Louis entered the fight with a record of 35-1 and had won the heavyweight title from James J. Braddock last year. Schmeling, a former heavyweight champion, came out on top with a record of 52-7-4.
In their first meeting, Schmeling repeatedly countered Louis’ jab with a right hand and scored a 12th round knockout. The victory gave Louis the last defeat of his professional career and set the stage for a rematch that quickly became one of boxing’s biggest attractions.
Revenge had a political significance that no one wanted at first.
This war took place during a period of tension between Germany and the United States. Because of this, rematch coverage often focused on more than boxing.
The rematch drew more than 70,000 spectators to Yankee Stadium. The radio broadcast reached an estimated 70 million listeners in the United States and over 100 million worldwide.
Worldwide, the audience is believed to be over 100 million.
Louis understood the importance of the game. A few weeks before the war, he visited President Franklin D. Roosevelt at the White House. According to contemporary accounts, Roosevelt told the champion, “Joe, we need muscles like yours to defeat Germany.”
Louis did not approach the rematch cautiously.
Seconds after the opening bell, he pressed forward and began firing hard. Schmeling tried to recreate the strategy that had brought him success in their first meeting, but he couldn’t land his jab before Louis took control of the fight.
The broken body shot seems to hurt Schmeling. Seconds later, Louis sent him to the canvas with a right hand. Schmeling got up, but the punishment continued. Another rioter fired a second shot, and a third followed soon after.
With Schmeling badly injured and unable to defend himself, referee Arthur Donovan stopped the fight at 2:04 of the first round.
The official result was a first round technical knockout of Louis.
The fight lasted only 124 seconds. Louis threw 41 punches and landed 31 of them, while Schmeling reportedly only threw two punches during the fight. Schmeling was later hospitalized, where doctors discovered several cracked vertebrae in his back.
The result remains the most famous victory of Louis’ career and is remembered as one of the fastest rematches in heavyweight history.
Louis went on to dominate for more than a decade and made a record 25 consecutive heavyweight title defenses. Schmeling resumed his work and was later recognized for helping Jewish families during the Nazi era.
Although once rivals, the two men later became friends. Schmeling often visited Louis in Las Vegas and later served as pallbearer at his funeral in 1981.
