May 10, 1870: James Mace, a 39-year-old prizefighter from Beeston, Norfolk, England, known as "Jem" and (with no ethnic basis) "The Gypsy," returns to competitive boxing and fights Tom Allen, nominally for the English Heavyweight Championship at Kennerville, Louisiana. He had previously held the English Middleweight and Welterweight titles.
Why Kennerville? Because it was near New Orleans, then considered the center of American boxing, but also a place where professional boxing (as opposed to amateur) is illegal, so a secret location must be chosen, and kept secret, but, for the sake of fans, not that secret.
Mace wins with a 10th round knockout which confirms that he is still the best English fighter. Since this happened on American soil, claims are made on behalf of Mace that he is also the holder of the American Championship and this fight was the 1st true bout for the Heavyweight Championship of the World.
Given that he has not yet fought either Jimmy Elliott or Mike McCoole, the top 2 American contenders, and the strong anti-British sentiment within the American boxing community of the time, mostly men of Irish descent, these claims are still debated.
Like so many boxers after him, Jem Mace threw his money away on frivolous pursuits and fast women, and struggled in retirement. He lived until 1910, long enough to see the Heavyweight Championship of the World properly established and sanctioned, and to be held by a black American, Jack Johnson.
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May 10, 1870 was a Tuesday. There is no record of any other professional sporting event being held on this day. I looked up the first openly professional baseball team, the Cincinnati Red Stockings: They played games on the 7th and the 12th of May 1870, but not the 10th.
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