Fred Apostoli vs. Young Corbett III (1st meeting)

Young Corbett III 160 lbs beat Fred Apostoli 159 lbs by PTS in round 10 of 10

• Date: 1938-02-22
• Location: Seals Stadium, San Francisco, California, USA
• Referee: Toby Irwin

On March 5th, the California State Athletic Commission recognized Corbett as World Middleweight Champion.

"San Francisco's biggest boxing upset in years today left Young Corbett III, Fresno's aging southpaw, a 10-round victor over Fred Apostoli, uncrowned middleweight king who was a 2 1/2 to 1 favorite to wallop Corbett. Corbett, his right eye closed and his mouth and nose battered, appeared near the end of his resistance in a punching 10th round. Referee Toby Irwin awarded him the decision. Apostoli, recent winner over Marcel Thil of France and middleweight champion Freddie Steele in a non-title bout, was virtually unscathed. Corbett, who at 33 has had 17 years of ring experience, presented a left-handed offense that Apostoli, 24, could not master." -Associated Press

• Unofficial AP scorecard - 5-2-3 Corbett

Post-fight comments

• "We wuz robbed! We gave Corbett the fight to help the old man earn a few dollars and this is what happens. How Irwin ever reached his decision is beyond me." -Larry White, Apostoli's manager

• "I was surprised at Freddie's lack of power." -Young Corbett III