After the match, Robert was presented a new championship belt by Princess Baba, daughter of the White Rajah of Sarawak (Malaysia), who was something of a celebrity at the time (she was married to wrestler Bob Gregory, who was the special referee for the match).
In his first defence of the belt -- against Christie on March 3 (see ad above) -- Robert was said to have suffered a broken collarbone in the first fall and was unable to continue. That made Christie the world champion ... in Toronto.
Corcoran did a good job of giving the belt some credibility by giving Christie victories over former world champions Dan O'Mahony (twice) and Ed Don George.Christie lost the belt to the Masked Marvel on June 9, and Marvel continued to show that the title was no joke with wins over ex-world champs Robert, George, and O'Mahony. In Montreal, Robert reportedly defeated Marvel on September 14, but that was never acknowledged in Toronto.
Marvel dropped the title to Mayes McLain on September 29 and was unmasked as Ted Cox. Cox would come back to regain the belt on November 10, but Corcoran's enthusiasm for his world title seems to have faded significantly by this point.
A defence of the title in December wasn't even billed as the main event. That slot went to a match between Robert and O'Mahony.
Cox's last defense was a draw against Steve Crusher Casey on December 15. At the time, Casey was recognized as world champion in Boston.
After that, Cox left the area for several months and the title wasn't mentioned. When he returned in May, he was called a world title claimant, but was never again recognized as champion.
TORONTO: WORLD TITLE1938/02 Yvon RobertBilled as champion on arrival1938/03/03 Vic ChristieAwarded title when Robert cannot continue after breaking his collarbone in the first fall1938/06/09 Masked Marvel (Ted Cox)1938/09/29 Mayes McLain1938/11/10 King Kong Cox [2]1939/01 ABANDONEDCox is billed as world title claimant, 39/05
-by Gary Will  |