Joe Bowker west of Ireland, for extra income. Joe Bowker Joe Bowker was an English boxer who was Bantamweight champion of the world in 1904 and 1905. His defeat of Frankie Neil on 17 October in London for the world bantamweight title was acclaimed as the most remarkable event in the sport in 1904. Bowker captured four boxing titles in the first decade of the 20th century: world bantamweight championship, European bantamweight championship, British bantamweight championship, and British featherweight championship. He held the world bantamweight and British featherweight titles at the same time. In 51 professional fights, he compiled a career record
Joe Baksi and then fought a thirty-one-year-old Jersey Joe Walcott. Walcott had lost earlier bouts with world-class professionals, and was an underdog against Baksi. But Walcott won, scoring 6-3-1 on the single referees scorecard. Walcott's dancing and dodging allowed him to escape Baksi's reach, and he was able to get in enough hooks to make Baksi groggy. Baksi lost his next fight with Jimmy Bell (a split decision in which Baksi was penalized two rounds for a low blow), but then racked up four easy wins before traveling to Europe. Baksi left for Europe on October 9, 1946 to fight the two