Imperial Valley press. (El Centro, Calif.) 1907-current, 1927-01-22
LA BARBA EASILY
BEATS CLARKE IN
new YORK RING
Californian Has Little
Trouble in Defending
Fyweight Crown.
BY HENRY L. FARRELL
Omitted Press Staff Correspondent


MADISON SQUARE GARDEN,
New York, Jan. 22.-Known affec-
| tionately to the army of American
athletes which invaded tie Paris
Olympic games in 1924 as "that
Little Fiddle, the swarthy 21-year
old Californian, Fidcl La Barba is
row $4,000 nearer that dear old
flee of his dreams.
For the first time in his lIoratio
Algcr career, Little Fiddle hit IA
champion s money and a real title
in Tex Rickard s garden last night
when he beat Elky Clarke, "A little
granite headed Englishman, in a
II round bout and became the UNI
disputed flyweight champion of the
world.
When Richard first tried to make
the match, Clarke claimed he was
the world s champion and entitled
to the jor percentage of the re
ccipts that the New York law al
lows champion. La Barba was
hacked by the New York commits
sion and other American governing
bodies as the world s champion and
last night s match decided it.
It wasn't a great fight and 10
go spectators who paid $59,3S1 to
bout of the year expressed them
selves to that effect.
After the fifth round Patsy Hal
Icy, gray-thatchcd veteran or years
ago, remarked to those in the press
pit, whom he considered Youngsters:
{" lIa, IIa. You say the old timers
were not as good as thesc2 Terry
McGovcrn could lick both of them
in the same ring with one hand.
Give me three weeks training and
III come back
But there was no doubt that La
Barba WAS the winner He floored
Clarke five times for a count as
long as the law allows and in the
third round Clarke, after being
down for counts Of nine and eight,
| was so helpless on the floor when
the gong sounded at eight that the
, referee had to drag him to his cor
, ner.
The crowd thought the fight had
been stopped and started to leave
the arena with disturbing protests.
Champion to Retire
! 1t looked like a fight that xvould
! be over soon but La Barba slowed
! up in the late rounds and he cx-
| planned later that he had hurt his
| right hand in the eighth round when
! he floorcd Clarke for a count of
nine and didn't want to take any
| chances.
La Barba said after the fight in
his dressing room:
"Thc result of tonight's fight
makes me most happy, but it does
! not change my decision to retire
! permanently from the ring in Sep
tcmbcr, when | am to crtcr Stan
: ford University to take a course in
economies that l hope will equip
me to enter the brokerage bust
ness.
The sawed off edition of the in
! tcllectual Tunncy added that he
was going to accept two or three
F! fights before September and that III
the meantime he hoped to get
, enough money TO make him indie
pendent for the remainder of his
| days.
In the manner of Tunncv. he said
that boxing never. had appealed to
him as a business and tnat It Just
happened to be the means for his
end
Charles Harvey, who has been I'M
porting British fighters for years,
was iubilaut in that Clarke had
shown that he can 20 the limit.
"Charlcy, ono of his friends
said, "Nour fellow knows how TO
do most everything but duck. -
My fellow he explained, is
: % round fighter Won know all
! thc championship fights in England
are 20 rounds-and was just begin
Ling to 80 good when the fight end
| Cd.
Harvey said that Clarke was go
| ing to stay here and look for some
worr business.
Clarke had nothing to say and if
! the facts were known he couldn t
f, say anything because his Jaws were
| so sore.