From the moment Jack Johnson beat Tommy Burns to win the world heavyweight title in 1908, a frenzied search began. While Johnson's victory wouldn't raise an eyebrow nowadays, it caused consternation in America for one simple reason: Johnson was black — and a black man had never held sport's greatest prize. Racism was rife in America: black people were not supposed to rule over whites in any sphere of life. As the great boxing pundit Bert Sugar put it, 'This was the white man's crown. (To white America), it was as if the white man's slave had become his master.' After beating Tommy Burns in 1908, Jack Johnson became the first ever black world heavyweight champion . It is difficult to convey to a reader in 2015 the shockwaves that Johnson's victory caused. Even liberal newspapers, such as The New York Times, were openly hostile to the giant Texan. It mattered little that Johnson was American. His skin was deemed the wrong colour and a great cry went up from white America to find a white challenger — a 'Great White Hope' — who could unseat the new champion. But little did white America know that it would take over six years before Johnson would be defeated, on April 5, 1915, 100 years ago on Sunday. Most had believed Johnson would be dispatched quickly. However, he made short work of his first four title defences, his most notable victory coming over world middleweight champion Stanley Ketchel who made the massive step up in weight and even managed to knock Johnson down. Yet Johnson had been fighting in second gear until that point and, as soon as he returned to his feet, scored a brutal knockout, uprooting several of Ketchel's teeth in the process. Attention immediately turned to finding another 'white hope'. There seemed an obvious choice: former world heavyweight champion James J Jeffries, who had retired undefeated in 1904. Jeffries, who as champion had dodged Johnson, was seen as someone who could quickly defeat the title holder and return things to the way they were. Things didn't go as planned. Six years out of the ring had taken its toll on Jeffries and in 1910 Johnson stopped the former champion in 15 rounds, further enraging whites who rioted, taking out their anger on blacks who had the temerity to celebrate Johnson's win. As many as 26 black people would be killed by lynch mobs. What made Johnson even more unbearable to white America was the way he lived his life. A fun-loving character, Johnson dated and married white women, and refused to live according to the social norms of the time. He was intelligent, eloquent and ambitious and saw no reason why his being black should hold him back from doing whatever he wanted. American heavyweight boxer Jess Willard (left) with his manager Tom Jones in Havana, Cuba in April 1915 . Johnson loses his world heavyweight title to Willard (left) over the course of 26 rounds in Havana in 1915 . Like Muhammad Ali years later, he was a trailblazer. He suffered dreadful discrimination, death threats and later persecution at the hands of the government. He took most of it in his stride. The same cannot be said of his detractors whose efforts to unseat him became increasingly desperate. In 1912, one opponent, 'Fireman' Jim Flynn, was disqualified for repeatedly trying to headbutt Johnson. Things were getting ridiculous, but Johnson's life outside the ring was unravelling. He spent money like it grew on trees and was being investigated by the US government on the spurious charge of abducting his future second wife under what was known as the Mann Act, a dubious piece of legislation designed to prevent 'white slavery'. He was found guilty by an all-white jury and sentenced to a year in prison. Johnson had other ideas. He fled to Canada and then to Europe, fighting three times in Paris, where he made history by beating 'Battling' Jim Johnson in the first-ever all-black heavyweight championship bout. Next he outpointed American Frank Moran over 20 rounds, though the purses for the fight were frozen after a dispute. With his money running low and the First World War breaking out in Europe, he accepted the challenge of another 'white hope' from America. His name was Jess Willard, a 6ft 6in fighter, known as 'The Pottawatomie Giant.' To put Willard's size into perspective, the average height of an American man at the time was 5ft 7in. The fight would take place in Cuba and was scheduled for 45 three-minute rounds, a hell of a distance given the 40-degree heat on the day. How would Johnson, now 37, handle a challenger four years his junior? The champion had, quite arrogantly, barely trained for the fight. Still, Willard was certainly the underdog: his size meant he was not particularly agile and he did not like hurting opponents unless they had hurt him first. Johnson was supremely confident. Johnson dominated the opening 10 rounds but his lack of conditioning soon began to tell. His breathing became heavy, amid the sweltering heat, and Willard grew in confidence. The writing was on the wall at the end of round 25. Johnson, sat on his stool, called over fight promoter Jack Curley. 'Jack, go take my wife away...tell her I'm awful weak and I want her to leave.' In the next round Willard seized his chance. He faked to throw a left to the body and then swung a mighty overhand right that connected perfectly with Johnson's jaw. Johnson slumped to the canvas and took the count flat on his back. It was the victory that white America had been waiting for but was all as it seemed? Action from the world heavyweight title fight between Johnson and Willard in Havana, Cuba in 1915 . Photographs of the knockout appeared to show Johnson shielding his eyes from the sun and he would later claim this was because he had deliberately taken a fall. His motivation, Johnson said, was a $50,000 payout and a promise from the American authorities that he could finally return to his homeland without having to serve his prison sentence. Johnson's 'confession' was sold for a fee to Nat Fleischer, the respected founder of The Ring magazine. But Fleischer never believed Johnson, while Willard was bitter about Johnson's claim, especially as the victory was his finest hour. 'If he was going to throw the fight I wish he'd done it sooner,' Willard said. 'It was hotter than hell out there.' Much of the public believed Johnson and they had not seen the film of the contest as there was a ban on it being shown. It would take 40 years for the footage to see the light of day. When it did surface, Willard was vindicated, the film clearly showing him land a powerful blow. 'I've waited a long time but at last people are beginning to believe me when I say I that I beat Johnson fair and square.' Willard confronted Johnson over his claims in 1944. 'I asked him why he made his false statement,' Willard recalled. 'He just shrugged and gave me that gold-toothed smile of his. Jack knew and I knew he was lying. But the fella was desperate for money, so who could blame him.' Johnson would eventually end his exile and continue fighting into the 1930s. Tragically he would die in a car crash in 1946, speeding away from a diner that refused him service on account of his race. Willard would lose his world title in only his second defence, suffering an awful beating at the hands of Jack Dempsey before retiring to his farm in Kansas. Johnson was defeated after enduring 26 rounds in the sweltering Cuban heat, compared to 'hell'
After beating Tommy Burns in 1908, Jack Johnson became the first ever black world heavyweight champion . He held the belt for six years and Sunday will mark the 100 year anniversary of his last title defence . During a particularly racist period of American history, Johnson's title reign was met with many protests . Johnson was eventually defeated by Jess Willard in 1915, following 26 brutal rounds in the sweltering heat of Cuba .