Fourie vs Galindez two epic encounters
The result of the first Pierre Fourie versus Victor Galindez fight for the WBA light heavyweight title held on April 4, 1974, at the Ellis Park Rugby Stadium in Johannesburg caused much controversy, with many of the opinion that Fourie should have got the decision.
The fight was scheduled to take place on Saturday, 5 April, but had to be postponed to Monday, 7 April, after heavy rain.
At the time, the South African Boxing Board of Control would not allow the scorecards of the judges Stanley Christodoulou, Pedro Galleli and Tim Kelleher to be announced, which many felt was absurd.
The practice of announcing scorecards goes back to 9 February, 1944, yet South Africa remained in the “dark age.”
The first ever fight where the judges’ scorecards were announced from the ring was between Tippy Larkin and Lulu Constantino at Madison Square Garden, New York. Larkin won a unanimous decision.
Ringside experts scored the Galindez v Fourie first fight as follows:
Bert Blewett – 7 rounds to Fourie, 6 to Galindez, 2 even. Points 98 to Galindez 97 to Fourie. Galindez a winner on points, a loser on rounds.
Chris Greyvenstein – 7 rounds to Fourie, 6 to Galindez, 2 even. Points 99 each. Decision a draw, with Fourie a winner on rounds.
Leonard Neill – 8 rounds to Fourie, 5 to Galindez, 2 even. Points 100 to Fourie 97 to Galindez. Fourie a winner on points and by rounds.
Gary Gordon – 6 rounds to Fourie, 6 rounds to Galindez, 3 even. Points 99 each. Decision a draw on both points and by rounds.
Fourie, who had weighed in at 76.90kg, was ahead after 10 rounds and looked a likely winner, especially after Galindez was cut over his right eye in the eighth round.
Few people realised or knew that Fourie’s shoulder went in the 11th round, against Galindez, but he would not give up.
Watching the film of the fight, you can see trainer Alan Toweel rubbing away at his shoulder in the corner before the 12th round.
Many claimed that Fourie ran out of gas in the later rounds, and did not use his effective jab throughout the last four rounds of the fight.
Toweel claimed that this was a false impression as Fourie did not have the use of his left hand and this robbed him of his main weapon.
Alan was always of the opinion that Pierre did enough in the first 11 rounds to win the fight.
After a hard-earned points win over Germany’s Conny Velensek in Durban on 30 June, 1975, Fourie met Galindez in a return match at the Rand Stadium in Johannesburg on 13 September.
Galindez first weighed in at 79.52kg, which was 104 grams over the limit, but he was on the limit of 79.38kg for the second weigh-in. Fourie had no weight problems, coming in at a comfortable 78.85kg.
It turned into another epic encounter. An American judge, Joe Bunsa, scored the bout in favour of the South African. Luis Allende (Argentina) and Peter Lock (South Africa) made Galindez the winner.
The split decision was disputed by most of those in the stadium, including senior reporters.
Knowledgeable boxing writer Paul Irwin wrote, “Joe Bunsa will go down in South African sporting history as the Magnificent Neutral. When Pierre Fourie lost his second world title fight with the Argentine’s Victor Galindez in Johannesburg on Saturday by a split two-to-one decision, it was Mr Bunsa who had our man in front on points.
Sadly, a little more than three years after he had retired from boxing; on Saturday evening, 21 June, 1980, Fourie was involved in a fatal car crash.
He was on his way to his home in Kibler Park when his four-wheel-drive vehicle left the road and overturned after crashing into a fence at the Cecil Payne Park in Maraisburg, Roodepoort.
The following Thursday, on what would have been his 37th birthday, Pierre Jacy Fourie was buried in the West Park Cemetery.
Pierre went to his grave believing that he had done enough to win both the Galindez fights.
