Paddy Ryan Wins The Title

The few people who know about the prizefighter Paddy Ryan probably know him as John L. Sullivan’s victim.  Sullivan beat Ryan for the Heavyweight Prizefighting Championship in 1882.  Ryan was  a good fighter in his own right though.

Ryan was born on March 15, 1851 in Ireland.  His family emigrated to Troy, New York.  Ryan was known through out his fighting career as “The Trojan Giant”.  He was equally skilled as a puncher and wrestler which led to success in the bare knuckle era.

Prior to the Marquis of Queensbury  gloved boxing rules, contests went for an undetermined number of rounds.  The length of the round also varied.  If a prizefighter was thrown, knocked down or dropped to the ground for a break, the round was stopped at that point.

Each fighter had a certain amount of time to “toe the scratch”.  If the prizefighter was not back at his starting point in the center of the ring in the allotted time, he was declared the loser.  Sometimes seconds prevented their fighter from returning to the scratch or they threw in the sponge to end a contest.  The championship fight between Paddy Ryan and Joe Goss would exhibit how these rules worked.

Joe Goss was the recognized Heavyweight Prizefighting Champion of the United States and maybe the world.  He took on Paddy Ryan in a town on the border of Pennsylvania and West Virginia.  Prizefighting was illegal in most states.  To put on contests, the site normally had to be kept secret.

According to the June 2, 1880 edition of The New York Sun, a West Virginia Sheriff did warn the fighters and crowd they could be arrested for their activities.  The crowd ignored him and offered him a drink.  He accepted and sat down to watch the fight.

Paddy Ryan entered first.  The champion Joe Goss entered next.  Goss threw his derby hat into the ring before entering.  Paddy Ryan saluted his entrance and Goss returned the salute.  The men got ready for the fight and toed the scratch.

Paddy Ryan scored the first fall which ended Round 1 at eight minutes.  The remaining eighty-five rounds would move much more quickly.  Joe Goss blacked Ryan’s eye and drew first blood but Ryan did most of the damage.

Ryan frequently threw Goss to the ground between clubbing Goss with heavy blows.  Goss ended several rounds by simply taking a knee to end the round.  During Round 10, Goss surprised Ryan with a throw of his own.  His victory was short lived as Ryan knocked him down in Round 12.

Goss stung with scientific blows but Ryan clubbed Goss with the stronger blows.  At the beginning of Round 87, Goss’ seconds prevented him from toeing the scratch.  Paddy Ryan was the Heavyweight Prizefighting Champion at 29 years of age.

The West Virginia Governor did send authorities to arrest Ryan and Goss as well as their seconds but they were already headed back to New York.  Ryan would hold the title for two years until he met John L. Sullivan.  Ryan died at the relatively young age of 49 on December 14, 1900 from a convulsion upon waking that morning.  He was survived by a daughter.

Joe Goss was 41 years old when he lost his title.  He died five years later on March 24, 1885 at 46 years of age from the effects of Bright’s Disease.  He would have seen the John L. Sullivan era before his death.

What do you think about the old prizefighting rules?  Do you think it resembles the modern sport of Mixed Martial Arts?  You can leave a comment or ask a question about this or any post on my Facebook page, Twitter profile and Google+ page.

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