Bruce Woodcock (boxer)

Biography

Early life and amateur career

Born in Doncaster, West Riding of Yorkshire in 1920 and brought up in Balby, Woodcock took up boxing at the age of 6, and was a schoolboy champion at the age of 12. He went on to work as a railway fitter in the L.N.E.R. loco sheds, joining the attached amateur boxing club.

He was trained during his early years by his father, a former British Army lightweight champion. In 1938-39, he won the Northern Counties light heavyweight championship, qualifying for the ABA finals at the Royal Albert Hall in 1939, which he also won, beating A. Ford in the final. He represented England at the 1939 European Amateur Boxing Championships in Dublin, losing to Franciszek Szymura of Poland in the semi-final, and to Lajos Szigeti of Hungary in the third place bout.

Professional career

His railway job being deemed necessary war work, he was not called up during the Second World War, but in the early 1940s was redeployed to Manchester, where he worked as a maintenance engineer in a shell-making plant at Dukinfield. While in Manchester he met Tom Hurst, who became his manager, and he turned professional. He began his professional career in January 1942 with a third-round knockout of Fred Clarke, winning all of his first 20 bouts, 19 by stoppage, including a third-round knockout of Jack Robinson to take the BBBofC Northern Area cruiserweight title in September 1942 and a win over Canadian champion Al Delaney in October 1944. He held the Northern Area title until relinquishing in October 1944.

In July 1945, at White Hart Lane, Tottenham, Woodcock defeated the current champion Jack London to take the British and Empire heavyweight tiles. Woodcock won by a knockout in round six after having London down three times in that round.

In September 1945, Woodcock was ranked third in the world by The Ring magazine, behind Tami Mauriello and Jimmy Bivins.

Woodcock won his next four bouts, including a win over Irish champion Martin Thornton, before suffering his first loss, by TKO at the hands of the vastly more experienced Mauriello at Madison Square Garden in May 1946. He bounced back from this by defeating Freddie Mills on points in June, before winning the European title by knocking out Paul Albert Renet in the sixth round in July. Woodcock went on to win his next three fights, stopping Gus Lesnevich in September, before rounding out the year by knocking out French champion Georges Martin in November and stopping Nils Andersson in December.

In March 1947, he successfully defended his European title against Stephane Olek, but a month later suffered his second loss, against Joe Baksi at the Harringay Arena in a fight billed as a final eliminator for the World title. He was floored three times in the first round and twice in the second and yet tried to come back before the referee stopped it in the seventh. He was later found to have suffered a broken jaw during the first round of the fight, requiring a stay of almost two weeks in hospital. Later in the year he spent several weeks in Leeds Infirmary being treated for an eye injury initially claimed to have been sustained while working in a quarry, although a hospital report later confirmed that the injury was a detached retina sustained in the Baksi fight, and he didn't return to the ring until September 1948.

In 1949, Bruce was contracted under businessman Leslie T. Salts to train at Gwrych Castle, Abergele. Whilst there, he would attract over 200,000 fans on the site to a sparring in one weekend of May, 1950.

Again, Woodcock bounced back in impressive fashion, scoring wins over Lee Oma and Lee Savold, followed by a third-round knockout of Johnny Ralph in March 1949 to win the British Empire Title (now known as Commonwealth Title) in South Africa.

On 2 June 1949, Woodcock again beat Freddie Mills, retaining the British, European and Empire heavyweight titles by a KO in round 14, in front of 50,000 people at the White City Stadium.

Woodcock was due to meet Lee Savold for the British version of the World Heavyweight Championship (vacant due to the retirement of Joe Louis) in September 1949, but in August suffered head and shoulder injuries, and a concussion after crashing his lorry. The fight was initially rescheduled for May 1950, and as part of his training, Woodcock offered £100 to any sparring partner who could knock him down and £5 to anyone who could stay on their feet for a round in training. Woodcock and Savold eventually met on 6 June 1950 at White City before over 50,000 spectators. This was done under the auspices of the British Boxing Board of Control and EBU, and recognized throughout Europe and the Commonwealth, but not in the USA. In the event, a 15-round contest, Woodcock's left eye sustained a bad cut, and his nose and mouth were bleeding profusely. The fight was stopped in the fourth round. A record 30 million peopled listened on BBC Radio.

On 14 November 1950, Woodcock lost his British and Empire Titles to Jack Gardner by an 11th-round TKO at Earl's Court. The following day he announced his retirement from boxing to avoid further damage to his eyes. In 1951, his autobiography, Two Fists and a Fortune, was published. Woodcock planned to return to boxing, but in March 1952 was refused a licence by the British Boxing Board of Control.

Personal life and retirement

In December 1946, he married Nora Speight (born 14 July 1922, Doncaster - died 2 July 2008), with whom he had one son, Bruce, and one daughter, Janet. Bruce's brother, Billy, was also a boxer. Woodcock became the licensee of the Angel Hotel in Bolsover in May 1952.

He went on to become a boxing manager, looking after local fighters such as Peter Aldridge and Peter Bates. He later ran the Tumbler Pub in Edlington. Woodcock died on 21 December 1997, aged 77.

In 1971 actor Brian Blessed attempted to make a film about his hero Bruce Woodcock. He enlisted the help of fellow Z-Cars colleagues David Rose and Alan Plater but could not progress to production due to Woodcock's reluctance to be featured.

