tiger. Henry was at his
devastating best when he put away Calhoun in two rounds. Rory had a slight
point advantage when Henry unleashed a wicked left hook that sent Rory crashing
heavily to the floor. Rory barely made it to his feet before the fatal ten
count but was in no shape to defend himself and the referee wisely stopped the
fight.
Henry was now clamoring for a world title shot
against either World Middleweight Champion Paul Pender or National Boxing
Association (NBA) Middleweight Champion Gene Fullmer. Hank was the NBA’s second
ranking contender behind Germany’s Gustav Scholz. His record stood at 42-10-1
(31); he was on a seven fight win streak; and he had won 22 of his last 25
fights, avenging all three of his losses.
With both champions expressing no interest in
getting in the ring with him he decided to remain busy hoping that public
demand would force either champion into the ring with him.
Less than a month after his sensational victory over
Calhoun an over confident Hank took on unranked San Francisco middleweight Hank
Casey. The 25 year-old Casey was the reigning California middleweight champion and
possessed a fine record 23-2-5 (4). Although not a hard puncher, Casey was an
excellent boxer with a rock hard chin. Regardless of whether or not Henry was
at his best, Casey made him miss quite often by rolling with the punches,
slipping in counters and consistently beating Hank to the punch. When Henry did
land Casey was able to absorb Henry’s best shots. The unanimous decision was
quite popular with the pro Henry Hank crowd. The loss dropped Hank to fifth in
both the Ring and NBA ratings.
Although disappointed by the
loss, the still confident Henry was back in the ring six weeks later against
tough hard-punching Argentine slugger Victor Zalazar. The 24 year-old Zalazar
was coming off two tough losses by decision to Dick Tiger and Yama Bahama. Among
his victims in his 20-5-1 (15) ledger were Yama Bahama, Wilfie Greaves, Tony
Dupas and Andres Selpa. All five of his losses were by decision. Fighting
before his hometown fans in Detroit for the first time in nearly 18 months he
didn’t disappoint. Henry swarmed all over his rugged opponent and shook him up
early in the opening round. Henry backed off during the second and third
rounds. In the fourth after moving back from a furious exchange of infighting
Henry caught Victor flush with a terrific left uppercut. The punch hurt Zalazar
badly and Henry moved in on his rubbery legged opponent and landed a beautiful
three punch combination that dropped him flat on his face. It was at least a
full minute before Victor who had never been knocked down or out before, could
be revived.
Two months after his upset loss to Hank Casey, Henry
preserved his record of having never lost a rematch by outworking Casey in a
ten rounder in New Orleans. Casey stated after the fight. “Henry would be an
even greater, only he needs a fire built under him. I built one fire by beating
him last time. So did those other guys.”
Henry’s next televised appearance was in a rematch
with hot middleweight prospect Rudy Ellis. Since his knockout loss to Henry
two years previous Rudy had won seven of his nine fights: defeating Jesse
Smith twice on points, outscoring Rory Calhoun and scoring impressive knockouts
over Jimmy Beecham and Bobby Boyd. These victories had brought him to the cusp
of a world rating and he was anxious to defeat the third ranked Hank and avenge
his only knockout loss and
Henry’s title aspirations took a severe hit in
September 1960 when unheralded and unranked Jesse Smith of Philadelphia held
him to an upset draw in Chicago and two weeks later Henry lost his rubber match
with Hank Casey in Casey’s hometown of San Francisco.
Smith, 28-6-3 (21), loser twice to Hank victim Rudy
Ellis, earned a draw by simply outhustling the overconfident and lackadaisical
Hank. Henry dropped Smith in the closing moments of the last round to pull out
the draw.
Two
weeks later Henry was in San Francisco determined to vindicate
himself after being held to a draw by Smith. In the opposite corner was San Francisco’s shifty, smooth-boxing Hank Casey. Henry was the odds-on favorite
to defeat Casey. But, once again Henry disappointed when he lost a
lop-sided decision to the talented Casey, who also became the
first fighter to defeat Henry twice. Casey used flicking lefts and sharp rights to
build an insurmountable lead. Henry realizing he was behind on
points began scoring heavily to the body and head in the last
round but was to tired to pull out the fight with one of his
patented finishes. The loss saw Henry’s standing in the
middleweight division plummet to number nine.
