Pinky Mitchell

Pinky Mitchell was an American boxer who became the first champion in the light welterweight division by receiving the most votes by ballot on November 15, 1922. He held the title until 1926.

Pinky Mitchell
Statistics
Real name	Myron Herbert Mitchell
Nickname(s)	Pinky
Weight(s)	light welterweight
Nationality	American
Born	January 1, 1899 Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Died	March 11, 1976 (aged 77) Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Stance	Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights	83
Wins	44
Wins by KO	10
Losses	23
Draws	6
No contests	0

In his impressive career he fought Oakland Jimmy Duffy, Rocky Kansas, James Red Herring and champions Benny Leonard, Lew Tendler, Jack Britton, Mushy Callahan and Joe Dundee.[1][2]

Early life

Born Myron Mitchell on January 1, 1899, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Mitchell was nicknamed Pinky because of his father's statement, on seeing Mitchell in his crib as a baby, that "he's like a little pink rascal."[3] He was a highly praised amateur boxer, and during his amateur days, former lightweight champion Battling Nelson said he was the best-looking prospect he had seen.[4]

Professional career

Mitchell began boxing professionally in 1917. His brother, Richie Mitchell, was also a boxer. Their two styles were quite different, however. Richie was known for all-action bouts while Pinky, according to a later historian, "became a pariah in Milwaukee rings" due to his "lethargic performances" in boxing matches.[4]

On April 11, 1919, Mitchell drew with Harry Shuman, Pacific Coast Lightweight Champion, in Seattle in a four round match. The Milwaukee Sentinel noted that he "was pleased at the treatment he had received in Seattle", though he was accustomed to longer fights.[5]

Inaugural world light welterweight champion, 1922

In 1922 Mike Collins, the publisher of a Minneapolis weekly newspaper, the Boxing Blade, created the light welterweight category and asked his readers to vote for the man they felt was the best fighter at 140 pounds. Mitchell won the balloting and was recognized on November 15, 1922, as the first world light welterweight champion.[6] The National Boxing Association (NBA) followed suit and recognized Mitchell as champion.[7]

Mitchell lost to Benny Leonard on May 29, 1923, in a ten round technical knockout in Chicago. Leonard's win was one of many against world champions, though the fight was not a title fight. As Leonard refused to weigh in, neither his world lightweight or Mitchell's world junior welterweight titles were at stake. After a slow first five rounds with few blows, Leonard took the lead in the remaining rounds with the exception of the eighth and ninth. In the eight, Mitchell scored with four rights to the chin of Leonard. Though both boxers scored points, Leonard seemed to have the edge from the fifth. In the tenth, Leonard dropped Pinky to the mat, and upon arising, he knocked him to the mat a second time. The referee called an end to the match, resulting in a technical knockout. Immediately afterwards, Pinkie's brother Ritchie believed a foul had been committed, claiming Leonard had hit Pinky when he was down on one knee on the mat, but the referee disagreed. The Buffalo Courier wrote that Leonard was in the motions of hitting Pinky when he was on one knee, but that the referee waved him away before the blow occurred.[8] Regardless, a fight between Richie and Davey Mitchell, the referee, ensued that ended in a near riot among the spectators. The police put down the protests with their billy clubs, though no arrests were made. Despite the protests, the charity event ended with a win by Leonard and no foul called by the referee against Mitchell in the tenth.[9][2][10][11]

Mitchell defended his title at least six times.[12] One of those defenses, a 1925 fight against James "Red" Herring, was mired in controversy. Herring won by disqualification and claimed the light welterweight championship. The Wisconsin Commission and the NBA both declined to recognize Herring as champion, however.

Loss of title and career decline, September, 1926

His defense against Mushy Callahan saw Mitchell lose his title decisively on September 21, 1926 in a ten round points decision. Callahan, who began piling up a points lead from the first round, knocked Mitchell to the canvas in the eighth and tenth. Except for the fourth, which was even, and the sixth where Mitchell led, Callahan took a strong points margin in all the remaining rounds.[13]

After losing to Callahan, Mitchell never won another fight and retired in 1928.

After boxing

After he retired, Mitchell twice ran for sheriff of Milwaukee County, losing both times.

He died on March 11, 1976 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

See also

• List of light welterweight boxing champions

References and notes

1. "Pinky Mitchell". BoxRec. Retrieved 28 January 2016.
2. "Pinky Mitchell Boxing Record". BoxRec. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
3. Ehrmann, Pete (April 1998), "Pinky Mitchell: The Only Fighter to Win a Title at the Ballot Box", The Ring, 77, no. 4: 31
4. Ehrmann, Pete (April 1998), "Pinky Mitchell: The Only Fighter to Win a Title at the Ballot Box", The Ring, 77, no. 4: 32
5. "Pinky Mitchell Well Pleased with Treatment", Milwaukee Sentinel, pg. 14, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 16 April 1919.
6. "Pinky Mitchell - Lineal Junior Welterweight Champion". The Cyber Boxing Zone Encyclopedia.
7. Mullan, Harry (1987), The Great Book of Boxing, New York, New York: Crescent Books, p. 298, ISBN 0-7517-6295-4
8. "Leonard Stops Pinky Mitchell", Buffalo Courier, Buffalo, New York, pg. 14, 30 May 1923
9. "Near Riot Marks Ending of Charity Affair", Pittsburgh Daily Post, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, pg. 17, 30 May 1923
10. "Benny Leonard KO's Mitchell in the Tenth Round", The Montgomery Adviser, Montgomery, Alabama, pg. 6, 30 May 1923
11. Leonard hit Ritchie while he was down on one knee in "Chicago Fight Ends in Riot", The Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles, California, pg. 33, 30 May 1923
12. Ehrmann, Pete (April 1998), "Pinky Mitchell: The Only Fighter to Win a Title at the Ballot Box", The Ring, 77, no. 4: 33
13. Milligan, Bernard, "Callahan Wins From Mitchell", The San Francisco Examiner, San Francisco, California, pg. 33, 22 September 1926

External links

• Boxing record for Pinky Mitchell from BoxRec
• Pinky Mitchell - CBZ Profile