The Official Pete Sanstol Web Site
The Ultimate Triumph

A few days after his historic title fight with Sixto Escobar August 7, 1935, Pete Sanstol headed home to Norway. The purpose of his return was to do battle with some unidentified fellow one Oslo newspaper dubbed "The New Pete Sanstol." [According to a June 5, 1999, e-mail from an anonymous person in Norway, this fellow is identified as Igamar Ohansen (Johansen?), although our informant was unsure of the correct spelling.] That paper, envious of the following and business Pete had created with his articles for a rival Oslo newspaper, found and sponsored New Pete, then challenged "Old Pete" to come back to Norway to fight him. Pete quickly accepted. The fight was scheduled for August 30.

On his way home to Norway Pete traveled through New York City, where it is believed his manager Raoul Godbout introduced him to Jack Dempsey. He may have gone to a few New York City nightclubs, including Dempsey's own restaurant, as Pete pasted in one of his his scrapbooks the cover of a Dempsey restaurant menu inscribed by Jack to Raoul with the words, " Hello Raoul, Old Pal. Good Luck, Jack."

After Pete finally arrived in Oslo, his fight with New Pete was canceled for some reason, probably because someone else had decided to come to town to fight him. Panama Al Brown would fight Pete Sanstol a second time - finally! After all those years. This likely explains why the fight with New Pete was canceled. Everyone knew that the Sanstol-Brown match was an extremely better attraction. It had been a long time coming and eagerly anticipated. This fight was bound to sell more papers and tickets than any bout with an artificial "New Pete Sanstol."

For some reason unknown to us to this day, Al Brown had finally decided to fight Pete a second time. Many claimed Brown had been avoiding Pete ever since their fight August 25, 1931, for the undisputed Bantamweight World Title. Since that fight, "wild horses could not drag Brown back into the ring with Pete," recalled the renown boxing columnist Ted Carroll. Others theorize that it was actually Brown's long-time manager, David Lumiansky, who was the one who had prevented Brown from fighting Pete all those years. According to an entry in our previous (now defunct) guestbook by Mr. Bernardo Rodriquez (apparently based on a 1998 European book written by Eduardo Arroyo entitled "Panama" Al Brown 1902-1951), Al Brown:

was a victim of a succession of corrupt managers who profited enormously from his talents and didn't hesitate to make him fight three or four fights a month, sometimes ill or drugged to fight the pain caused by his many injuries. Dave Lumiansky treated him like a slave and was in fact the brain behind all the machinations that prevented Sanstol from fighting Brown for so long. Brown was a gentleman on and off the ring, whose extravagant lifestyle ultimately took its toll.

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From what can be gathered from the Norwegian-language clippings pasted by Pete in his scrapbooks, the main source of information for this web page, Brown's appearance in Norway created a media frenzy. He made many public appearances. Pete went out of his way to make certain that Brown was treated with respect by his fellow Norwegians. There are promotional photos of Brown seated behind a set of drums, with a group of amateur Norwegian boxers, and as the guest of honor, with Pete, at a private dinner held August 27.

(L to R: Fight Promoter Oskar Olsen, Al Brown, Wilhelm Henie,
Fru Else Kalflaath, Pete Sanstol & Raoul Godbout)
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Pete also got his fair share of pre-fight publicity, as he was the national hero in this fight. Sports Manden, in particular, extensively covered many of the events leading up to the fight. Countless cartoons were published about the forthcoming battle. Both Pete and Brown trained in the same facility, at least for most of their training, so the papers announced the times each would be training in an effort to get the public more interested and to draw a big gate. Pete trained at 12:30, usually outdoors, as was his preference; and Brown trained at 5:00 in the afternoon., usually outdoors as well.

Some papers soon started to trumpet the event as the "Black and White" fight, which probably didn't sit too well with Pete at first. But this became the theme of the publicity as well as for the fight itself, and eventually both Al and Pete played along.