Henry returned to the friendly confides of Detroit for his next fight with veteran New York middleweight Randy Sandy. Henry won an easy decision despite fighting the last five rounds with a severely bruised left hand.
On November 9, 1960 Henry made his New York debut
when he headlined a card at Madison Square Garden against number ten ranked
middleweight contender Gene (Ace) Armstrong of Elizabeth, NJ. Armstrong
displayed little regard for Henry’s tremendous punching power by outspeeding,
outboxing and at times outfighting him. Henry was able to score with some lusty
body punches but he had difficulty reaching Armstrong’s chin with solid
punches. Armstrong was able to duck and slip Henry’s power punches. Offensively
Armstrong looked good as he used an effective left to jab and hook and sneaked
in an occasional right to the head and frequently had the better of the fast
exchanges. The judges scoring in Armstrong’s favor was strange to say the
least. Judge Nick Gamboli 8-1-1; Judge Frank Forbes 6-3-1; Referee Al Berl 5-4-1.
What a difference three months can make. Henry went
from a high point on August 3, 1960 (his first round kayo over Rudy Ellis) to
his loss to Armstrong on November 19, 1960. During that period he went from
being a top world rated contender to unranked.
On March 29, 1961 Henry returned to the scene of his
biggest triumphs New Orleans and stopped Cleveland’s Clarence Alford in seven
rounds. Feeling revigarated after the victory Henry was ready for a new assault
at the brass ring – the middleweight title.
On July 10, 1961 Henry and future hall-of-famer Joey
Giardello appeared in the first boxing attraction at the new Convention Arena
segment of Cobo Hall. 6,693 witnessed an outstanding fight between Hank and
Giardello, 86-20-6 (33). Hank and the 7th ranked Giardello engaged
in an exciting slugfest that had the crowd going wild. Both fighters fought
furiously throwing punches at a steady clip with neither fighter willing to
back off. Giardello used his left jab throughout, trying to set up Hank for his
sharp right cross. Hank applied
constant pressure with his aggressive free-swinging style. It was Hank’s harder
and more accurate punches that earned him a popular unanimous decision. With
the victory Henry reentered The Ring world ratings at number eight.
Henry took another step in his upward march to the
top when he outpointed durable Franz Szuzina of Germany 46-21-14 (24). Henry
managed to shake up his opponent on several occasions to win a unanimous
decision. The win also moved Henry into the number six slot in the world
ratings.
Henry continued his winning ways with a seventh
round stoppage of light-heavyweight Jerry Luedee in New Haven, CT and number
six ranked light-heavyweight contender Chic Calderwood of Scotland in Detroit.
Both victories were instrumental in moving Henry to a number five ranking.
Calderwood, 30-1-1 (22), made his U.S. debut against
Hank in Detroit before an excellent crowd of 7,500 vocal fans. Henry set the
pace from the opening bell. A left hook to the body dropped Calderwood in the second
round. Calderwood was game as they come, but couldn’t match Henry’s punching
power in losing a unanimous decision.
Henry, however, couldn’t seem to handle prosperity
well. After his impressive victory over Calderwood, Henry traveled to Miami to
take on Jamaica’s Allan Harmon, 19-7-3 (13), an unranked light-heavyweight in a
tune-up fight for his rematch with Joey Giardello. Old habits caught up to Henry once again when an unmotivated Hank
was held to a ten round draw.
But Henry was never one to let a bad performance
jeopardize his next start. And he proved it when he and Joey Giardello engaged
in a slugfest that was chosen The Ring magazine’s fight of the year.
On January 30, 1962, 20 days after his draw with
Harmon, Henry met Giardello at Convention Hall in Philadelphia before 6,000
fans.
The Ring’s coverage of their epic battle follows:
One
of the hardest fought, bloodiest fights seen in many months was the
middleweight setto between 31 year old Joey Giardello of Philadelphia and 26
year old Henry Hank of Detroit fought before 6,000 fans at the Convention Hall
in Philadelphia.
The
loss didn’t hurt Henry’s standing in The Ring ratings where he remained in the
fifth slot, while Giardello moved into the fourth slot.
