Top 5 best moments in boxing history

4. Joe Louis stops Max Schmeling

Max Schmeling wasn’t a bad guy, but in 1938, he was a German who was heavily supported by Adolf Hitler on the precipice of World War 2. Schmeling didn’t ask for Hitler’s support, but he didn’t have a choice.

Schmeling was never a member of the Nazi party, but Hitler tried to use Schmeling as an exemplification of his insane and racist ideologies.

Louis lost to Schmeling in 1936 but got a title shot before Schmeling. Louis knocked out Jim Braddock to win the heavyweight title. He eventually defended it against Schmeling in their 1938 rematch.

The U.S. saw Nazi Germany as a potential threat, and the Louis vs. Schmeling 2 fight became a nationalistic contest pitting the U.S against Nazi Germany.

Racism, prejudice, and segregation were rampant in the U.S., but every American cheered Louis on against Schmeling. He provided a glimpse of hope of what America could be if racial prejudice didn’t exist.

Americans and people around the world surrounded their radios to listen to the broadcast of the contest. Louis sent shockwaves around the world when he demolished Schmeling in round 1.

Louis gained redemption over the only fighter to have beaten him at the time. People all over the U.S. celebrated throughout the night into the early morning. Louis defeated Schmeling, but the U.S. felt like it had defeated the Nazi’s.

For a moment in time, it felt like racism had been defeated too.