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BALTIMORE, Aug. 16. - (AP) -
"I'll never fight light again,"
vows Joe Louis.
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Whether it be Rocky Marciano
or Ezzard Charles next on his
comeback parade, the Brown
Bomber will come in as close as
he can get to 208 pounds.
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He blamed last night's
weight of 203, lowest for him
in 10 years, for a disappoint-
ing although unanimous 10-
round victory over Jimmy
Bivins of Cleveland.
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"I didn't improve none to-
night," he said disgustedly.
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He was downhearted mostly at
his failure to deck Bivins in the
last round when he hit the 180-
pounder with everything he had.
Bivins was still hanging on to
him at the end. The last minute
flurry was the most savage of
the fight which otherwise fol-
lowed a dull pattern. Louis
jabbed and jabbed and Bivins ran
and ran.
CROWD PLEADS
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The crowd of 18,215 which paid
$75,217 pleaded time and again;
"Joe, open him up." But Louis
was able to land only half a dozen
telling blows with that once-
feared right and never could he
follow through.
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"I was just too light to get that
right hand over," explained Louis
later. "No question about it, I
was five pounds too light."
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Bivins puffed up Louis' left
eye early in the fight but his
spasmodic hit and run tactics
took little advantage of it. The
only other mark on either
fighter was a slight cut over
the left eye of Bivins.
NO KNOCKDOWNS
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There were no knockdowns.
Referee Eddie Leonard took
from Louis his biggest round,
the 10th, because of a low blow.
Then Leonard scored seven
rounds for Bomber Joe and three
for Bevins. Judges Lee Half-
penny and Bill Ellis voted in
unison: six rounds for Louis,
three for Bivins and one even.
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Louis' weight was the lowest
he had registered since Sept. 29,
1941, when he knocked out Lou
Nova. When Louis lost to Charles
in their title fight last September,
he scaled 218.
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