Èske Lewis Defèt tafyatè wrèstle?

Evan “Strangler” Lewis was a scary competitor. Although he was not a large man at 5’09” ak peze 170 liv, Lewis’ mastery of submissions made him an equal or better of most wrestlers of his era. Jack Carkeek was a terrific wrestler but one match with Lewis almost caused him to retire.

Lewis’ reputation was strongly related to his feared stranglehold. After he applied it to Carkeek, Carkeek was nauseous for a week.

When Lewis signed to wrestled Englishman Jack Wannock, the Cornish Wrestling Champion, Chicago Mayor Roche would only allow the contest if the stranglehold was banned.

The match billed for the “World Title” took place on May 7, 1887 at Battery D in Chicago, Illinois. Wannock looked fit at 190 pounds but his face was flushed and nervous. Apre sa, witnesses told the newspaper men that Wannock had been in a tavern prior to the match. Lewis worried him so much that Wannock needed liquid courage prior to the match.

Lewis proved that Wannock’s fears were justified. The match was a three-out-of-five falls match but Lewis decided to make it a short night.

In the first fall, both men approached each other warily until Lewis caught a leg grapevine. Lewis scrambled to a cross-buttocks lift and planted Wannock solidly on his back for the first fall at 6 minutes and 20 seconds.

Wannock did his best work in the second fall but it wasn’t enough. Lewis started the fall with a headlock but Wannock secured a grapevine and threw Lewis to his side. Lewis scrambled back to his feet.

Lewis secured a grapevine that Wannock turned into a hip lock and lift. Lewis barely escaped and grabbed another grapevine. Wannock again almost pinned him with the hip lock lift.

A frustrated Lewis grabbed Wannock in a hammerlock. Lewis changed the hammerlock into a half-nelson and turned Wannock to his back. Lewis won the second fall in an identical 6 minutes and 20 seconds.

Wannock was bleeding from the mouth and tired to start the third fall. Desperate, Wannock charged Lewis, who deftly side-stepped the charging Wannock. Lewis applied a grapevine to a shoulder lock and planted Wannock on his back one more time.

Lewis vaulted over the top ropes to leave the ring, while Wannock staggered from the ring with help from his seconds. Alcohol did not help Wannock but a bout with “Strangler a” caused the most “drunkenness”. Many other wrestlers would suffer the same fate before his retirement in 1899.

Since I wrote this post, I completed Evan “Strangler a” Lewis: Wrèstle a pi pè nan 19yèm syèk la available on Amazon.

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