Dee Lee at The New Alhambra 08-24-07

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photos by Mike McGuigan

They were fighting again on the corner of Swanson & Ritner at The New Alhambra but this time it was under the Dee Lee Promotions & Rich Clark's Prime Time Entertainment promotional banner. The mastermind behind this very entertaining seven fight card was Sonny Mistretta who as usual put together even matches where you get to see some upsets, knockouts and toe to toe battles. The main event featured two solid junior middleweight prospects as Philly's Derek "Pooh" Ennis went up against Pittsburgh's Alphonso "Soldja" Williams. Pooh flashed a lot of skill but Williams proved to be Steeler tough and this one ended in dramatic fashion. In the co-feature South Philly's Joe Christy and Clarence "Sonny Bono" Taylor of DE faced off for the third time in their career and this one picked up right where they left off last year by beating the crap out of each other for 6 rounds in a fight that has to be the front runner for fight of the year in 2007. Earlier in the day, Dhafir "No Fear" Smith had to bust his tail to make this official as his opponent Jonathan Reid's team were playing it by the book being sticklers on the contracted weight. No Fear took those frustrations with him to the ring and gave the former contender 6 rounds of hard work in a fight that surprisingly ended in a split decision. Simon "One Punch" Carr and Andre Hemphill got back together for an anticipated rematch. Hemphill's supporters were guarenteeing and knockout while Carr's camp said it was time for redemption. There were good moments from both fighters in this one and in the end it went to the score cards. West Chester Heavyweight Anthony Gatt returned to the ring after some time off and took on Raymere Palmer who came in at just under 200lbs. Gatt needed only :47 second to get the win and put him name on the radar of a couple other heavyweights in our town. Light Heavyweight Reuele Williams made some noise over the past year in Maryland and was now looking to step it up in the fight capitol of the world. His assignment on this night was the rugged Ray Ruiz from the Harrowgate Gym. This was a nice, rough fight and Williams showed he has some tools in his arsonal. In the opener, Philly's Moises Calderon and Stephon Alexander of Virginia let the sparks fly and had the crowd on their feet in the opener. Calderon wa getting the best of it early, then Alexander pulled off a stunner. Scroll down to get the play by play with videos and pictures. Be sure to leave a comment too!

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Junior Middleweight Divison

Derek "Pooh" Ennis..vs..Alphonso "Soldja" Williams
Philadelphia............Pittsburgh, PA
12-1, 9kos..............9-2, 8ko's

This was a very interesting match pitting two fighters with very good records and knockout power against each other. Derek Ennis is a fighter with goals of making it to the top and while not much was known of Alphonso Williams coming into this, it didn't take long to realize that he brought his hard hat and was ready for a tough days work.

In the opening round, Ennis circled, popped his jab and effectivly countered Williams, taking a punch and delivering two and three in return. Ennis picked his spots for most of the round but Williams did get some good punches of his own in at the end. It broke down into a fight early in the second with both fighters standing inside and exchanging rights and lefts. Williams looked to work inside but Ennis would counter with hard two and three punch combos upstairs. Williams stayed game but it started to look like he was outclassed in this one.

In the third, Ennis stopped circling and began to stalk Williams. Ennis would walk him down and fire away as Williams tried to fend him off with right hands. The fight went back to the center of the ring where Ennis rocked Williams with a left hook that knocked the Pittsburgh native back a step. Ennis stayed on the attack and looked to be going in for the kill, then ::bam:: the Soldja landed a huge counter left hook that put Ennis down hard. Ennis got to his feet around 9 but referee Shawn Clarke waved it off. Many in the crowd were left stunned as Williams ran around the ring screaming to the fans "I'm the shit!"

Winner: Alphonso Williams who raises his record to 10 - 2, 9ko's






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Junior Middleweights

Joe Christy..vs..Clarence Taylor
South Philly.....Wilmington, Delaware
7-11-3, 2ko's....12- 11-2, 6ko's

In the rubber match of a great series, Joe "Kid Viscious" Christy squeaked out a very hard fought, tooth and nail split decision over Clarence "Sonny Bono" Taylor in a wildly exciting fight. It was one of those fights that you could debate forever. Do you like the guy who lands the harder punches or do you prefer the guy who dictates the pace with his ring generalship and lands at a higher rate? Wait a minute, did I just put Joe Christy and ring generalship in the same sentence? Yes I did, and its a testament to his corner who had him well prepared for this fight. I love Bono as a fighter but I have to go with Kid Viscious in this one.

