Ambers, Lou vs. Montanez, Pedro II World Lightweight Championship Ross, Barney vs. Garcia, Ceferino III World Welterweight Championship Thil, Marcel (final) vs. Apostoli, Fred IBU Middleweight Championship Escobar, Sixto vs. Jeffra, Harry III World Bantamweight Championship Chappie, Young vs. Gonzales, Augustine II Jacobs, Mike (promoter) Working Press Pass
Promoter Michael Jacobs assembled one of the finer evening's entertainments in the "1937 Carnival of Champions," mustering 4 world title matches on the same card in an era of only 8 weight divisions, every one a calamitious contest and a headliner in its own right. Topping the actual bill in a rematch of a 10-rounder in April, the current world lightweight titlist Lou Ambers, the "Herkimer Hurricane," faced off with his Puerto Rican rival Pedro Montanez for 15 rounds and was declared the winner by a mixed decision, while the Chicago-native Ross retained the welterweight championship by a display of prowess called "masterful" by the New York Times in a unanimous decision over the agile Filippino in their 3rd meeting, despite breaking his hand during the match. In the last bout of his professional career, the Frenchman Thil lost the IBU middleweight contest to San Francisco's "Boxing Bell Hop" Fred Apostoli by a technical when the fight was stopped in the 10th round of a scheduled 15 because of an injury above Thil's eye. With 2 wins over the Puerto Rican champion late in the previous year, the Baltimore-born challenger Harry Jeffra easily handled Sixto Escobar in the bantamweight bout and was crowned by unanimous decision at the end of 15 rounds that a report of the day described as "one-sided." In the only non-title bout of the day, the lightweight from Albany, Young Chappie and Augustine Gonzales, also from Puerto Rico, met for the 2nd time and battled for 4 rounds to a draw. |