Ceferino Garcia Stops Glen Lee in 13, Successfully Defends Title in Manila
By Teodoro Medina Reynoso
PhilBoxing.com
Sat, 19 Dec 2020
Ceferino Garcia on Ring Magazine cover.
Eumir Felix Marcial recently making a successful pro debut while remaining essentially a qualified Olympian in an event followed to a certain extent here and abroad evoked memories of the last notable Filipino middleweight fighter who was also the first and only to win a world title in the division---Cipriano AKA Ceferino Montano Garcia.
In December 1939 as the war instigated by Nazi Germany started in Europe even threatening to spread to Asia and the Pacific, Ceferino Garcia gave his Filipino countrymen something to cheer about two days before Christmas day when he successfully defended his world middleweight title via 13th round technical knockout over American challenger Glen Lee in Manila.
The fight with former heavyweight champion Jack Dempsey as referee was staged in a makeshift arena in the middle of the open air Rizal Memorial Stadium in Ermita.
It was reportedly witnessed by an overflowing 40,000 predominantly Filipino fans who lustily cheered Garcia, their beloved Bolo Puncher born and raised in Naval, Biliran whom they last saw back in 1931 yet.
Garcia was making the first defense of the world middleweight crown as recognised by the then powerful New York State Athletic Commission which he won by knockout over American Fred Apostoli the previous October. Slav blooded Al Hostak held the "more official" world title as recognized by the National Boxing Association, later known as the WBA. We will have some discussion about this controversy later in this story.
It was the third meeting between Garcia and Lee who had split two earlier closely fought bouts the previous two years.
As expected, the fight was closely and fiercely contested from the opening round as the two combatants locked horns like familiar nemeses as they were.
A light drizzle did not dampen the spirits of the throngs which went to see their world famous compatriot for the first time since eight years before when Garcia first left the native shores to pursue his world title dreams in the US.
Of course, they have heard about his gallant but failed earlier attempts against Barney Ross and later the great Henry Armstrong for the lighter world welterweight title. But to them he was world middleweight champion now and making his maiden defense back home, and that's all that mattered.
But the light rain made the canvas flooring slippery and the two fighters struggled at times as much as keeping their balance as outfighting each other.
Garcia proved his superiority from the start of the championship rounds and he in the 13th round had Lee in deep trouble with his famed bolo punching.
Referee Dempsey stopped the bout a few seconds before the round was due to end, as Lee rose groggily from his second knockdown of the round. Lee had been down for eight and then nine.
The fight was erroneously reported by the Syracuse New York Journal as the first world title bout ever held in the Philippine Islands. The very first was between fellow Filipinos Pancho Villa and Clever Sencio with Villa, Francisco Guilledo in real life, defending his world flyweight championship on points in 1923.
Jack Dempsey Referees Ceferino Garcia KO Glen Lee on December 23, 1939 for Middleweight Crown at Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, Manila. Jack Dempsey stopped the bout a few seconds before the round was due to end, as Lee rose groggily from his second knockdown of the round. Lee had been down for eight and then nine. A light drizzle fell throughout the fight and made the canvas flooring slippery. - boxinghalloffame.com.
Garcia would go on to defend his world title two more times, including against former tormentor Armstrong whom he held to a fighting draw. He lost the middleweight crown to American Ken Overlin on points by the middle of 1940.
Some boxing experts tended to underrate Garcia for merely winning the NYSAC version of the world middleweight title claiming that Al Hostak was the true world crown holder.
But Garcia fought a succession of future first ballot Hall of Famers in Apostoli and Armstrong and even a fighter later admitted to have been previously denied of an automatic enshrinement in Overlin.
The six foot Hostak had the more impressive record, being a knockout artist in the mold of a future Gennadiy Golovkin, holding KOs over Freddie Steele, among the few fighters to have stopped Garcia, and Solly Kreiger in winning and regaining the NBA world title. But he also lost his biggest fights to Tony Zale and Overlin.
The issue of who was the real world middleweight champion started when the original Toy Bulldog Mickey Walker vacated the crown in 1932 and a mad scramble ensued.
Fred Apostoli became the "absolute" world champion of the NYSCA when he defeated in succession title claimants Lou Boulliard, Solly Kreiger, Marcel Thil, Young Corbett lll and Freddie Steele. The revenge stoppage victory over Steele despite in a non title fight clinched it for Apostoli as Steele was then slated to fight for the NBA championship. Steele lost also by knockout to Hostak in that fight.
The balance of power in favor of Apostoli in the division therefore was existing at the time Garcia knocked him out to wrest the world middleweight crown in October 1939.
The great Henry Armstrong was convinced Garcia was the real world champion that he challenged him. Ken Overlin likewise went for him instead of Hostak.
Garcia was already inducted in the Ring and the World Boxing Halls of Fame but yet to be in the more prestigious but younger International Boxing Hall of Fame owing to the question.
Hostak was inducted in a Washington County Sports Hall of Fame in 1965.
You be the judge.
The author Teodoro Medina Reynoso is a veteran boxing radio talk show host living in the Philippines. He can be reached at teddyreynoso@yahoo.com and by phone 09215309477.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Teodoro Medina Reynoso.
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