Steve Sullivan

Steve "Kid" Sullivan (May 21, 1897 – September 6, 1979) was an American boxer who took the World Jr. Lightweight Title against Johnny Dundee on June 20, 1924, at the Henderson Bowl in Brooklyn, New York, in a ten-round points decision. Andy Neiderreiter, Joe Sarno, and Paddy Roche served as his managers during his career.

Early career Sullivan was born on May 21, 1897, in Brooklyn, New York, and resided there most of his life. He fought almost exclusively in the Brooklyn area from 1911 to 1914, though some of his earliest fights are not well documented by BoxRec.

Sullivan fought Vincent "Pepper" Martin for the first time on April 1, 1916, at the Broadway Sports Club in Brooklyn, winning in a fourth-round knockout. At 27, he achieved his most important victory in his hometown, and at an age when many boxers are at their peak of skill and physical conditioning. It was Sullivan's first World Jr. Lightweight Title defense.

On October 15, 1924, he defended the title again against Mike Ballerino at Madison Square Garden, winning in a fifth round knockout. Their return match, only a month later would demonstrate that Ballerino was still capable of showing his best skills.

Losing the World Jr. Lightweight Title to Mike Ballerino On December 15, 1924, he risked the title to Mike Ballerino at the Auditorium in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in a ten-round newspaper decision.

On May 22, 1925, he received a technical knockout in the fifth round against Louis "Kid" Kaplan at Brassco Park in an important bout in Waterbury Connecticut. It was one of the very few times Sullivan would be knocked out in his ring career. Sullivan had previously lost to Kaplan on November 24, 1922, at Madison Square Garden in a twelve-round points decision. Sullivan was considered far from his best in the bout, being overly cautious and having taken a nine-month layoff. More significantly, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle wrote, "the Steve "Kid Sullivan", who received the decision after ten tiresome and uneventful rounds was but a thin shadow of the Steve Sullivan of old." They continued, the "veteran Brooklyn Italian is practically through...Tod Morgan...has little to fear at the former champion's hands."

On June 3, 1926, he fought Tod Morgan at the Brooklyn National League Baseball Park in front of 40,000 enthralled boxing fans. Sullivan lost in a sixth round Technical Knockout. The Oakland Tribune wrote Morgan dealt Sullivan one of the worst beatings a battler ever received in an Eastern Ring" The Wilkes-Barre Evening News, wrote "Tod Morgan... was not in the slightest danger of losing world's junior lightweight championship while fighting Steve Kid Sullivan at Ebbets Field last night". Sullivan was down for the count of nine in both the first and second rounds, allowing Morgan to gain a sizable lead in points. In the sixth round, Sullivan's handlers tossed in the towel. Sullivan, still standing, protested referee Jimmy Crowley's decision to end the bout. Sullivan's most apparent injuries were cuts to his nose.

Living a long life for a championship boxer of his era, he died at 82, on September 6, 1979.