Pete Going Over His Scrapbooks with Reporters

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The fight occurred in Bislet, a huge open area in the heart of Oslo. It was originally scheduled for August 30, since the venue had already been booked for that fight with "New Pete." But, for some reason unknown to this day, it was re-scheduled to September 6. Then postponed once again again to Friday, September 13. (To this day, virtually all boxing historians record the true date of this bout incorrectly. Some say it was held on September 10 or 11. And statistical boxing authority Fight Fax lists it as occurring September 13, 1934 - one year before!)

Brown's manager for this fight was Leon Bellieres of France. We do not know what became of "Hatless" Dave Lumiansky - his former manager.

It is strongly believed that Harald Undersrud was present for this second Brown vs. Sanstol fight, as there was a newspaper article quoting him before the bout. Mr. Undersrud was the man who had glimpsed the potential greatness amateur boxer Pete Sanstol possessed way back in the mid-1920s, and who had convinced Pete to become a professional fighter. In fact, Harald became Pete's first professional manager, a father figure, and a life-long friend Pete forever cherished in his heart.

On the eve of the fight, Sports Manden magazine published an article listing the predictions of about 100 Scandinavian boxing pundits. Quite a few thought Brown would KO Pete in the eighth round. Some figured Pete would get a TKO in the fourth. The rest were split on which fighter would win on points, with slightly more than half predicting that Brown would win.

Up to 17,000 people came to see this fight -- believed to be, to this day, the largest crowd ever assembled for a boxing match in Norway. (According to Pete years later, at some point during this evening, the great Norwegian ice-skater Sonja Henie was in attendance and "was introduced from the ring, where the fighters Al Brown and Pete Sanstol were about to slug it out for country, honour and, of course, the money.")

The preliminary matches included the semi-final of Harald Hansen defeating German Flyweight Champion Richard Stegemann on points, and Edgar Norman winning on points over Adolf Heuser.

Pete was nervous at the start, according to a newspaper clipping he pasted in one his scrapbooks. It is understandable why. He was fighting before a home crowd, finally facing Brown once again, he had just had the most royal clobbering of his life the month before, and, just maybe, Pete had already decided this would be the final bout of his career.

Brown entered the ring wearing white gloves and with his ever-present knee brace, while Pete wore black gloves.

(Click here for two round-by-round accounts, both in Norwegian.)

Pete won. He had been awarded five rounds, Brown two, with the remaining three rounds a draw. Pete hadn't wasted the least little drop of energy or a single blow. Thanks for the earlier lesson, Mr. Brown.

(We present more rare photos of this fight.)

Pete Sanstol finally defeated "Panama" Al Brown fair and square, despite the fact this contest was held in Norway. He would have fought Brown in his favorite backyard of Paris if given the chance. There had been no last-minute changing of the rules, no squabble about the weight of the gloves, no demand to select the referee or judges, nothing of the sort. It simply had been one man against the other, fighting according to the established rules by which all Gentlemen Boxers are supposed to abide. Except for Brown's constant holding.

Al Brown sent Pete a clipping of a Norwegian-language cartoon commenting on the color of the gloves the two had used in their fight. Apparently not knowing what it said, he wrote on it, jokingly, "OK What's here for me, Al Brown." Pete pasted it in his scrapbook. It was one of only two items he possessed that bore Brown's autograph; the other is the list of guests at the August 27 dinner we mentioned earlier that includes both Brown's and Pete's signatures, as well as Raoul Godbout's, Leon Bellieres' and the signature of a certain "Hjalmar Johannesen." Was he the mysterious "New Pete Sanstol"? "Halle?" Johannesen had been scheduled to be in one of the preliminary bouts on the August 30 or September 6 Sanstol-Brown bills, but apparently did not get on the re-scheduled September 13 bill. He is not to be confused with the former world heavyweight champion, Ingemar Johansson, who was born September 22, 1932, in Goteburg, Sweden.

This signed guest list also appears to bear the signature of Pete's long-time Montreal friend, Arne Rutquist, who had been the Canadian general manager for the Swedish American Steamship Lines. Had he come over to see this fight?

