Question 1

True or false: Fitzsimmons was the only man to ever knock out Jack Johnson.

Accepted Answer

False. Jack Johnson was never knocked out; Fitzsimmons lost to Johnson by TKO in 1907, not the other way around.

Question 2

True or false: He was born in New Zealand but fought under the British flag.

Accepted Answer

True. Born in Helston, Cornwall, England, he moved to New Zealand as a child, but often fought representing Britain.

Question 3

True or false: Bob Fitzsimmons was the first boxer to win world titles in three weight classes.

Accepted Answer

True. Fitzsimmons won the middleweight, heavyweight, and light heavyweight championships, a feat unmatched in his era.

Question 4

True or false: He fought and won his last professional fight at age 55.

Accepted Answer

False. His last fight was in 1914 at age 51, a loss by knockout; he retired after that.

Question 5

True or false: Fitzsimmons invented the 'solar plexus punch' and named it himself.

Accepted Answer

False. He famously used body punches, but the term 'solar plexus' predates him; he didn't invent or name it.

Question 6

True or false: He was a blacksmith before becoming a professional boxer.

Accepted Answer

False. Fitzsimmons worked as a blacksmith's apprentice in New Zealand, but his primary trade was as a farrier, not a blacksmith.

Question 7

True or false: His wife was a professional boxer who trained him for his biggest fights.

Accepted Answer

True. His second wife, Julia, was a skilled boxer and cornerman, even helping him prepare for the Corbett fight.

Question 8

True or false: Fitzsimmons knocked out a kangaroo in an exhibition match in Australia.

Accepted Answer

True. In 1891, he fought a kangaroo in a staged bout, knocking it out with a single punch for entertainment.

Bob Fitzsimmons Trivia Questions