‘Every single day out there (at sea) was a fight, harder than any I encountered within the ropes.’ Tom Sharkey (Ronan Mullen offtheball.com)
When you mention Tom Sharkey, many instantly say, ‘Ah, yes. The guy with the cauliflower ear and tattoo of a star and battleship on his chest.’ What many don’t realise is his how fascinating the backstory is of this Irish American powerhouse and the heights he reached in the square ring.
A number of sources claim various dates, months and years that Thomas Sharkey was born, but the most common, as featured on his gravestone, is 1 January 1871. Born in Dundalk, Ireland to James Sharkey and Margaret Kelly, young Thomas ran away at the age of 12 to explore the waves of the Atlantic as a cabin boy. By 1896 he became a naturalised American and by 1892, the 21-year-old headed to New York to join the U.S. Navy. He soon progressed to the position of Master-at-Arms and within a few months, Sharkey was deployed to Hawaii. It’s here that his professional boxing career began. As a side note - Sharkey spent over 10 years at sea, during which time he apparently survived four shipwrecks. Consequently, he was eventually bestowed the ring moniker of ‘Sailor, ’
Despite not being the tallest of fighters, standing at a touch over 5ft 8 inches, Sharkey had a barrel chest of muscle and the shoulders and arms to match. He may not have been the prettiest fighter to watch, but he always provided entertainment and feared no man who stepped through the ropes to meet him.
Sharkey made his professional debut on 17 March 1893, in Honolulu, Hawaii, shortly after the end of the original bare-knuckle era. Knocking out his fellow debutant, Jack Gardner in four rounds, Sharkey went on to fight in Honolulu a further 14 times in the next 30 months, racking up 11 stoppage victories, one loss against George Washington (not the U.S. President), and a draw and no contest against Texan born, Nick Burley. It’s worth noting, the draw was for the vacant Hawaiian heavyweight title.
By 1896, Sharkey had clocked up over 20 victories, mainly against nondescript opposition. The next 12 months proved to be pivotal in his career trajectory, as he took on some of the biggest names boxing had to offer.
On 16 April 1896, Sharkey took on Joe Choynski at People’s Palace Theatre, San Francisco. This was Sharkey’s 22nd fight, having only lost once since his debut, whereas Choynski had fought 40 times, racking up 33 victories, four losses and three draws. However, it’s the detail of ‘Chrysanthemum Joe’s’ resume that’s worth taking a deeper look at. Choynski was on a blistering run of form, not having lost a fight in 26 contests, over a four year period, which included locking horns with former world champion, Bob Fitzsimmons.
Despite being the underdog, Sharkey won the eight round contest on points, albeit, the fight did have elements of controversy. The San Francisco Chronicle wrote, ‘Sharkey landed an obvious low blow on Choynski at the end of the first round, and the police captain came and stopped the fight. After a delay, the fight was allowed to proceed.’ The San Fran Call added. ‘Sharkey constantly retreated from Choynski and even dropped on all fours to avoid being knocked out. Choynski had agreed to knock out Sharkey within eight rounds to win the long end of the purse.’
Choynski was a tough hombre. Four years later he knocked out the legendary Jack Johnson in three rounds, which would become the start of a great friendship for the pair.
Undeterred by the naysayers, Sharkey knocked out Jim Williams two months later, then had a controversial draw against the reigning world heavyweight champion, Californian native, James J Corbett on 24 June 1896 at Mechanic’s Pavilion, San Francisco. The San Francisco Chronicle reported from ringside. ‘The fight itself was a good deal of a disappointment. The gallery called it a "wrestling match" in derision……..The second round opened with a hugging bee, in which Corbett managed to get in several short-arm punched, Sharkey was being hit at will, but the punishment seemed to have no effect on him. It was in the middle of the round that the first surprise occurred. The sailor, crowded to the wall by his opponent, turned much after the manner of a cornered rat and began to fight…….The sailor was the aggressor in the third round. He sailed into the ring and fought Corbett against the ropes. Then he clinched to avoid punishment, and from that time on the fight was a wrestling match. There were cries of "Foul!" from both sides. Sharkey was fighting for his life. The champion was beating him up on the face and neck and in return the sailor was again driving at Corbett's face. In a clinch that followed Sharkey threw his man to the floor. There were cries of "Sharkey!" "Sharkey!" and the din grew deafening. ……… Then there were a hundred cries of "Foul." Seeing that all efforts to separate the men were useless, the referee called for the aid of the police and Corbett seconded the motion. Captain Wittman and four officers were in the ring in an instant, and under their combined efforts the bulldog sailor was forced to his corner. A moment of great suspense ensued. Sharkey almost escaped from the police in his efforts to get at Corbett again, who was standing in the other corner of the ring holding on to the ropes for support. There were cries of "Foul! "Foul!" "Let them fight!" from all parts of the building. In the midst of the confusion the referee announced that the fight was a draw and that the bets were off.’
The San Fransisco Examiner put another spin on the contest by saying, ‘The fact that Sharkey last night shared a draw decision with Corbett places him on a high pedestal. He has sprung into fame with a bound, and his career will be watched with interest from this time forward.’ The Examiner was not wrong and six months later on 2 December 1896, the cherry on Sharkey’s fistic cake arrived as he took on Bob Fitzsimmons for a contest which promoted as a fight for the world heavyweight title.