A few days after his match with Brown, Pete arrived in the offices of Sports Manden magazine to give an interview. Click here to read it.

Although he had defeated the man we suspect was the Number One Nemesis of his career, Pete, always the gentleman, refused to gloat or boast about this victory. (Doesn't it appear that many professional boxers today feel it is an obligation to boast how great they are before their careers are over?)

Pete Sanstol played down his final win in the ring, although he was still proud of it. When he was interviewed by Norwegian magazine Vi Menn in 1975, he claimed this victory was the result of good luck and some hard work. He told reporter Erik Sletholt that everyone in Norway wanted to invite Brown there and all wanted to show him a good time once he arrived. Brown had never fought in Norway before. He was taken out on the town and shown a great time while people clamored to have their photographs taken with him. Brown had such a delightful time in Oslo that he did little training, said Pete, while he trained like never before. It seems that Pete was not convinced this fight had determined who was the "better man."

But Pete was being too modest. There are countless newspaper clippings in his scrapbooks that show Brown training hard and frequently, doing all sorts of exercising, running and sparring -- sometimes dressed in a sweatshirt emblazoned with "Al Brown Bantamweight Champion" on the back.

Nevertheless Al Brown lost to Pete Sanstol and decided to retire from the ring. Then he did something very odd: he reversed the table. In October 1935 he challenged Pete to a third contest, betting 50,000 francs he would win if Pete agreed to fight the following month in Paris. (Click here to view a contemporary newspaper headline regarding this.) Pete declined the offer. He, too, had decided to retire. Plus, Pete was no fool.

Pete eventually decided he would not attempt his Comeback No. 4. He had "given his all" and fought his very best to become one of the few undisputed Champions of the World. So, this time, the Blond Tiger retired permanently.

The Great Pete Sanstol Leaves the Ring for the Last Time
September 13, 1935 -- Bislet, Norway
(Left to Right: Referee Otto Griese, Trainer? Keider Johansen, Pete Sanstol
& Manager Raoul Godbout)
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Two years later Brown reconsidered his retirement and made a comeback in September 1937. He scored five straight wins before defeating the former bantam champ Baltasar Sangchili March 4, 1938, in Paris. Based upon this victory he was declared the "world bantamweight champion" again by the International Boxing Union, which was headquartered in Paris, his staunch supporter for so many years. He successfully defended this title against Valentin Angelmann but then, unable to make the bantam weight limit any longer, gave up his claim to the IBU title. (The Ring, August 1985 issue, p. 27.)

In 1941 he went back home to Panama, where he had the final seven fights of his career before "hanging up the gloves" for good on December 4, 1942.

His final professional record is often stated as 155 bouts: 125 victories (55 by KO, 66 on points, and four wins on fouls), 20 losses (18 on points and two on fouls), and 10 draws. (Source: The Ring magazine, August 1985 issue, p. 27.) However, current sources identify 162 fights. And still yet another source states his record is 128-19-11 (58 by KO). Here is his BoxRec record.

After his boxing career ended he fronted an orchestra on the French Riviera for a while. (The Ring, August 1985 issue, p. 27.)

"Ironically, cocaine proved the downfall of Panama's and Latin America's first boxing champion -- Panama Al Brown. Brown was arrested in New York in the 1940s for using cocaine. The judge ordered Brown to be deported for one year, a pretty lenient sentence under the circumstances." (The Ring, March 1988 issue, p. 11.) This raises an obvious question.

On April 11, 1951, the great "Panama" Al Brown died of tuberculosis in New York City at the age of 48 years. Penniless. His remains are buried in Amador Guerrero Cemetary in Panama City, Panama.

