Fred Apostoli by Rob Snell


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Name: Fred Apostoli

Career Record: click

Alias: Boxing Bell Hop

Birth Name: Alfredo Apostoli

Nationality: US American

Birthplace: San Francisco, CA

Hometown: San Francisco, California, USA

Born: 1913-02-02

Died: 1973-11-29

Age at Death: 60

Stance: Orthodox

Height: 5′ 9½″

Reach: 178

Manager: Dolph Thomas

Trainer: Whitey Bimstein

Montana Standard 4 December 1938

When a mere $21,601 in gate money trickled in New York’s Madison Square Garden for the Apostoli-Young Corbett fight it must have severely shocked the local boxing commission. The commissioners, after long and weighty consideration, had announced that the fight was for the championship of the world. And they weren't taken seriously. The fight fans

listened, and decided it was just for the championship of 155 Worth street, New York city, the commission office.

In fact, the commission boost was only a knock. Just advertised as a grudge scrap between a couple of pretty good fighters, which would have been fair enough, It would have drawn more money. Apostoli-Corbett, non-title, drew $24,717 in San Francisco last February.

People don't fall for synthetic champions. This "title" bout drew for instance, less than five per cent of the gate drawn in New York fifteen years ago by a lightweight champion and contender. Benny Leonard and Lou Tendler. That gate was $452,648. Benny was no

commission-made champion. He made himself champion by knocking out Freddy Welsh and kept the title by licking the best men as they turned up.

Apostoli Best In His Class.

Apostoli is a pretty good middleweight. He has licked a lot of them, including Krieger, who recently beat Hostak, and he stopped Marcel Thil, European middleweight champion and a tough egg in the ring at that, in ten rounds a little over a year ago. He's only twenty five, the best fighting age for a middleweight.

Apostoli beat young Corbett up pretty badly in their last February fight, but Corbett took the fight away from him with a furious rally in the last two rounds. After that fight the local commission announced that Corbett was world's middleweight champion in California.

Perhaps that was just a kindly thought a bit of a compliment to the 33-year-old veteran of eighteen years In the ring, who had made great come back but he couldn’t be expected to go much farther.

One of Apostoli's best jobs was stopping Steele, American middleweight champion and claimant of the world title. This was unexpected and it was supposed that Steele must have been slipping back, as he had not shown his best form in one or two other fights. Steele told the writer that his defeat was caused by a damaging low punch that left him in such pain that he was practically defenceless. It's possible. Apostoli has hit low with wild punches in several fights — did it several times in fact in this last one with Corbett. No title was at stake, as it was an overweight bout and titles are won only at weight!

The Steele-Hostak fight was at weight. Steele said he was fit and expected to start a come-back by knocking out the Seattle Slovak. He was knocked out himself in the first round. Next day he announced his permanent retirement, which suggests that he felt he was through, and to go on would be only to take more beatings. In that case he was through before the Hostak fight, in which he was knocked out but not beaten up enough to finish his career. Good shape or bad, he lost his championship.

It's very likely that Apostoli is the best middleweight in the business right now, but he isn't champion outside of New York state, or generally recognized by fight followers in New York. He will be champion if he beats Krieger, and there's no doubt of his ability to turn that trick. Krieger isn't improved since Apostoli stopped him before. He's American champion because he decisioned Hostak, and luck played a big part in that when Hostak smashed his left hand on Krieger's head in the fourth round.

Titles Won Only In Ring

Championships always have been won in the ring, on referee decisions. There is a referee's decision even in case of a knockout, when the referee decides whether the kayo is legitimate or not. At times, when the line of champions has run out for some reason or other a new champion is recognized through beating all recognized contenders.

Years ago Kid Lavigne proved he as the best lightweight in America and went to England to fight Dick Burge, the English champion. The match was made for the National Sporting club of London. When Weighing in time came Burge refused to weigh, and was evidently far over the stipulated 133 pounds, Peggy Bettinson, club manager and matchmaker, told Lavigne he needn't fight, and the club would turn over Burge's weight forfeit. Lavigne, who weighed in at about 130 pounds, refused the forfeit. "I'll fight him if he weighs a ton," he told Bettinson. He knocked Burge it in the seventeenth round of a desperate fight.

Coming home World's champion the Kid beat everybody at or near his weight until he fought Welter Champion mysterious Billy Smith, when he was stopped In 14 rounds, his brother jumping into the ring to save him from a knockout when he stood helpless with hands down. As Smith was above the lightweight limit this didn't affect Lavigne's championship title, which he afterward lost on a 20-round decision to Frank Erne at Buffalo.

The great Terry McGovern knocked Erne out in three rounds when Terry was Featherweight champion. But as under the terms of the match Erne had to meet McGovern at 126 pounds his lightweight title was not at stake, and he didn't lose it.

Ketchel's Fists Cleared Title.

Mike Gibbons was one of the greatest middleweights of his day, a wonderful boxer with a deadly knockout punch. He knocked out a lot of middleweights and claimed the title, but was not generally recognized as champion. Maybe he was better than Eddie McGoorty and Jimmy Clabby but they held him fairly even in no -decision bouts (decisions not being allowed in many slates) and his claim wasn't clear.

Great Stanley Ketchel knocked out several title claimants after Middleweight Champion Tommy Ryan retired and was recognized after knocking out Jack Twin Sullivan, last rival in or near his class. It was always at 158 pounds ringside, then the recognized limit.

A famous weight instance was in the first Terry McGovern –Young Corbett fight in 1901. This was the Denver Young Corbett. The featherweight limit was 122 pounds, but the match was made at 126 as Corbett was heavier. Corbett knocked Terry out in two rounds, but the title was riot at stake and did not change hands.

Boxing commissions make a lot of changes, but the old weight limit for championship bouts still holds, if it didn't there'd be no real champions except in the heavyweight class.

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