For those who thought the Corbett fight was shaded with controversy, the Fitzsimmons contest was another level. When you get an unqualified referee to officiate a contest, it arouses suspicion, but when that referee is also one of the most notorious gunslingers in history, namely Wyatt Earp, that adds that little bit more spice into the melting pot.
After beating Sharkey at will for eight rounds, the Cornishman sent Tom to the canvas in the eighth round, with what seemed to be a legal blow. Earp however claimed the punch was below the belt and consequently a foul blow, contravening the Marquis of Queensbury rules. Let’s just say Earp did not receive the warmest reaction in the seconds and minutes which followed. Fitzsimmons was the betting favourite going into the contest and rumour has it the vast majority of those in attendance had placed large bets on Ruby Bob to walk away victorious.
Sharkey vs Fitzsimmons promotional photograph
Fitzsimmons lawyers were enraged and claimed the fight was not officially legal and thus, Sharkey was not entitled to the winners purse. Bottom line – public belief pointed towards Earp taking a bride for throwing the decision Sharkey’s way. What a mess.
Following the Fitzsimmons fight, Sharkey had two draws Stateside then returned to Ireland, fighting twice in Northern Ireland, winning both contests by early knockout. He then proceeded to knock out Tom Parks on 7 August 1897 at the Town Hall in his native Dundalk. To finish off his tour of the British Isles, he crossed the water nine days later and stopped Punch Vaughn in three rounds in Liverpool.
Seven months later, on 11 March 1898, Sharkey rematched Choynski at Woodward’s Pavilion, San Francisco, but unfortunately, the contest was shrouded in contention once again. However, this time it was Sharkey who was hard done by.
Choynski hit the deck three times in the fifth round and once in the sixth, of a scheduled 20 round contest. In the eighth, Sharkey rushed Choynski across the ring and Joe went flying through the ropes, falling to the ground, which was about a metre a half below. Luckily for him, he landed at the feet of Captain Lees, the Chief of Police, who immediately got up and called over his police officers to enter the ring. After a conversation between Lees and the referee, the contest was declared a draw.
Two months later, on 6 May 1898, Sharkey took on unbeaten future legend, Jim Jefferies. Despite giving it his all, Sharkey was outgunned over 20 rounds by The Boilermaker, who stood six inches taller and weighed nearly 30 pounds more than Sailor Tom.
Two fights later, Sharkey beat Corbett in yet another shady decision, winning by ninth round disqualification, then in January of 1899, Sharkey took on the vastly talents Kid McCoy, who had only lost two of his 57 fights.
By this stage, Sharkey’s resume was composed of 28 victories, two losses and six draws. Despite being the underdog and being sent to the canvas twice in the second round, Sharkey knocked out the Indiana born boxer in the tenth session. The victory acted as that all important stepping stone to challenge for the bona fide world heavyweight title, now held by old foe, Jim Jeffries.
On 3 November 1899, Jefferies and Sharkey fought a 25-round contest at Coney Island A.C, Brooklyn. Tom weighed in at 185lbs, versus Jim’s 215lbs frame of raw muscle. The Breckenridge Bulletin reported, ‘From the first round to the twenty-fifth the sailor put up a battle that plainly demonstrated that he was a 'pug' of no mean ability, and the greater science, alone, of his opponent is all that won him the big fight on points. The club house was filled to its utmost capacity, and with few exceptions the decision was considered fair and equitable.’ Despite being a game challenger, Sharkey was simply outboxed and outfoxed by the stronger man, and consequently lost the contest on points. That was Sharkey’s last crack at world honours.
Sharkey vs Jeffries 1899
Over the next three and a half years, Sharkey fought a further 13 times, which included seven victories, one of them against Choynski, via third round knockout. The balance of his fights included one, no contest and five losses, one of which was a second round stoppage against Bob Fitzsimmons and another against Gus Ruhlin for the English heavyweight title at the National Sporting Club, Covent Garden.
His last contest was on 27 February 1904 against Jack Munroe, which he lost on points. With 34 knockouts in his 37 victories, during a career spanning a touch under 11 years, Sharkey is rated in Ring Magazine’s top 100 list of hardest punchers of all time.
In retirement, Sharkey owned a bar in New York and also ran his own gym. With a huge passion for horses, in addition to being a regular at the courses throughout America, Sharkey owned a number of racehorses. Unfortunately, like many at the time, Sharkey lost virtually his entire fortunes in the Crash of 1929.
Sailor Tom died on 17 April 1953, at 81 years of age and was laid to rest at the Golden Gate National Cemetery, San Bruno, California. It comes of no surprise that he was posthumously inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2003.
Paul Zanon, has had nine books published, with almost all of them reaching the No1 Bestselling spot in their respective categories on Amazon. He has co-hosted boxing shows on Talk Sport, been a pundit on London Live, Boxnation and has contributed to a number of boxing publications, including, Boxing Monthly, The Ring, Daily Sport, Boxing News, Boxing Social, amongst other publications.
