Small Montana
Encyclopedia
Benjamin Gan more commomly known as Small Montana, was a Filipino
boxer.
Montana, who stood 5 feet and 4 inch (163 cm) tall and never weighed more than 112 pounds, won the Flyweight Championship of the World (as recognized by New York state).
, Philippines
, on February 24, 1913, a son of the local chief of police. He was of Chinese descent.
Gan grew up with the passion for boxing and was inspired by the fights of the legendary Francisco Guilledo
. He carried a photo of Guilledo in his wallet at all times. At a young age, Gan changed his name to Small Montana ("little mountain") and ran away from home to become a professional boxer in 1931.
twice in 1935. He also went abroad to defend his title, but lost to Benny Lynch
in a 15 round bout in London
on January 9, 1937.
He also tried to fight for a world championship but fell short in all his world title matches. During his career he fought Little Dado
and Little Pancho (half-brother of Francisco Guilledo
) but lost to both of them on points.
Although he never won a world title, he defeated Manuel Ortiz
, Midget Wolgast, Tony Marino
, Joe Tei Ken, Speedy Dado
, Tommy Forte, Augie Curtis, Pat Palmer, Frankie Jarr, Eugene "Tuffy" Pierpont and Antol "Tony" Kocsis.
Filipino people
The Filipino people or Filipinos are an Austronesian ethnic group native to the islands of the Philippines. There are about 92 million Filipinos in the Philippines, and about 11 million living outside the Philippines ....
boxer.
Montana, who stood 5 feet and 4 inch (163 cm) tall and never weighed more than 112 pounds, won the Flyweight Championship of the World (as recognized by New York state).
Fighting style
Montana was known for his quick punches, although he was a scrappy and not very tall fighter; he had not the KO punch but was speedy and clever. Montana scored just 13 knockouts in 83 professional wins.Early life
Benjamin Gan was born in Negros OccidentalNegros Occidental
Negros Occidental is a province of the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital is Bacolod City and it occupies the northwestern half of Negros Island; Negros Oriental is at the southeastern half...
, Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, on February 24, 1913, a son of the local chief of police. He was of Chinese descent.
Gan grew up with the passion for boxing and was inspired by the fights of the legendary Francisco Guilledo
Francisco Guilledo
Francisco Guilledo , more commonly known as Pancho Villa, was a Filipino boxer. Villa, who stood only 5 feet and 1 inch tall and never weighed more than 114 pounds , rose from obscurity to win the World Flyweight boxing championship in 1923, earning acclaim in some quarters as "the...
. He carried a photo of Guilledo in his wallet at all times. At a young age, Gan changed his name to Small Montana ("little mountain") and ran away from home to become a professional boxer in 1931.
Professional career
He won the American flyweight title by beating Midget WolgastMidget Wolgast
Joseph Robert Loscalzo also known as Midget Wolgast was a world flyweight boxing champion.-Professional career:...
twice in 1935. He also went abroad to defend his title, but lost to Benny Lynch
Benny Lynch
Benny Lynch was a Scottish professional boxer who fought in the flyweight division. He is considered by some to be one of the finest boxers below the lightweight division in his era and Ring Magazine has described him as the greatest fighter that Scotland has ever produced...
in a 15 round bout in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
on January 9, 1937.
He also tried to fight for a world championship but fell short in all his world title matches. During his career he fought Little Dado
Little Dado
Eleuterio Zapanta or Little Dado, , was a flyweight boxer from the Philippines, who became World bantamweight champion in 1940 and World flyweight champion in 1941.-Professional career:...
and Little Pancho (half-brother of Francisco Guilledo
Francisco Guilledo
Francisco Guilledo , more commonly known as Pancho Villa, was a Filipino boxer. Villa, who stood only 5 feet and 1 inch tall and never weighed more than 114 pounds , rose from obscurity to win the World Flyweight boxing championship in 1923, earning acclaim in some quarters as "the...
) but lost to both of them on points.
Although he never won a world title, he defeated Manuel Ortiz
Manuel Ortiz
Manuel Ortiz Partida is a professional wrestler who is currently wrestling the independent circuit in Mexico, particularly in the Tijuana area...
, Midget Wolgast, Tony Marino
Tony Marino
Tony Silipini is a former American born Italian professional wrestler who is best known as Tony Marino.-Early career:Tony Silipini was born in 1945. He started wrestling in the 1950s near his hometown of Rochester, NY. He wrestled under a number of names over the years in different areas of the...
, Joe Tei Ken, Speedy Dado
Speedy Dado
Diosdado Posadas , better known as Speedy Dado, was a Filipino boxer.Dado began his boxing career in 1926. He was undefeated until he met Newsboy Brown in 1928 for the California version of the world flyweight title. Brown defeated him by knockout in the sixth round...
, Tommy Forte, Augie Curtis, Pat Palmer, Frankie Jarr, Eugene "Tuffy" Pierpont and Antol "Tony" Kocsis.