Jack Fox: Boxing Career and Key Results
John Linwood “Tiger Jack” Fox was a hard-hitting American light heavyweight who fought for decades, with records placing his career from the late 1920s through 1950. Sources describe his origins and early record with some uncertainty, so the familiar hitchhiking story is best understood as Fox’s own account: he said Young Stribling picked him up and hired him as a sparring partner. The BoxRec biography discusses the gaps in Fox’s early record and the story of his start.
Fox became known for an unusual ring style. He sometimes grabbed the ropes and stuck out his chin to draw an opponent forward, then countered with a left hook or bolo punch. His victories included two over Jersey Joe Walcott: an eighth-round knockout in May 1937 and a 10-round decision in May 1938. BoxRec’s records of the first Walcott fight and Fox’s bout history document those wins.
Fox’s chance to win a major title came against Melio Bettina on February 3, 1939, for the vacant New York State Athletic Commission light heavyweight championship. Fox had been stabbed near the heart about two months earlier and returned to the ring before he had fully recovered. Bettina stopped him in the ninth round. Fox later blamed Bettina’s manager, magician and hypnotist Jimmy Grippo, for casting an “evil eye”; this was Fox’s belief, not an established explanation for the loss. BoxRec’s Bettina history records the title result, and BlackPast’s biography covers the stabbing and Fox’s return.
Fox was inducted posthumously into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2023. He spent his later years in Spokane and died of a heart attack outside the El Rancho Theater on April 6, 1954. The Spokesman-Review’s Hall of Fame profile revisits his Spokane career and death.
The Ring included Fox on its 2003 list of boxing’s 100 greatest punchers. His record is a mix of remarkable knockouts, notable wins and documented gaps; the well-supported highlights are his two victories over Walcott, the Bettina title bout and his later Hall of Fame recognition.
Sources
BoxRec biography; first Walcott fight; Biographical source.
Article Tags
Jack Fox, Boxing, Sports History
