The Waterbury Democrat., 1940-02-03
GIVEN
WORST BEATING
OF RING CAREER
Manager Retracts State
rnent That Fighter Quit
to Bettina
BY JACK CUDDY

UNITED Press Staff Correspondent
New York, Feb. 3-(UP)-Mys-
terry enveloped- the light heavy
weight division today after Melio
ettBina's amazing victory last night
over Fred Apostoh at Madison
Square Gardens victory that put
Apostoli to polytechnic hospital.
Bettina Of Beacon, N. Y, former
light heavy king, turned the tables
with q vengeance on Aposton OF
San Francisco, x-middleweight
champ, and won on q technical
knockout at the end Of the 18th
round.
This defeat was SO unexpected In
the Apostoli camp that Manager
Larry White shouted at ringside re-
porters, "I'm retiring ApostoH now.
He quit in the ring, He'll never
fight again."
Later Manager White explained,
"I'm sure never said that Fred
quit in the ring. If I did It was
double talk caused by excitement.
What I meant to say was that Fred,
quit the ring. He never quit any
where. He's got a heart of gold"
And White added, what hap
pened to Fred? ! never saw any
thing like 1t In my life"
White referred to the unexpected
debacle before 1850 fans at the
Garden as Apostoli suffered such
beating on his Goth birthday that
Referee Arthur Donovan barred him
from coming out Of his corner at
the end of the 18th round. This
was unnecessary really, because
Manager White and Trainer Whitley
Bimstein already. had given the
semaphore signals that the bout
was ended.
Most of the Garden fans were as
surprised as White and Bimstein.
They had seen Apostolic win a queS-
tionable 12-round decision over Bet
tina on Jan. S. They had seen the
Frisco Kid come on in the later
rounds when Bettina was fading.
And In lasct nights tilt-slated for
IS rounds-most Of them figured
that the longer distance was to
Apostoli's advantage. They even
shouted after the eighth, NOW
Freddie,s coming on"
But they were wasting their
breath. The eighth was the only
round ApostoN won, according to
United Press scoring. And after
that rally he faded to become
helpless, battered hulk.
Although there were no knock
downs in the bout, Apostolic suffered
the worst beating of his career. In
the early going it was an excelleAt
fight, with Southpaw Bettina's ra-
pid-fire right jab and smashing left
hook always beating Fred to the
punch. Both suffered gashes over
their left eyes In the furious third
round. And in the fifth Bettina
staggered Fred with a left hook to
the chin and belted him groggy in
Apostoli's own corner. Fortunately
the bell rang.
The bell rang again in the 10th
when left hooks to the chin and
belly had Apostoli Keeling about the
ring on rubber legs. That actually
was the beginning of the end-an
end that saw the Frisco italian
take terrible battering in the
18th and 18th. ApoStoli was bleed
ing from the left brow, from the
nose and mouth. His right eye was
swollen almost shut.
This victory won for Bettina an
other shot at the light heavy crown
which he lost to Champion Billy
Conn last July. Mauling Melio will
challenge at New York or Detroit
the winner Of the Conn Gus Lel4Ae-
vich title fight at Miami on Wab.
%.
Physicians at Polytechnic hospital
announced that ApoStoli had no
head injuries and that he seemed
to be suffering from complete ply
steal exhaustion. They admitted
that his his temperature of 1903
showed q fever caused either by a
heavy cold orultra-activity.