As air chills and begins to bite, year after year, the boxing "season" tends to heat up. Whatever the reason, the last part of the calendar year tends to be kind to boxing fans. Below are examples of that, and fights that just happened to unfold while the ghouls and zombies were meandering about, October 31.
Joe Gans DQ5 Jimmy Britt, 1904
In 1903, Britt initially refused to fight a non-white fighter for the lightweight title, and instead fought Willie Fitzgerald for the "white" lightweight title. Britt and his camp then went on to demand 60 percent of the purse against Gans win or lose, until lengthy negotiations -- that included $1000 put forth by the Gans camp to make sure that Britt's second, Spider Kelly, would be unable to offer audible advice to Britt while he was in the ring -- finalized the fight in early October. Britt had his way during the fight, timing Gans to the tune of four knockdowns. On the final knockdown in round 5, Gans was sent to the canvas by a body shot, and Britt rushed over to swat at him some more as he was down. When the referee moved to stop the fouling and declare a disqualification, insanity broke loose. Said the AP, "Britt was frantic with rage when he realized he had lost the fight, and he rushed at [referee] Graney, striking wildly. Graney, who is something of a boxer himself, fought back, but the police interfered and separated the belligerents."