Bronx Brawler

It was expected to be the biggest middle-weight fight in years. The Bronx Brawler, Chris McGee was defending his title against Kid Lemon; the hottest prospect anyone had seen in years. The Kid was 19-0-1, quite a record, and most of his victories were skilled knockouts in the 9th or 10th round. The crowd was primed for a memorable evening. And it was, but not the way anyone expected. 

The first four or five rounds were classic. Bronx McGee was an old-school, heavy-hitter, who usually took down his opponents with an unexpected blow from his hard left fist. There wasn’t a lot of finesse in his approach, but his fans adored seeing him take a man down. Still, he wasn’t as young as he used to be, and his last few title defences had been against swarmers, and that style of fighter can really wear a boxer out.  The Kid was light on his feet, a real strategist, probing and jabbing as he worked out his opponent’s weakness. Betting was running 2:3 in the Kid’s favour.

In the end, it didn’t work out like that. Everyone, even McGee’s diehard fans, figured he’d be beaten, but it was Kid Lemon who went down on the mat. The blow that had landed was as light as they come, but the Kid didn’t move, didn’t get up. He didn’t take a dive; he was dying.


-- 30 --

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