Remembering "Bombardier" Billy Wells

As the new generation of young British heavyweights such as Sexton, Fury, Olubamiwo, Dallas and Towers clamour for the right to fight for the oldest belt in boxing, the prestigious Lonsdale belt, it seems fitting to remember the man who held the original 22 carat heavyweight crown.

Enter “Bombardier” Billy Wells (41-11-0). He is not especially remembered outside of the hardcore boxing fraternity these days and that is truly a shame when you take into account the fact that he defended the title a total of 14 times over a period of eight years, a feat which, if repeated today by any member of the younger generation would be keenly observed.

A tall man at 6’3”, handsome and popular with the ladies, he seemed destined to be a star from his early beginnings as a pro. Having boxed in the army while overseas in India, he turned professional in 1910 against Gunner Joe Mills, winning on points over a six round duration. He continued his progress, winning a further five bouts, all by knockout, before himself hitting a more experienced brick wall by the name of Gunner Moir.

Moir had already had 20 professional outings and had held the British title and challenged the diminutive Tommy Burns for world honours. In a short three round battle, Wells had Moir down three times in the first round, which might have resulted in an automatic stoppage win under modern rules. However the fight continued and Wells was himself put down in the second and knocked out in the third.

“Bombadier” Billy would get his revenge however, knocking out Moir in five round three years later, defending the British title.

Wells clearly had stamina, beating Porky Dan Flynn on points over 20 rounds next, before knocking out Iron William Hague and Fred Storbeck for the British and Empire titles respectively.

On these successes a potential match was made to pit Wells against the mighty Jack Johnson, which was scuppered by those who wished to see the colour bar enforced. He then debuted in Madison Square Garden, and although his record remained spotty while fighting on foreign soil, (he was knocked out by Hall of Famer Georges Carpentier twice, once in Belgium and once in London, the second fight lasting only 73 seconds) he only lost three times in the eight years in his native country.

By 1913, with successful defences against Gunner Moir, Packey Mahoney and Pat O’Keefe, using his decent left jab amongst others in his repertoire, the Lonsdale belt was won outright by its first ever heavyweight champion. Through his reign he continued to beat such men as Bandsman Dick Rice (x3) Colin Bell and was the first man to defeat Bandsman Jack Blake. He also defeated Joe Beckett, a man who would later beat Tommy Burns. Beckett managed to end Wells’ grip on the titles however. In an immediate rematch Beckett knocked out Wells in his fourteenth title defence.

Wells would go on to build up a winning run of five more outings, including wins over veterans such as Eddie McGoorty and Harry Reeve before facing Beckett again. Beckett repeated his earlier performance, knocking out Wells once more.

Wells never challenged for the British title again. He won five of his last eight bouts before retiring for good.

Looking at the career of Billy Wells, it’s easy to see a real grass roots connection to the history of the heavyweight division. In those turbulent years for a heavyweight, he engaged in the ring, men who had fought a world champion in Tommy Burns, and he had a mooted clash with the great Jack Johnson. He travelled and fought in the mecca of boxing, Madison Square Garden. He fought other well known fighters of the day, Americans such as Gunboat Smith and Frank Moran, (who later went on to become a successful film star after challenging Jack Johnson) and he met a truly great fighter in the shape of Georges Carpentier.

His reign as long-time British champion was echoed by the grandson of his sometime ‘bodyguard’ George. That grandson’s name was Henry Cooper, who himself would win three Lonsdale belts outright.

These sorts of connections and travels, plus his own success as a British title holder, are certainly worthy of remembrance as we enter yet another current period of frenetic activity to establish the best young British heavyweight in Britain.