The man, a superb champion in his day, by the mid-1990s still possessed the record of the longest-reigning bantam champ in boxing history. The founder of The Ring, Nat Fleischer, "considered Brown one of the top 10 greatest bantamweights of all-time." (The Ring August 1985 issue, p. 26.) In 1975 The Ring declared Brown the second greatest bantamweight boxer of all time; second only to Pete Herman (March 1975 issue.) "Herman had 148 fights with 52 wins by decision, 19 knockouts and 57 'no decision' contests. He lost 10 fights by decision, drew in eight, lost one by a foul and was knocked out but once." (The Ring, July 1973 issue, p. 47.)

Today's accounts of boxing history marvel how Brown impressively and successfully defended his bantam crown ten times over six years. Besides Pete Sanstol, Brown defended his title against Johnny Erickson, Emile "Spider" Pladner, Dom Bernaconi, Johnny King, Young Perez, and Eugene Huat and Kid Francis twice each. (This is according to the Internet Boxing Record.) One wonders for how many of these title fights, if any, Brown (or Lumiansky) had managed to get the rules changed at the last minute or been able to select the referee and/or judges -- as they successfully had done in the 1931 Sanstol title match.

According to some other sources, Brown also defended his title against Knute Larsen in 1929, and Nick Bensa in 1931. There apparently remains some question regarding these latter two "title" fights.

Pete Sanstol defeated Johnny Erickson twice. He won the decision over one of the best bantam punchers around at the time, Dom Bernasconi. He was clobbering Pladner before his injured foot forced a draw. He beat Victor "Young" Perez. And, as Brown had done, Pete twice defeated Eugene Huat. Pete never fought Kid Francis, but he defeated "Young" Kid Francis (Guy Bonaugure) twice - the younger brother to the more-famous Kid Francis who fought Brown twice for the title.

Further, scared of no one of his weight, Pete had fought other Top Contenders against whom Brown flatly refused to risk his crown -- Sixto Escobar being the most note-worthy, and perhaps Young Tommy as well. (We also recall Brown's refusal to face top-seed Baby Casanova in 1934, which caused the National Boxing Association to strip him of their world crown.) Pete fought only nine years while Brown's career lasted around twenty years. During his boxing career, Pete lost over two to three good years of fighting due to illness, injuries, and temporary retirement. Historians rightfully applaud Brown's outstanding fight record. There's no denying that he achieved a superlative one. So did Pete. With over 100 fights and only six losses, Pete's record is comparable to Brown's to a great degree. Actually, Pete has a better win/loss ratio, losing only 5.5% to Brown's 13%. On the other hand, most of Pete's early fights were four and six-rounders, whereas Brown's were usually of much longer duration.

Ever the gentleman, Pete never argued over the above-stated statistics or held any grudge. Although he and Brown may have been at odds since at least 1931, after their September 1935 fight in Norway they once again shook hands - signifying in part this time, perhaps, that their long "feud" was officially over. To the last breath of his life Pete never spoke one ill word to disparage Brown's status as the former undisputed Bantamweight Champion of the World. (For all we know, they could have been friends since they had first met in Paris in late 1926.) They then both went forward on their separate paths into the future.

Yet, as of this writing (October 28, 1998), while "Panama" Al Brown is enshrined in all, Pete Sanstol has never been inducted into any boxing hall of fame -- including The Ring magazine'ss now-defunct Boxing Hall of Fame, the World Boxing Hall of Fame or the International Boxing Hall of Fame. (Well, as consolation, Pete was featured solo on a cover of The Ring magazine; Brown never was.)

Today, in late 1998, Al Brown and Pete Sanstol each is remembered entirely differently by boxing fans and historians. One is known as a true World Champion, much remembered. The other is considered a footnote: Just another loser to Al Brown for the Bantamweight Championship of the World. The great and once-famous Pete Sanstol slowly became ignored and virtually forgotten, and was well on his way to being flushed down the sewer of history. But, with all the Karma points he must have accumulated during his life, this cannot truly be his ultimate fate, can it? To become completely forgotten?

In the introduction to the 1957 abridged version of his unpublished memoirs, entitled Gjennom Ringen, Pete wrote cryptically and prophetically that, one day "the bill will be settled." We hope that day is just about here.