In the opening round, Christy who is known for some wild brawls actually kept the fight at a steady pace by working his jab and moving around on Bono who looked like he wanted to get busy really fast. Christy also mixed in some nice body shots when the action went along the ropes. Bono did manage to get in a hard, short left that snapped Christy's head back late in the round.

The second was more of the same with Christy fighting the smart fight, using the jab and ripping in some hard body punches while Bono would manage to land some hard single shots that split Christy's guard. The fight was going at a very good pace but you knew it was only a matter of time before these two went for juggular and that is just what happened in round three.

In the 3rd, Bono switched up to southpaw and began to really lay into Christy. He chased Kid Viscious around the ring and landed left after left for a full minute. Just when it looked like Christy was about to get knocked down, Christy went Jackson street on him by taking his best then grabbing Bono, throwing him into the corner and talking smack into his ear. It is not the most technical move in the book but it worked. Christy went back into Bono's chest and mixed in hard body shots with big uppercuts that had Bono reeling. Then, just when it looked like Bono was in deep trouble, he turned it back on and landed some powerful overhand rights to finish the round. The crowd was on their feet and everyone clapped in appreciation of the effort of both men.

Rounds 4 through 6 were more give and take trench battles that could have gone either way. Christy was much more active and landing to the body at a high rate but when Bono landed, he really landed and there was another spot in the 5th round where it looked like Christy was going to meet the canvas. Going into the 6th both men seemed to know the fight hung in the balance and they went to war standing toe to toe throwing the best they possibly could. When the final bell sounded, both fighters jumped on the ropes in celebration. When to scores were tallied, they were split reading 58 - 56 once for Bono but the other two judges over ruled by scoring it 58 - 56 for Joe Christy. Bono grabbed the mic and proclaimed highway robbery but did say he would honor a request to allow Christy to fight for his WBC title that was not on the line.

Winner: Joe "Kid Viscious" Christy who improves to 8 - 11 - 3, 2ko's






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Middleweight Divison

Dhafir Smith...vs...Jonathan Reid
Philadelphia........Nashville, TN
17 - 16, 4ko's......34 - 6, 19ko's

This was another interesting match pitting the WBF champ Dhafir "No Fear" Smith against Jonathan Reid of The Contender season 1. Reid's camp were looking to make him a big name in The City of Brotherly Love but many others were hoping to see one of our tough journeyman run him right out of town. If you think Dhafir Smith is just an easy opponent, you are making a big mistake especially when he is fighting around the 168 lb mark. There was some hype coming into the fight about the Contender coming to town but when it came time to get it done, there wen't many fireworks.

For most of this six round fight, Smith pick his spots and used his left hook the weapon of choice. Smith did this for the first five rounds with Reid not offering much back in return. Reid did pick up the pace in the sixth but it was too little too late. The fight went to the cards and they were split read 58 - 56 once for Reid but the other two judges who weren't senile saw it 58 - 56 for Smith.

Winner: Dhafir "No Fear" Smith who improves to 18 - 16, 4ko's




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Light Heavyweights

Simon Carr.........vs......Andre Hemphill
South Philadelphia.........Virginia
4-1, 3ko's.................6-6-1, 3ko's

This was a rematch of the 2006 fight where Andre "Da Heat" Hemphill came to Philly and gave Simon "One Punch" Carr hos lone career loss. Carr was looking to restore some of that lost luster while many others were saying Hemphill was going to put him out once and for all. Feeling he was robbed in the first fight, Carr entered the ring wiht a ski mask and a shirt saying Rob Me Now! Hemphill on the other hand seems to have become popular with the fight fans as he gained a rare applause for an outside fighter when his name was announced.

