Jack Johnson

Based off of everything I've read in the excellent biography Unforgivable Blackness, The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson, the early heavyweight champion was a stone cold killer. Here he is pictured looking down at an unconscious and badly concussed challenger Stanley Ketchel in front of a sea of shocked, pale faces. Stanley Ketchel was one of the many so called "white hopes" that Johnson easily dispatched with a potent mix of power and stamina. Like many of the greats Johnson was, in his prime, on a different level from other fighters. Johnsons physical gifts gave him a platform to confront the racial prejudiced that permeated the boxing world and society in general during his time. He will forever be remember as the first black world champion and one of the very best.

Jack Johnson vs. Stanley Ketchel, World Heavyweight Championship, October 1909
Nathan Netterlund
Pencil, Ink, Ink Wash, Photoshop CS6