Lewis e Roeber unificano il titolo

Quando William Muldoon si ritirò dal wrestling professionistico 1889, intendeva per il suo protetto, Ernest Roeber, per diventare il nuovo campione mondiale di wrestling dei pesi massimi. Dal momento che Muldoon ha sempre difeso il suo campionato nello stile di lotta greco-romana, la sua scelta aveva senso. Roeber era senza dubbio il miglior lottatore greco-romano d'America all'epoca.

Tuttavia, i fan del wrestling e il giornalista, che copre lo sport, were not quick to recognize Roeber as Muldoon had hoped. Primo, catch-as-catch-can wrestling was becoming the dominant American style. Many fans and pundits considered Evan Lewis, the current American Heavyweight Catch-as-Catch-Can Wrestling Champion, to be the best overall wrestler.

Lewis had given Muldoon a tough tussle in Muldoon’s final match. It took Muldoon 45 minutes to throw Lewis in Muldoon’s specialty of Greco-Roman Wrestling. Due to Lewis’ reputation, Roeber was recognized as the American Heavyweight Greco-Roman Wrestling Champion but not the world champion.

Both men defended their individual titles for the next few years, while demand built for them to meet and unify the championships. In 1893, the match would finally happen. On March 2nd, Lewis and Roeber would meet at the Olympic Athletic Club in New Orleans, Louisiana to unify the titles.

The match was 3-out-of-5 falls. Falls were often contested in different styles during the 19th Century until catch-as-catch-can became the dominant American style in the late 1890s.

Gli uomini sono entrati sul ring a 9 p.m. Muldoon was announced as Roeber’s second in the weeks leading up to the match. Tuttavia, he wasn’t in New Orleans for the match. A coin was tossed to select the style for the first fall. Lewis won the toss and unsurprisingly chose catch-as-catch-can for the first fall.

Roeber did have Lewis’ stranglehold banned for the match but it didn’t help him in the first fall. Lewis had Roeber on his hands and knees almost immediately. Lewis turned Roeber onto his shoulders to win the first fall in 7 verbale, 56 secondi.

Roeber won the second fall, contested by Greco-Roman wrestling rules, in 28 verbale, 52 secondi. For some reason, the third fall was Greco-Roman wrestling even though Lewis had won the toss. Lewis proved his wrestling skill though by winning the third fall.

Roeber was desperate entering the fourth fall. He pinned Lewis in a foul-filled fourth fall at 20 verbale, 43 secondi. Roeber’s tactics weren’t wise. You didn’t want to make Evan Lewis angry in a wrestling match.

Lewis won the final fall, contested under catch-as-catch-can rules, in 1 minute, 3 secondi. The newspapers don’t say how Lewis won but a quick submission sounds likely. If you made Lewis mad, you better tap quick when he secured a submission hold. Lewis would injure wrestlers on purpose, if they made him angry.

Roeber continued wrestling but Evan Lewis became the major star of the 1890s. He and Martin “Agricoltore” Burns would take American professional wrestling into the 20th Century.

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Source: The Standard Union (Brooklyn, New York), Marzo 3, 1893 edition, p. 3

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