On March 13, 1961 Bill Regan’s Wins
1961: Before heavyweight champ Floyd Patterson agreed to staging his third fight with Ingemar Johansson in Miami Beach, he insisted that seating be integrated in the Southern site. The condition is met, and African-Americans are spotted freely among the predominantly white crowd in Convention Hall.
The fans watch in shock as Patterson, the 4-1 favorite, is knocked down twice in the first round. “When I went down the first time all I could think about was getting knocked out two years ago,” Patterson says after the bout. “I’d trained so hard and so long for this fight and I kept saying to myself, ‘Am I going to be knocked down seven times again?’ “
He isn’t. Before the first round ends, Patterson sends Johansson to the canvas with a left hook and two chopping rights. He doesn’t lose another round, ending the fight late in the sixth with two smashing rights to the Swede’s jaw. Johansson rises just after referee Bill Regan’s count reaches 10.
Patterson wins the entertaining series against Johansson, two knockout victories to one.
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