In 2013, a biography of Woodcock by Bryan Hughes, Battling Bruce: The Story of the Fighting Career and Rise to Fame of Bruce Woodcock, was published, with the author also starting a campaign for a statue of Woodcock to be erected.

Professional boxing record

|ko-wins=31 |ko-losses=4 |dec-wins=3 |dec-losses=0 |dq-wins=1 |dq-losses=

References

Sources

• Wharton, Ronnie (2005), Fighting Men of the North, Tempus Publishing Limited,

References

1. "BoxRec: Bruce Woodcock".
2. Mee, Bob (1997) "[https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/obituary-bruce-woodcock-1291215.html Obituary: Bruce Woodcock]", ''[[The Independent]]'', 31 December 1997. Retrieved 14 February 2016
3. https://www.givemesport.com/greatest-heavyweights-in-british-boxing-history-ranked/
4. Odd, Gilbert E. (ed.) (1946) ''Boxing News Annual 1946'', War Facts Press, pp. 52, 54
5. "[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91xxVakhbg0 Bruce Woodcock (1946)]", [[British Pathé]] Youtube channel. Retrieved 14 February 2016.
6. "[http://www.abae.co.uk/aba/index.cfm/boxers/roll-of-honour/mens-championships/elite-senior-championships/1930-1939/1939/ 1939: 55th ABAE National Championship, 29th March 1939, Royal Albert Hall]", [[England Boxing]]. Retrieved 14 February 2016.
7. Butler, James. (23 January 1942). "Tribute to Jackie Paterson". Daily Herald.
8. (27 January 1942). "Other results". Dundee Courier.
9. (18 July 1945). "Bruce Woodcock Champion". Hull Daily Mail.
10. (29 September 1945). "Bruce Woodcock Ranked Third". Hull Daily Mail.
11. (25 August 1945). "Woodcock Beats Thornton". Western Daily Press.
12. (18 May 1946). "Woodcock Lost in Fifth Round". Sunderland Daily Echo and Shipping Gazette.
13. (5 June 1946). "Woodcock Wins on Points". Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer.
14. (30 July 1946). "Bruce Woodcock's Blows Lacked Pep". Sunderland Daily Echo and Shipping Gazette.
15. (18 September 1946). "Bruce Woodcock Wins in Eight Rounds". Dundee Courier.
16. (16 November 1946). "Woodcock's Win". Western Daily Press.
17. (18 December 1946). "Woodcock Stops Swede in Three Rounds". Dundee Courier.
18. (18 March 1947). "Olek Was Tough for Woodcock". Gloucestershire Echo.
19. Golesworthy, Maurice (1988) ''Encyclopaedia of Boxing'', Robert Hale, {{ISBN. 0-7090-3323-0, p. 257
20. (28 October 1947). "Bruce Woodcock: Heavy-Weight Champion May Have Eye Operation". Western Morning News.
21. (3 December 1947). "Bruce Woodcock". Western Morning News.
22. (7 February 1948). "Bruce Woodcock's Eye Trouble: Hospital Report Blames Baksi Fight". Western Daily Press.
23. South Wales Daily Post - Monday 29 May 1950 - https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0004705/19500529/003/0003
24. Grimsby Daily Telegraph - Thursday 04 August 1949 - https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0001121/19490804/001/0001
25. (22 September 1948). "That Fourth Round Knockout". Hull Daily Mail.
26. (7 December 1948). "Woodcock Beats Savold on a Disqualification". Western Morning News.
27. (14 March 1949). "Bruce Woodcock Trains in S. Africa". Hull Daily Mail.
28. (28 March 1949). "Ralph No Match for Woodcock". Dundee Courier.
29. (3 June 1949). "Bruce Woodcock Knocks Out Mills in 14th Round". Western Morning News.
30. (4 August 1949). "Woodcock Injured in Road Accident". Lincolnshire Echo.
31. (20 December 1949). "Williams Accepts Woodcock Offer". Torbay Express and South Devon Echo.
32. (6 June 1950). "Only Bruce Woodcock's Temperament Is Suspect: Right to Beat Left for Title". Sheffield Telegraph.
33. (8 June 1950). "Woodcock Wants to Meet Savold Again". Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer.
34. (1981). "Guinness Book of Records 1982". Guinness Superlatives Ltd.
35. (15 November 1950). "Bruce Woodcock Retires from the Ring". Western Morning News.
36. Goodall, Hughie. (15 November 1950). "'Fear of blindness made me quit boxing,' says Bruce Woodcock". Yorkshire Evening Post.
37. (19 March 1952). "Woodcock is Refused Licence to Box Again". Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer.
38. (20 December 1946). "Bruce Woodcock Married". Gloucestershire Echo.
39. (21 June 1948). "Son For Bruce Woodcock". Western Morning News.
40. ''Boxing News Annual 1953'', War Facts Press, pg. 6.
41. Hoden, Liam (2009) "[http://www.doncasterfreepress.co.uk/sport/feature-town-s-boxing-legend-lives-on-1-522499 Feature: Town's Boxing Legend Lives On]", ''Doncaster Free Press'', 26 February 2009. Retrieved 14 February 2016.
42. "BoxRec: Bruce Woodcock".
43. "[https://web.archive.org/web/20170620164752/https://www.thestar.co.uk/news/boxing-legend-let-down-by-managers-1-5469787 Boxing Legend 'Let Down by Managers']", ''The Star'', 6 March 2013. Retrieved 14 February 2016.
44. Blessed, Brian. (2016). "Absolute Pandemonium - My Louder Than Life Story". Pan Books.