1.2M views · 1.9K shares | On July 4, 1919, the air was full of expectation and the bets were on: Jess Willard, the public’s favorite, was facing rookie Jack Dempsey. No one ever imagined that Willard, a 111-kg wall of muscle, would receive the biggest surprise of his life. | The Ring | Facebook

Jack Dempsey, aka "The Manassa Mauler," legendary American fighter who held the world heavyweight championship from 1919 to 1926 and captivated the word as a 1920s icon, was born in Manassa, Colorado on this day in 1895. Dempsey memorably destroyed Jess Willard to capture the title, and lost it to Gene Tunney. Dempsey is ranked tenth on The Ring magazine's list of all-time heavyweights and seventh among its Top 100 Greatest Punchers, while in 1950 the Associated Press voted him as the greatest f