Gotch Wrestles Handicap Match

On Thursday, April 29, 1909, Frank Gotch traveled to Memphis, Tennessee to wrestle highly regarded light heavyweight wrestler Charles Hackenschmidt. Hackenschmidt won the World Light Heavyweight Wrestling Championship under his real name, John Berg.

Although fans thought well of Berg, they did not see him as a threat to defeat Frank Gotch in a straight match. To increase fan interest in the match, Gotch agreed to throw Berg three times in sixty minutes. Fans knew this type of match in professional wrestling as a “handicap match.” If Gotch agreed to throw multiple opponents within a specified period, promoters would also bill these matches as handicap matches.

Despite the rare opportunity to see the World Champion, Memphis was not a frequent stop for touring champions, severe weather limited the crowd to 1,500 paying customers. The fans, who did show up, saw an expert performance by the Champion Gotch.

Gotch entered the ring at the Auditorium, shook hands with Berg and returned to his corner. The referee started the match. Gotch secured a single leg takedown, and took Berg to the mat at the ten-minute mark.

Gotch grabbed a toehold and told Berg loud enough for the first few rows of fans to hear, “Look out for your foot.” Berg submitted, rolled to a sitting position, and rubbed his ankle.

After a short intermission, Gotch again took Berg to the ground. After applying the toehold around the seven-minute mark, Berg kicked furiously but could not free himself. He submitted to Gotch again to avoid injury.

The third fall began like the first two as Gotch dove for a single leg takedown, took Berg to the ground and worked for his toehold. Berg tried to roll but Gotch kept hold of Berg’s foot and ankle. Gotch applied the toehold and this time Berg submitted quickly. He would not risk the injury that a third toehold could cause. Gotch won the third fall and match in 7 minutes. He scored three falls in less than thirty minutes.

Gotch put his arm around Berg and showed respect to the smaller wrestler. Gotch did not always adopt a friendly attitude towards opponents but seemed to respect Berg.

Berg was a good wrestler. Gotch was one of the greatest wrestlers of all-time. He hit his peak between 1908 and 1910. No one troubled Gotch during this three-year period.

Gotch was campaigning for a second match with Georg Hackenschmidt at the time of this match. Gotch knew a second match with Hackenschmidt was his biggest money match. Gotch wanted one more big payday before he retired. However, a tough challenge in 1910 would temporarily distract Gotch from the big rematch.

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Sources: The Commercial Appeal (Memphis, Tennessee), April 30, 1909, p. 10

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