Long after the Second World War, some evidence arose that Schmeling had risked his own life to save the lives of two Jewish children in 1938.

He proved Dempsey's praises correct on August 24, 1926, when picking up the German light heavyweight championship with a first round knockout of rival Max Diekmann, who had previously beaten Schmeling.

Many in attendance, including Gene Tunney and the mayor of New York, felt that Schmeling had proven himself the better man and was robbed.

When Schmeling faced Mickey Walker, the future hall-of-famer who had recently held Sharkey to a draw that many felt Walker deserved, it was thought that this fight was for the real heavyweight championship.

He was counted out on the floor and Schmeling had scored the most talked-about sports upset of the year.

Nonetheless, in February in 1937, Schmeling received the bad news that the champion had indeed signed to defend his championship against Louis.

Louis came out blazing in the first round and Schmeling tried to counter-punch as he had in the first bout, but to no avail.

Schmeling would later say that he screamed because he had been hit with a blow to the kidneys.

Carnera and Schmeling never faced each other in the ring, but both had high-profile bouts with Joe Louis.

For 2010's film Max Schmeling-Eine deutsche Legende another former boxing champion, who moreover had known him, played Max Schmeling: Henry Maske.

Schmeling had thoroughly studied Louis's style and believed he had found a weakness.

After defeating Louis, Schmeling expected a title shot against James J. Braddock, who had unexpectedly defeated Max Baer for the Heavyweight title the previous June.

The song references adversities and opponents, including Max Schmeling and Primo Carnera, Louis had to overcome in his career.

Because Baer defeated Schmeling, German dictator Adolf Hitler's favorite, and because Baer had a Jewish father, he became popular among Jews, those who identified with Jews, and those who despised the Nazis.

Max Schmeling, on the other hand, was born in Germany, and he had become the first world Heavyweight champion to win the title by a disqualification in 1930, against Jack Sharkey, another American.

Schmeling had thoroughly studied Louis's style, and believed he had found a weakness: Louis's habit of dropping his left hand low after a jab.

Schmeling had studied Louis ' style, and in the days before the fight, he claimed to have found the key to victory ; fans thought that he was just trying to raise interest in the fight.

As the fight progressed, stunned fans and critics alike watched Schmeling continue to use this style effectively, and Louis apparently had no idea how to solve the puzzle.

By the time of the Louis – Schmeling rematch in 1938, Nazi Germany had taken over Austria in the Anschluss, heightening tensions between Germany and the other Western powers, and generating much anti-German propaganda in the American media.

" Schmeling had a Jewish manager, Joe Jacobs, with whom he refused to part despite significant pressure, and, in a dangerous political gamble, refused the " Dagger of Honor " award offered by Adolf Hitler.

In fact, Schmeling had been urged by his friend and legendary ex-champion Jack Dempsey to defect and declare American citizenship.

Nearby the Lunapark opened in 1909, then Europe's largest amusement park modelled on Coney Island, where boxer Max Schmeling won his first title of a German Lightheavyweight Champion in 1926.

The next year, Schmeling won the European championship by stopping Fernand Delarge in the first boxing match broadcast live in Germany.

Returning to his native Germany, Schmeling won three of his next four fights, with one draw, including knockout wins over first Walter Neusel, then another redeeming his previous loss to Steve Hamas.

Some of these events include: Lou Gehrig's " Luckiest Man Alive " Speech ( July 4, 1939 ); Babe Ruth's " Final Visit to Yankee Stadium " ( June 11, 1948 ); Joe Louis vs. Max Schmeling heavyweight title bout ( June 19, 1936, Schmeling won ), the 1958 NFL Championship between the New York Giants and the Baltimore Colts and Muhammad Ali's title defense against Ken Norton ( Sept. 28, 1976 ).

Schmeling won the first match by a knockout in round twelve, but in the second match, Louis won through a knockout in the first round.

A rematch in 1932 saw Sharkey gaining the title from Schmeling by a controversial fifteen-round split decision.

In 1936, Schmeling knocked out American rising star Joe Louis, placing him as the number one contender for Jim Braddock's title, but Louis got the fight and knocked Braddock out to win the championship in 1937.

Schmeling finally got a chance to regain his title in 1938, but Louis knocked him out in one round.

In order to solidify his title as undisputed, Schmeling signed a contract to face the " Boston Gob " once more.

Now the unexpected number one contender for the heavyweight crown held by Jim Braddock, Schmeling looked forward to his chance to regain the title as first Heavyweight ever, scheduled for that September.

When it was confirmed that Braddock's managers were in talks with the Louis camp, the New York Commission officially released an order for Braddock to fight Schmeling for the title.

In 1938, champion Joe Louis announced that he would indeed face Schmeling for the title.

What was considered to be a final tune-up bout before an eventual title shot was scheduled for June 1936 against former World Heavyweight Champion Max Schmeling.

Schmeling's victory gave Gould tremendous leverage, however ; if he were to offer Schmeling the title chance instead of Louis, there was a very real possibility that Nazi authorities would never allow Louis a shot at the title.

Shortly after winning the title, he was quoted as saying, " I don't want to be called champ until I whip Max Schmeling.

* Max Schmeling defeats Jack Sharkey by a controversial fourth round foul punch decision to take the vacant World Heavyweight Championship title

From 1930 to 1933, the world heavyweight title was held by Max Schmeling and Jack Sharkey.

* June 11-Max Schmeling wins the undisputed World Heavyweight title, defeating NBA champion Jack Sharkey by a four round disqualification, after being hit with a damaging low blow.

Schmeling became the first boxer to win the title by disqualification, and he remains as of 2004, the only one to win it that way, in New York.

* July 3-Max Schmeling retains the world Heavyweight title, with a fifteenth round knockout of Young Stribling, in Cleveland.

* June 21-Jack Sharkey wins the world Heavyweight title, defeating Max Schmeling by a fifteen round decision, at their rematch held in New York.

* June 21-In the second fight of their famous rivalry, Joe Louis retains the world Heavyweight title with a first round knockout of former world champion Max Schmeling, at New York.

Sharkey's title was not universally recognized, and in 1930 he would be defeated by Max Schmeling for the undisputed championship.

His victory earned him the opportunity to fight for the vacant world title against the German contender, Max Schmeling on June 12, 1930.