Jane Russell vs. Esther Williams (1950) by goldenerafan

Most in Hollywood considered them the two toughest celebrity fighters in 1950. They’d fought four times before this, each winning twice. Although Esther had lost boxing matches to other stars, Jane was the only celebrity who outwrestled her.

Jane entered the ring in a low-cut red bathing suit that nicely displayed the full cleavage of her 38 1/2-25-37 figure. Esther came in with a two-piece white suit that showed some breast and the strong adominals associated with her 37-26-35 figure.

The match opened with a test of strength as they went hand to hand until Jane's strong arms forced Esther’s to bend. But Esther's strong thighs meant Jane wasn’t moving her!

Jane finally pushed Esther back and grabbed her in a full nelson which Esther dropped out of and caught Russell in a full nelson of her own! Esther really pulled on Jane’s shoulders, her arched back emphasing the size of the Russell chest. Jane uses her upper arm and shoulder strength to break the hold but Esther immediately attacked from behind and took Jane to the mat where she put Jane in a surfboard.

Jane was able to roll over and escape but Esther, ever the agressor, caught Jane’s leg and put the brunette in a painful leglock and toe hold. The swimming star pressed her whole weight on Jane’s calves using the power of her own muscular thighs. Jane was able to finally grab a handful of Esther's hair and throw her off.

Jane pulled Esther to her feet and dug a couple of punches into the swim star's stomach, then picked the MGM star up on her shoulders and spun her around, slamming Esther to the mat. Jane reached down to grab Esther again, but was met with a violent kick by both her legs that knocked the ‘Outlaw’ star to the floor.

Esther quickly jumped on Jane and maneuvered her into a figure four head scissors as she again demonstrated the tremendous strength in her thighs as she really squeezed Jane’s head and then neck, choking Jane who tried to muscle her way out of the hold by bridging up and lifting up with her strong arms trying to force Esther’s legs from her head. After two minutes in the hold, Jane finally was able to untangle Esther’s legs and escape, but she was panting heavily.

Again Esther attacked but Jane met her with another hard punch to the stomach, then smacked Esther in the face; wrapped her arms around Esther and tortured her with a face to face bearhug! She continued to squeeze, giving the swim star great pain. Esther couldn’t break free until she head-butted Jane!

Jane staggered backward, then attacked the swim star again, but this time Esther side-stepped and grabbed Jane’s neck from the rear as she put one arm in a hammerlock and forced Jane to the mat. She switched to a full nelson and really poured on the pressure until Jane was finally able to kick her off.

Two tired Amazons returned to their feet in what had been a fairly even match with Esther was getting slightly the better of it. As they approached each other again, Esther caught Jane with a leg sweep that dropped her to the mats. Esther dove and again attacked Jane’s right leg with a Stepover Toehold. She really put pressure on the hold, clearly hurting the brunette.

Jane was able to kick Esther in the shoulder with her free leg, breaking the hold. But Jane had a bad limp when she got back to her feet. She tried to attack Esther with her fists but Esther ducked and kicked at Jane’s injured leg. She was able to use three arm smashes to crumple the brunette to the mat once more. Then used a series of leg drops to Jane’s throat and injured leg to further weaken her.

Jane finally tripped Esther, grappled her way around behind her and applied a reverse bearhug. Esther was in trouble but trying to figure out an escape from Jane’s still strong arms. She was finally able to kick at Jane’s injured leg, forcing her to release her.

When theys returned to their feet, Esther moved towards Jane, left her feet and slammed a solid drop-kick on her heaving breasts. Jane flew backward to the mat where the swim Queen got behind her and clamped on a sleeper hold. Esther got it locked on tight and although Jane struggled mightily, she went limp in a little over a minute!

Esther had her victory over a tough foe in a twenty-one minute battle! In an interview afterward, Esther Williams was asked about her new-found wrestling skills such as the sleeper hold. She said, “I practiced with Mildred Burke (the professional women’s champ).” Then added, “And I have a couple more new holds I’m saving for my up-coming match with Marie Windsor.” 1