Henry exacted revenge on Jamaica’s Allan Harmon in
his next fight held in Detroit. Henry cut Harmon’s eye in the first round and
piled up a good lead before the fight was stopped in the seventh round.
Three weeks later a confident Henry took on top
rated Dick Tiger in a nationally televised fight from New York’s Madison Square
Garden. Future hall-of-famer Tiger scored a nearly flawless victory over Henry.
Although the official scores were 10-0, 9-0-1, and
8-1-1, the fight was much closer and tougher than the scoring would indicate. Henry
was dangerous throughout the fight, but Tiger was just too rugged, durable and
persistent for him. Tiger consistently landed his left hook and jabs with
uncanny accuracy and kept Henry off balance with body blows that hurt. Henry
landed many effective blows of his own in the early rounds before he tired, but
Tiger’s tight defense and solid chin helped stop Henry’s offense. In the end
Henry was simply outscored, out-maneuvered and out-hustled by a far superior
fighter.
Henry traveled
to Glascow, Scotland for his next fight against 27 year-old John (Cowboy)
McCormick, 32-4-0 (14). McCormick was down for two counts in the first from
heavy rights to the jaw. In between these knockdowns he dropped Hank. In the
second Hank again dropped McCormick for a count of "8." With his face
crimson red, McCormick boxed on the retreat and scored well over the aggressive
Hank. As the bout progressed McCormick overcame Hank's big early lead by coolly
boxing on the retreat. In the final two rounds McCormick stood toe to toe with
Hank, eventually gaining the upper hand to gain a points win from sole arbiter
referee Frank Wilson. The loss to
McCormick dropped Henry to the number eight position in The Ring ratings.
Road warrior Hank’s travels
brought him to Louisville, KY to take on hot prospect (and future NBA
heavyweight champion) Jimmy Ellis.
Although the 22 year-old Ellis was only taking part in his 13th
professional fight he had an extensive amateur background which included an
amateur victory over Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali). As a professional his record
was 11-1-0 (4). His resume included points wins over solid veterans Holly Mims
(who won their first fight on points), Johnny Morris, Wilfie Greaves and Johnny
Alford; and knockout victories over Rory Calhoun, Rudolph Bent, Arley Seifer
and Clarence Riley. Henry proved too ringwise and won a unanimous decision.
After the Jimmy Ellis fight
Henry decided to enter the light-heavyweight ranks. Henry stated that making the middleweight limit was hurting his
stamina and effected his last three efforts against Tiger, McCormick and Ellis.
He stated. “I couldn’t get any steam on my punches.”
In his first
fight as a light-heavyweight Henry couldn’t have picked a tougher opponent than
Peru’s Mauro Mina. This is a true testimony
to Henry’s fighting spirit. He never ducked any opponent and fought the best
middleweights and light-heavyweights of his era. The 29 year-old Mina was the world number two ranked
light-heavyweight and was making his North American debut against Henry in
Madison Square Garden. Mina entered the
ring with a solid professional record of 39-2-2 (21). Mina, a natural light-heavyweight, was bigger and stronger than
Henry (who was in essence to today’s standards a super middleweight). But in the first four rounds a tentative
Mina back-pedaled as Henry forced the action. Mina displayed a strong chin,
however, whenever Henry was able to reach him. Several of Henry’s hardest
punches exploded on Mina’s jaw without effect. In the fifth, Mina became
aggressive and began to break a tiring Henry down with a versatile attack to
both head and body. It was obvious that the extra weight Henry was carrying was
a handicap rather than a help. Henry gradually wilted under Mina’s steady
assault and fought the remainder of the fight on the retreat aside from an
occasional rally. The decision in
Mina’s favor was split. Mina 6-3-1 and 5-3-2, and Hank 6-4. This ended Henry’s 1962 campaign. At year’s
end his world ranking changed from number six middleweight to number eight light-heavyweight.
Later
Mina would go on to beat future hall-of-famer Bob Foster (Foster’s only
professional loss to a light-heavyweight). Unfortunately a serious eye injury
would end Mauro’s career prematurely while still at the top of his game
Henry started his 1963 campaign in Oakland
California where he engaged in two fights: a ten round decision over old foe
Sixto Rodriguez and a one round knockout victory over Dick Young. He returned to Detroit where he took on
local favorite Ed Zaremba for the Michigan Light-Heavyweight Title. The
unbeaten but untested Zaremba, 15-0-1 (13) was lucky Henry was in a charitable
mood. The match was scheduled for 12 (two-minute) rounds and went the distance
because Henry generously allowed his outclassed opponent to go the distance.
