Tom Molineaux

Tom Molineaux (b. 1784, Virginia d. 1818, Dublin) was an American boxer.

Born into slavery, Molineaux was trained by his father, also a fighter, as was Molineaux' twin brother. [Pierce Egan, "Boxiana", Volume I, 1813.] He boxed with other slaves for the entertainment of the plantation owners. Having earned his owner a large sum of money in winnings on bets, Molineaux was granted his freedom, and moved to England where he expected to be able to earn money as a professional boxer.

His first fight in England took place on 24 July, 1810, Molineaux beating Jack Burrows in 65 minutes. In December of that year, having been trained by Bill Richmond, another ex-slave turned boxer, Molineaux challenged Tom Cribb for the English title.

According to the writer Pierce Egan, who was present, Molineaux stood five foot eight and a quarter inches tall, and for this fight weighed "fourteen stone two" (that is, 198 pounds.) [Ibid.] Egan wrote that few people, including Cribb, expected the fight to last very long; there was betting that Cribb would win in the first ten rounds. [Ibid.] However, Molineaux proved a powerful and intelligent fighter, and the two battered each other heavily. There was a disturbance in the nineteenth round, as Molineaux and Cribb were locked in a wrestler's hold (legal under the rules of the time) so that neither could hit the other nor escape. The referee stood by, uncertain as to whether he should break the two apart, and the dissatisfied crowd pushed into the ring. In the confusion Molineaux hurt his left hand; Egan could not tell if it had been broken. [Ibid.] There was also dispute over whether Cribb had managed to return to the line before the allowed thirty seconds had passed -- if he had not, Molineaux would have won -- but in the confusion the referee could not tell, and the fight went on. After the 34th round, Molineaux said he could not continue, [Ibid.] but his second persuaded him to return to the ring, where he was defeated in the 35th round.

The return fight on 28 September, 1811 at Thistleton Gap was watched by 15,000 people. Egan, who was present, said that both fighters "weighed less by more than a stone" [Ibid.] , which means Molineaux weighed at most 185 pounds for this fight. Molineaux, though still hitting Cribb with great power, was out-fought; Cribb broke his jaw and finally knocked him out in the 11th round. [Ibid.] After the fight, Richmond and Molineaux went their separate ways. Richmond blamed Molineaux's lack of discipline for the loss - Molineaux had barely trained for the fight, instead spending vast sums of Richmond's money on women and alcohol. Cribb on the other hand, had been in a strict training programme, which consisted of no sex, no alcohol, punching tree bark and soaking his fists in vinegar.

Molineaux's boxing career came to an end in 1815. After a stint in a debtor's prison he became increasingly dependent on alcohol, and died penniless in Dublin three years later from liver failure.

A hand coloured etching of Molineaux by Robert Dighton is held in the National Portrait Gallery, and a fictionalised account of Molineaux's boxing career appears in "Black Ajax", by George MacDonald Fraser.

References

ee also

*List of bare-knuckle boxers
* [http://www.ibhof.com/molineau.htm Tom Molineaux at the International Boxing Hall of Fame]
* [http://www.vahistorical.org/molineaux.htm Tom Molineaux at the Virginia Historical Society]
* [http://www.boxrec.com/media/index.php/Tom_Cribb_vs._Tom_Molineaux_%281st_meeting%29 Account of Tom Cribb vs Tom Molineaux fight at BoxRec.com]
* [http://www.cyberboxingzone.com/boxing/tom-mol.htm Tom Molineaux at The Cyber Boxing Zone]

External links

* [http://www.npg.org.uk/live/search/portrait.asp?LinkID=mp05587&rNo=1&role=sit National Portrait Gallery]
* [http://en.wikipedia.org/w/wiki.phtml?title=Special:Booksources&isbn=0002255855 "Black Ajax"]
* [http://www.search.windowsonwarwickshire.org.uk/engine/resource/default.asp?txtKeywords=boxers&lstContext=&lstResourceType=&lstExhibitionType=&chkPurchaseVisible=&txtDateFrom=&txtDateTo=&originator=%2Fengine%2Fsearch%2Fdefault%5Fhndlr%2Easp&resource=9533 "Staffordshire pottery boxer, Thomas Molineaux" from Compton Verney]