The first round was a rugged one with Carr coming out strong looking to make a statement throwing hard hooks to the body as Hemphill tried to tie him up and neutralize Carr's power in the early going. Carr kept at it and threw more hooks the the head and body. Hemphill was was able to get the fight in the center of the ring towards the end of the round and tried to work the jab but Carr sat in the pocket and intercepted a good number of them. Hemphill had a better time in the second round where he was able to use his height advantage and slip in those jabs as Carr continued to try to force his way on the inside. It startes to get rugged at the midway point where both fighters fire off hard punches to the inside, quite a few were borderline low on both ends. Whrn the bell rang both fighters were in each others ear before walking to the corner. Hemphill has a good third round, he stayed working off the jab as Carr continued trying to get on the inside. Hemphill caught Carr with a straight left that seemed to stagger him some. Carr was able to hang on and continued to fight on as Hemphill started to mix in more left hands. Cominginto the fourth it was a close fight. Carr changed it up some and instead of rushing inside, he boxed effectively and picked his spots. Hemphill was aggresive and looked to land some big punches but nothing landed flush. Carr circled, jabbed and tied up when neccesary. The final bell sounded and it went to the cards which read 39 - 37 in favor of Hemphill while the other two saw it 38 - 38 for the majority draw.




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Heavyweights

Anthony Gatt.........vs......Raymere Palmer
West Chester, PA............Virginia
4-0, 3ko's...................pro debut

Heavyweight Anthony Gatt returned to the ring after 3 years off and needed only :47 seconds to dispatch Raymere Palmer, dropping him twice, once with a short right then finishing him off with a left. Though Gatt has been out for a little while, other management teams had their scouting books out and hope to take on the West Chester native in the near future.

Winner: Anthony Gatt who improves to 5 - 0, 4ko's



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Light Heavyweights

Reuele Williams.........vs......Ray Ruiz
Wilmington, DE................Philadelphia
4-1, 2ko's....................6-5-3, 4ko's

The pre fight hype was saying that Ray "Superstar" Ruiz was lighting things up down at the Harrowgate Boxing Club but his opponent Reuele Williams team was also confident their guys abilities as they very close to fighting former amateur star Tiger Allen a few fights back though it fell apart at the last minute.

Reuele showed some very good skills in this fight and Ruiz showed he still had something left in the tank despite being 39 years old. Williams started off the fight working his jab and occasionally following it up with straight rights as Ruiz seemed to be a bit gun shy at first. Williams became more physical in the second round, bring the work to the inside at a good pace and finishing the round with a nice 3 punch combo that staggered Ruiz. This seemed to get Ruiz motivated because he came back in the third, finally moving forward and throwing punches. One of those right hands of Ruiz caused a cut over Williams right eye. Reuele was bleeding he wasn't discouraged as he rallied down the stretch to make a close round out of it. The 4th round went at a steady pace with Williams going back to the jab, straight rights and using more movement as Ruiz looked to get inside and bang with his bigger foe. Overall, Williams showed he could be a good challange for other light heavys in the area and Ruiz did show heart andthat he can take a good punch. The fight went to the cards and they read 40 - 36 x2 and 39 - 37 for Reuele Williams.

Winner: Reuele Williams who improves to 5 - 1, 2ko's

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Featherweights

Moises Calderon.........vs......Stephon Alexander
North Philadelphia...............Virginia
pro debut........................pro debut

This was a very exciting way to start the show though it got a little scary at the end. Both men were making their pro debuts after succesful runs as amateurs and these guys went right at it from the beginning. The leather was flying and it looked like Calderon was on his way to a first round knockout when he blasted Alexander with a short left followed up with a straight right that has Alexander staggering and litterally holding on to Calderon to avoid going down. He was saved by the bell. In the second Calderon went back on the attack and the fighters let it fly again. After a short lull in the action, the slugfest went against the ropes and Alexander landed a flush straight left which put Calderon down to the mat. The force of his head hitting the canvas kept Calderon down for a few minutes but like a true Phily Rumbler, he was able to walk off under his own power and his team assured everyone that he is alright.

Winner: Stephon Alexander who improves to 1-0, 1ko

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