On October 29, 1963, Henry,
the fifth world ranking light-heavyweight was matched with Eddie Cotton of
Seattle, WA, the third world ranking light-heavyweight for Michigan’s version
of the light-heavyweight championship.
Although the winner would only be recognized as champion by the State of
Michigan both fighters were confident that a victory would strengthen the
winner’s chances for a title fight against world champion Willie Pastrano.
The 36 year-old Cotton, 48-14-1 (26) was a late bloomer
whose only losses in the past three years had been to Harold Johnson in an
N.B.A Light-Heavyweight title fight and top-ranked Mauro Mina in Lima, Peru.
For the 28 year-old Hank, 56-16-3 (37), this was his biggest profile fight in
years. Unfortunately for Henry his many
disappointing performances had jaded his once adorning fans and only 800 showed
up for his fight in Flint, Michigan. Cotton, with a six-inch reach advantage,
won the fight on the strength of his strong left jab, which he landed with frequency
on Henry’s face. Cotton’s jab was not only an offensive weapon, but a defensive
one as well. He kept the hard-hitting Hank off balance by stabbing him with the
left, throwing Henry’s timing off and avoiding any of Henry’s murderous
punches. In addition, the crafty veteran also employed a steady stream of right
hands to the body that eventually sapped some of Henry’s strength. Henry’s best
round was the ninth when he caught Cotton with a powerful left hook that shook
him badly. However, Cotton was able to survive by cleverness and a straight
left jab. Henry’s rally in the last two rounds failed to turn the tide. After
15 rounds the referee and one scored the fight for Cotton 146-140 and the other
judge 148-147.
A thoroughly dejected Hank stated after the fight: “Why
is it I can’t win, though I know I deserve the decision. In Philadelphia I
easily whipped Giardello and the decision was given to Joey. I did the same
with John McCormick in our fight in Scotland, but he got the verdict. Now this
one. I was not beaten by Eddie. I kept after him from the opening bell and what
did he do? He kept backing away. I think its time I quit the ring and got
myself a taxicab and went out working. There’s no use trying to win.”
He should have quit after that fight. His confidence
was at an all-time low and his record since his win over Chic Calderwood was
5-5-1. It was all down hill for Henry after that. But he didn’t quit. Henry had
gone through a lot of bad streaks before and he didn’t let them get him down
too long. He was still world ranked at number seven so he decided to
continue. Five weeks after his loss to
Cotton he was in Philadelphia in a nationally televised ten rounder with future
hall-of-famer and former light-heavyweight champion Harold Johnson, now the number
one world ranked light-heavyweight. Henry must have rationalized that a win
over the number one contender would put him right back in the thick of a title
opportunity.
But if that was Henry’s intent he didn’t show the
intensity needed to defeat Johnson.
Johnson appeared somewhat paunchy even though he only weighed 176
pounds. Henry at 172 pounds was much faster but did not seem to take the fight
seriously and was only impressive in the sixth and eighth rounds with his
wild-swinging bobbing and weaving attack. Henry was outboxed the rest of the
way. Hank reached the peak of his clowning in the second, third and ninth
rounds when he put on a woozy, semi-stunned act after receiving a few punches
on the head on each occasion. The 1,353 in attendance booed his performance in
the ninth round. The loss was further
damaging as he was dropped from the world ratings.
Henry took eight months off
and returned to face number nine world ranked light-heavyweight (number 5 in the
W.B.A.) Johnny Persol of Brooklyn, NY in the last Gillette televised Fight of
the Week at the Garden. After twenty years Gillette decided not to renew their
television contract that began on September 29, 1944, with Willie Pep against
Chalky Wright in a featherweight title match. For 29 year old Henry it was just
another fight, but for 24 year-old Persol it was a major crossroad fight. Persol entered their August 21, 1964 fight
at Madison Square Garden with a pro record of 12-1-0 (3). His victims included
Eddie Cotton, Carl (Bobo) Olson, Allen Thomas, Herschel Jacobs and Johnny
Alford. His only loss was by technical knockout to Eddie Cotton in their return
match. Henry a 3-1 underdog fought Persol toe-to-toe throughout the ten rounds
and gained a draw. Persol was the better boxer at long range, scoring with
stiff jabs and right crosses. Henry had the edge in close ripping hooks to the
midsection and face, and scoring with short powerful uppercuts, but neither
fighter gained more than a minute’s advantage. It was as close a bout as had
been seen at the Garden in years.
