Plot
After being released from prison in Winfield, Georgia, con man Gabriel Caine gets to work on his next scam. Caine and his partner, Daniel Patrick O'Shannon "Fitz" Fitzpatrick, travel to a small town near the prison: Diggstown, a city obsessed with boxing.
Someone named John Gillon owns almost all of Diggstown. He is the former manager of Diggstown's once-famous boxer Charles Macom Diggs, the man for whom the town is named.
Upon hearing that Diggs once knocked out five fighters in one day, Fitz says he knows of a fighter who could knock out any ten in one day: Honey Roy Palmer. Gillon bets $100,000 that no one can best ten Diggstown boxers in one day. Caine volunteers to finance Fitz's bet, and the con is on.
Caine seeks out Palmer, a 48-year-old YMCA supervisor. Palmer reluctantly agrees to participate and starts to train for the fight. Caine and Gillon agree to various conditions of the bet, with "one day" being 24 full hours and "Diggstown fighters" being able to come from any surrounding area of Olivair County. A loan shark backs Caine's bet.
As his manager, Gillon drugged Diggs during a fight with amyl nitrate so that Gillon could collect on the opponent's long odds. Diggs suffered irreversible brain damage as a result. Aided by Emily Forrester, sister of Caine's ex-cellmate Edward "Wolf" Forrester, Gillon has more than $1.5 million in assets. Caine tricks him into risking all of it. Now it is up to Palmer to defeat all 10 of Diggstown's men.
They begin with:
- Buck Holland, whom Palmer beats.
- Slim Busby, who was bribed by Caine to take a dive.
- Billy Hargrove, who is beat.
- Sam Lester, who is secretly given a laxative before the fight and eventually runs from the ring.
- Hambone Busby, who, like his brother Slim, was bribed to take a dive. Gillon, however, threatens to kill Slim, unless Hambone wins. Hambone fights, but is defeated. Slim is later found murdered.
Palmer's next fight is with Sonny Hawkins, who is dispatched. Robby Gillon, the son of John, approaches the ring next, but then backs out under instructions from his father. His cowardice is regarded as a forfeit. Frank Mangrum loses to disqualification after kicking Palmer in the groin and hitting the referee. Palmer then knocks him out. Tank Miller, another fighter, is next. Palmer beats him.
That brings up Diggstown's best man, Hammerhead Hagan, the only fighter ever to actually beat Palmer during their professional careers. He is brought in as a surprise ringer. Gillon moved him in as a county resident before the bet rules were established, meaning that Hagan can legally fight.
The bout is one-sided. Palmer is exhausted, but gets new motivation after seeing Diggs, who is sitting ringside, move his hand slightly (which he interprets as a show of support). Caine, not wanting to see his friend die, attempts to throw in the towel, but Palmer catches it and throws it back. Palmer rallies to knock out his opponent.
Palmer, Caine and Fitz begin to celebrate. They are cut short by Gillon, who notes that Robby never entered the ring -– therefore, only nine fights transpired. The true tenth fighter is then introduced: Minoso Torres, who ruled the boxing underground in the prison from which Caine was released. No one ever defeated him.
Palmer is no match for Torres. However, Caine eventually whistles at Torres, gets his attention, straightens his tie and does a thumbs-down gesture. Torres drops his gloves and invites Palmer to hit him, hitting the canvas, knocked out. Caine was expecting such a trick from Gillon and bribed Torres long before for a moment like this.
Gillon loses everything. He eventually snaps and pulls a gun. Palmer grabs Gillon and prepares to deck him. Instead, he turns to Hambone, claiming, "My hands hurt. You want to do this?" Hambone obliges and delivers Gillon a knockout blow.
After the fight, Caine and Palmer sit together in the empty gym. Caine tells Palmer what he did couldn't be done. Palmer responds by saying "now you motivate me."
