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CHAMBERS WINS NARROW LANDSLIDE Philly's Steve Upsher Chambers won his main event against Doel Carrasquillo at the Blue Horizon Friday night by a very comfortable margin. The scorecards all said that the 8-round bout was his - going away. A landslide even. 80-72, 80-72 & 78-74. The official cards said that the best Carrasquillo had done was win two rounds. But Doel, of Lancaster, PA, is a guy that makes things difficult. He gets under your skin and works on your confidence. Land your best shot, and he doesn't seem impressed. He'll even look amused by it. It's a hustle, but he sells it really well. Crack him with a hard right hand to the head - the best one you've got - and you'll come away doubting your punching power. Dance away from him, only to find your back against the ropes. He's not hurting you. He's not beating you. But still, things aren't going that great. That was the evening Steve Upsher Chambers had Friday night. But he kept throwing punches, and he kept banking rounds. Some rounds felt close, but it was difficult not to give them to Chambers. And by end, Steve had himself a one-sided points win. But it was a narrow landslide.
Chambers closed the show with a crisp and solid combo near the end of round eight. At the final bell, there was no doubt that would get the win. The judges delivered the correct scores, ignoring Doel's hustle and awarding Steve the workmanlike victory. It improved his record to 21-1-1 (6 KO). Doel fell below the .500 mark, 12-13-1 (10 KO). Loren Myers D8(m) Gee Cullmer
In round four, Cullmer started to show signs of wear and tear. Marks began to show around his left eye, and he appeared winded. The fourth was another round won by Meyers. He continued to roll as the fight wore on. The fight Meyers brought to Gee was working - keep moving forward, pressure him to the ropes, and let the punches fly.
Tim Johnson W4(u) Jonathan Felton -
4-round heavyweight bout
Darrell Jones W4(u) Antonio Fernandez
- 4-round junior middleweight bout John Bolden TKO1 Nathan Perrott -
4-round heavyweight bout
Vinnie Intrieri EXHB3 Joe Joe Intrieri
- 3-round youth exhibition One more Philly fight is left on the calendar for 2009 - a Power Productions show scheduled for next Friday (12/11/09) at the South Philly Arena. But I've heard rumblings that it may fall through. We'll see. I could stand one more show this year - especially when Victor Vasquez, Jameel Wilson and Anthoiny Ferrante are on the card. |
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The
key to the fight was Chambers' ability to keep calm and
focused. Early on, especially in round three, he had to
withstand some heavy artillery along the ropes. But Chambers
fought back well. And when he wasn't under the gun, he kept
a steady jab pumping to Carrasquillo's body. It gave him the
space he needed, and it chipped away at his foe's stamina.
There was one wild trade in round seven. Both fighters
launched their shots ad both found their mark. At one point
Chambers landed a right that jarred Carrasquillo. Doel
lunged forward to clinch and wound up tackling Steve. They
both landed on the canvas. Referee Hurley McCall ruled it a
slip. 
The
co-feature was a grinding and gritty affair. It pitted local
16-1 middleweight Gee Cullmer (recent winner of the Briscoe
Award for 2008's Fight of the Year) against the visiting 7-7
Loren Myers, a Philly-first-timer from Frenso, California.
His even record against run of the mill competition and the
fact that he'd lost four of his last five made him look like
an easy target for Cullmer, who was unbeaten since 2003. Add
to it that the Blue Horizon is Gee's home - all but three of
his fights have gone done there - and this looked like an
easy match made for a house the fighter. But this was not
the case. Meyers came to fight and had upset on his mind. 
Gee
took the first round. He looked bigger and stronger and
faster than his opponent. He cracked him late in the session
with a good right and it seemed that the pattern was set.
But starting in round two, Meyers went to work and did
everything he possibly could to control the fight. His key
tactic was that he kept the fight on the ropes. Over and
over, Meyers pressured Gee to the perimeter and fired away.
Meyers took rounds two and three by controlling the action
and landing a lot. Cullmer smacked Meyers with a few clean
shots, but he couldn't match the output of the Californian. 
In
the second half of the bout, nothing changed. Meyers kept
pressing and Cullmer kept trying to make something happen.
But he could not stay off the ropes, as fatigue set in. He
had a better round in the fifth, but didn't do quite enough
to win it on my card. In the sixth, Meyers focused on a body
attack that sapped Cullmer's strength. It was the perfect
move. As the fight entered the stretch, Cullmer knew he
needed a KO to salvage the fight. With just three knockouts
in seventeen prior fights, Gee's not the biggest puncher.
But he is a powerful and determined guy. He knows what to do
in the ring. But the three-minute body attack by Myers all
but emptied his tank and left Cullmer weakened. There would
be no rally. There would be no KO. The last two rounds saw
Cullmer desperate to score the stoppage, but it never came.
