Armstrong vs Ceferino Garcia MW "Title" Fight Recognized as for MW World Title only in California. Armstrong was Welterweight Champion at the time. (Garcia lost his NYSAC MW Title 2 months later: 1940-05-23 : Ken Overlin 159 lbs beat Ceferino Garcia 154½ lbs by UD in round 15 of 15 NYSAC World Middleweight Title). 1940-03-01 : Henry Armstrong 142 lbs drew with Ceferino Garcia 153½ lbs by PTS in round 10 of 10 Location: Gilmore Stadium, Los Angeles, California, USA Referee: George Blake The fight was recognized as a World Middleweight Title fight only by the California State Athletic Commission. Garcia was also recognized as World Middleweight Champion by the New York State Athletic Commission, but the NYSAC version of the title wasn't on the line because the fight was scheduled for ten rounds, instead of fifteen. Most ringsiders felt that Armstrong had clearly won. According to Boxing: The 20th Century, Armstrong was offered $75,000 to fall in round four. The referee was the sole judge. This was George Blake's last assignment as a referee, according to his obituary in the New York Times on Dec. 21, 1952.
