Englishmen Wrestle rau American Title

Rau lub yim hli ntuj 7, 1882, American Heavyweight Wrestling Tau zus ib Edwin Bibby defended nws lub npe tiv thaiv lus Askiv Champion Joe Acton ntawm Madison Square vaj nyob New York City. Cov txiv neej wrestled ib "catch-as-catch-can" match rau lub ntiaj teb championship. Txawm li cas los, Pej xeem twg tsis paub txog tus khiav ntawm lub bout li lub ntiaj teb tau zus ib. The public recognized the winner as the American Heavyweight Wrestling Championship.

Joe Acton, “The Little Demon”, travelling to the United States to wrestle was unwelcome news for Edwin Bibby. Except for William Muldoon, Bibby defeated all the rest of his opponents in America. Acton wrestled Bibby five times in England before Bibby left for the United States. Acton defeated Bibby all five times.

The men agreed to wrestle for a $1,000 hnab tawv pojniam. They also agreed to ban submission holds. Both wrestlers were skilled catch wrestlers with strong submission skills. They would only agree to such a ban to prevent a severe injury in the bout.

Los ntawm 8:30 tsaus ntuj, 300 spectators entered the arena to watch the contest. The low turnout disappointed the promoters, local sporting men. Txawm li cas los, matches drew crowds in the hundreds not thousands in the early years of American professional wrestling.

Acton and Bibby stepped onto the raised platform, where attendants placed a thick carpet. Wrestlers and promoters transitioned to wrestling rings in the early 20^th Xyoo pua. Both men performed a vigorous warm up before the match as they were freely perspiring.

Joe Acton yog 29 xyoo. He stood five feet, five inches tall and weighed 148 phaus. Edwin Bibby was 33 xyoo. He stood five feet, four inches tall and weighed 153 phaus.

Referee Harry Hill stepped on to the platform to loud cheers. He signaled for the match to begin. Acton slipped behind Bibby and took him down on all fours. Bibby tried rolling away from Acton but was unable to escape this way. He finally stood to his feet and broke Acton’s grip from his waist.

Acton secured the same behind-the-back waist hold and took Bibby back to the mat. Bibby ended up on his hands and knees again. Bibby rolled around the mat frantically, but Acton stayed on top of Bibby.

Every time Bibby rolled across the mat, Acton’s second Mr. Chambers would yell, “Fall.” Referee Hill kept waving him off. Thaum kawg, Mr. Hill turned to Mr. Chambers and told him, “Be quiet and second your wrestler.” The ringside fans cheered Hill, who had a solid reputation for fair officiating.

Tom qab 38 minutes of Acton grinding down Bibby as Bibby tried to escape his hands and knees position, Acton flipped Bibby over Acton’s head onto Bibby’s head and shoulders. Hill awarded the first fall to Acton after 38 feeb.

After the intermission, the men took their position on the platform. Bibby clearly showed the effects of the first fall. Bibby’s knees were bleeding, and his back was red from his attempted escapes on the carpet.

Acton took Bibby down to the carpet in the same hands and knees position. Bibby attempted a futile escape but was stuck into the same position. After a minute or two, Acton flipped Bibby to his back. Acton straddled Bibby chest-to-chest and pressed Bibby to the carpet for the second fall and match. The fans would not recognize Acton as World Champion, but he was the new American Heavyweight Wrestling Champion.

Ironically, the first two title holders of the American Championship were Englishmen, who weighed less than 160 phaus. Txawm li cas los, both men defeated larger wrestlers through their superior catch wrestling skills.

The fans left the arena happy but the same could not be said for the promoters. The small crowd failed to generate enough money to pay for the building rental. The arena rental led to a large monetary loss for the promoters.

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Qhov chaw: Lub sij hawm New York, Lub yim hli ntuj 8, 1882 ib tsab, p. 2

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