Henry accepted an offer to meet 27 year-old up and
coming light-heavyweight Bob Foster 16-3-0 (12) in Norfolk, VA. Hank and future hall-of-famer Foster engaged
in an all action fight that had the fans screaming throughout. In the middle of
the ninth round Foster sank a terrific left hook to Hank’s breadbasket,
dropping him for
the count of 9. Referee Paddy Mills decided Hank was not in condition to
continue and called the bout to an end. This would turn out to be the only time
Henry failed to finish a fight in 97 professional fights.
Henry’s
stoppage loss to Foster looked like he had finally hit the end of the line. But
as it turned out Henry still had enough left to make another run at a world
rating.
In
his very next fight, Henry traveled to Oakland, CA to take on number seven
ranked world ranked light-heavyweight contender Roger Rouse, 21-4-1 (18), of
San Jose, CA. Rouse went into the fight a 2-1 favorite over the hot-and-cold
Hank who was now viewed as over the hill. But, Henry had one of his on nights
and walked away with a convincing decision. Rouse jumped on Henry early and
looked like he was on his way to an early kayo. Henry came to life in the third
round and took control of the fight from the fourth through the seventh by
bulling Rouse and nailing him with overhand rights to the head. Henry had his biggest round in the sixth
when he dropped Roger for a nine count from a thunderous right cross. Roger rallied in the ninth and carried over
into the tenth, by jabbing and keeping Henry from getting off with his heavy
artillery. Henry’s impressive victory earned him a number ten ranking in The
Ring and a number seven ranking in the WBA.
How tough was
Henry? His twelve round rematch with murderous punching Bob Foster says it all.
Before the largest crowd ever in the Municipal Auditorium in New Orleans
(7,805) Henry put on one of the gutsiest performances ever witnessed in a New
Orleans ring. Foster used his left jab
like a rapier as he closed Hank’s left eye in the very first round and kept
pumping it into his battered features the full route. Henry was the aggressor
as he kept moving forward, at times running after his man, but no matter how
fast he went, he could not dodge the left of Foster. The fight was closer than
the scores of 10-0-2, 9-1-2 and 10-1-1 indicated. Henry landed some good shots,
but never had Foster in trouble.
He
snapped Foster’s head back with a right just at the bell ending the sixth round
and both men continued to battle after the gong, until their seconds broke them
apart. In the eleventh Henry shook Bob with an over hand right on the jaw, but
Foster calmly jabbed his way out of danger. They also mixed it up after the
bell as the crowd roared their approval.
Henry hung on
for six more years and become a trial horse for younger fighters building a
reputation. During
that stretch (1966-1972) he
went 5-10, with three knockouts. He did have one more brief flirtation with The
Ring ratings when he stopped Mark Tessman on cuts on December 4, 1968 in the
middle of their three-fight trilogy. His final appearance in the world ratings
was in June 1969.
During his 19
years in the ring he faced the best fighters of his era, including five
International Boxing Hall of Famers: Joey Giardello, Dick Tiger, Bob Foster,
Harold Johnson and George Benton. During his career he was a rated contender
for 59 months in two divisions, middleweight and light-heavyweight. His first
appearance as a world rated contender was December 1959 and his last appearance
was June 1969. His final ring ledger was 64-31-4 with 40 kayos. He was stopped
once.
In
1971, near the close of his professional career he embraced Islam and changed
his legal name from Joseph Harrison to Jusuf Salaam.
During
his career Henry worked part time at the Detroit Zoo to supplement his ring
earnings. After his retirement from the ring Henry went to work full-time for
the Detroit Zoo as a Zoo keeper.
Henry
died on July 2, 2004 at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit from complications of
Alzheimer's disease. He was 69.