He hung in there, showed his grit, but Myers stuck to his
plan and continued to pile up the points. 
At
the final bell, there was no doubt that Myers would get the
decision. Announcer Larry Tornambe read the cards. The first
score from judge Lynn Carter confirmed everything I had
witnessed - 79-73 (7 rounds to 1) for Myers. However, this
score was overturned by two 76-76 tallies (by Frank
Cappuccino & Rose Vargas). The fight was a draw. The crowd
booed a long and loud Philly boo. There is no doubt that
some of the rounds were close, and that Cullmer perhaps won
some points for his dogged effort. But in the end, only Lynn
Carter got this one right. Meyers returned to California
with his even record intact (now 7-7-1) and Gee kept his
unbeaten streak going. In boxing, a draw is like kissing
your sister. It doesn't count. So perhaps they try this one
again. Matchmaker Don Elbaum announced after the bout that
he'd like to pair them again next year over ten rounds. It
makes sense, I guess. It was an entertaining fight. Meyers
deserves a chance to claim a win, and Cullmer surely wants
to improve on his performance. But it is time for Cullmer to
be matched upward. What would a rematch do? Perhaps
the sparse crowd that turned out (600 or so) would return
for the second fight. But everyone would each have to bring
a friend to fill up the Blue. In any case, it was a earnest
battle between the two. Cullmer acknowledged the boos of the
crowd, and seemed in agreement. He's that kind of guy.
Meyers took it all in stride. He smiled and chucked at the
official result. 
The
second round was wild. Both guys landed bombs. They both hit
the canvas at one point. Johnson landed the telling blow.
Felton grabbed him for support and both went tumbling.
Referee Hurley McCall ruled it a slip. It should have been a
knockdown (credited to Johnson). Beginning later in the
round and continued in the third, Johnson whacked away at
Felton's body along the ropes. In the last round, Johnson
teed off with lefts and rights while Felton waited to land
the big one. He almost got too. Just before the bell, Felton
rocked Johnson with a hard right. Johnson was hurt, but
Felton was out of time. This is what these professional
opponents live for. Felton returns to Virginia with another
loss, but with the bragging rights, "if I only had a little
more time." The scores all read 40-36 for Johnson. A good
win for his return. 
Flashy
North Philly prospect, Darrell Jones, 3-0, took on 0-3
junior middleweight Antonio Fernandez of Brockton, MA. Jones
controlled the bout with his fast hands and sharp jabs to
the body. He won the fight, but tired badly by the end.
Although it should have been his second KO in three bouts,
Jones was unable to finish his foe due to an empty gas tank.
Hard to believe. It wasn't a whirlwind of a fight. Fernandez
wound up his best bolo punch a few times, but it didn't do
damage. So it was a learning experience for Jones. Whatever
happened in training that left him ill prepared to finish a
four rounder strongly, has to be corrected. But he got the
win, and that's what counts. Two judges gave him a shutout,
the other saw it three rounds to one. Fenandez left the ring
0-4. 
Former
NHL pro Nathan Perrott was surprised in his second
professional fight by John Bolden of New York. Perrott had a
tough time in his first bout earlier this year at the Blue.
But he managed to fight through his own exhaustion to halt
that foe. Not the case this time. Bolden came out and
dropped Perrott three times in round one and Hurley McCall
stopped it at 2:09. Chalk this one up to poor match-making.
I'm not sure about Bolden's amateur background, but he
certainly was further along than Perrott, who had the
makings of a cult ring attraction. Given his first two
experiences in the ring, I wouldn't be surprised if he hung
up the gloves and went back to the skates. 
The
walkout bout featured South Philly's Charles Hayward in a
four-round cruiserweight fight with Patrick Budd of
Dumfries, VA. Hayward was also returning after a long layoff
- this one four years. Hayward looked rusty and north of his
ideal fighting weight, but he displayed some skills that
delighted the few remaining fans - including Philly legend
Stanley "Kitten" Hayward. Charles is no relation to Stanley.
But as Charles climbed the steps into the red corner, Kitten
called out "He's got my name!". Charles has a way to
go before comparisons can be made between the two. But he
was an accomplished local golden gloves amateur, so perhaps
the 25 year old can still make some noise in the local
rings. He took the unanimous decision by three scores of
40-36. 
As
is the annual tradition of the December Blue Horizon show,
unwrapped toys were collected and will be distributed to
local children as the Christmas holiday nears. Another
tradition is the annual youth boxing exhibition to open the
show. Cutman extraordinaire, Joey Eye (Intrieri) refereed a
three-round exhibition between two of his sons. Vinnie and
Joe Joe mixed it up. Vinnie got the best of the action, as
most older brothers do. But Joe Joe won the crowd with his
attempts
to score the KO. One of these years, Joe Joe will get his
revenge. Their sister served as the round card girl.