TONY PENECALE’S PHILADELPHIA BOXING REPORT

Posted on | July 21, 2008 | No Comments

Philadelphia Boxing Results from The New Alhambra – July 18, 2008

Kennedy Destroys Snow; Mussachio Defeats Stewart

By Tony Penecale (Ringside)

Somebody’s “0” had to go. In a rare matchup of undefeated prospects, Teon Kennedy impressively annihilated Thomas Snow in 2nd round of the main event at South Philadelphia’s New Alhambra arena, this past Friday.

Kennedy, 121, Philadelphia, has been slowly climbing the ladder of success, and the bout with knockout-artist Snow, 122, Washington DC, was slated to be the toughest test of his young career.

When the opening bell rang, it was Kennedy that came out the aggressor and pressuring the normally aggressive Snow, pushing him back on his heels and neutralizing his attack. Kennedy also found range for his straight right hand, splitting Snow’s southpaw guard and landing it at will.

With Snow on the retreat, Kennedy came out blazing in the 2nd round. Within a few moments Kennedy landed another sharp right hand, forcing Snow to the ropes, where he rocked him with a picture-perfect overhand right. Kennedy followed up with a barrage of power punches, sending Snow slumping to the canvas, where referee Steve Smoger counted him out.

Kennedy remains undefeated at 9-0 (5) while Snow has his first blemish and is now 10-1 (8).

In a thrilling co-feature, Chuck “The Professor” Mussachio won a hard-fought decision over the rough-and-tough Richard Stewart.

Mussachio, 173, Wildwood NJ, came out using his 5-inch height advantage as he boxed well, spearing the straight-forward Stewart, 174, New Castle DE, with an assortment of jabs and right hands.

Mussachio found even better success in the 2nd round, when a searing right hand wobbled Stewart, prompting Mussachio to fire an all-out barrage, landing rights and lefts on Stewart’s head, 17 in all, before finally sending him to the canvas. Stewart was up immediately and halted Mussachio’s attack, landing a thunderous left hook that echoed through the arena.

A pattern formed in the 3rd round with Stewart marching forward and landing thudding body shots, while Musschio was content to fight from unorthodox angles, firing jabs and doubling and tripling his right hand, even mixing in the occasional body shot. Each round following was an exciting carbon copy of the previous one, with both fighters finding moments of success.

By the 8th round, signs of battle could been seen as Stewart had an assortment of lumps and abrasions around his eyes, while Mussachio sported welts around his ribcage, courtesy of Stewart’s heavy-handed body assault. With the final seconds ticking down, Stewart forged in looking for the homerun punch, while Mussachio was content to keep him off-balance, boxing off of the ropes and using his jab.

The unanimous nod went to Mussachio by scores of 78-72, 76-75, and 77-74. Mussachio stays perfect at 12-0-1 (5), while Stewart slips to 14-6-2 (8).

In other bouts:

Larry Robinson, 183, Philadelphia, was victorious in a clinch-filled affair over Simon Carr, 190, Philadelphia. Robinson, known as “The Bull” came charging from his corner and initiated the action. Carr, although dressed as a matador, was gored by a Robinson hook early, clearly stunning him, forcing him to fight more tentative that normal.

Carr was more successful in the 2nd round, using his jab, but the charges of the aggressive Robinson lead to a number of clinches, much to the crowd’s displeasure. Robinson regained control in the 3rd and 4th rounds, while Carr seemed to be out of gas.

Robinson was visibly weary in the 5th round and Carr was able to take advantage and land several solid right hands, but was unable to capitalize on his moments of success as each punch was followed by another clinch. There was a brief delay before the 6th and final round as the water bottle was spilled in Robinson’s corner, a welcome respite for both exhausted boxers. Carr came out strong to start the 6th round but soon fizzled, allowing Robinson to control the final minute of the bout.

Two of judges went with the cleaner punches of Robinson awarding him the bout by scores of 60-54 and 59-55, while the third judge saw the bout even at 57-57. Robinson improves to 10-3 (7) while Carr falls to 4-2-1 (3).

Dennis Hasson, 164, Philadelphia, remained undefeated shutting out Roberto Irrizarry, 164, Edison NJ, over four rounds. Hasson boxed in a calm manner, picking shots, and using his height and reach advantage to outwork Irrizarry.

Irrizarry kept coming forward but kept his guns holstered as he threw few punches throughout the bout. An unintentional headbutt caused a cut on Hasson’s forehead in the 4th round, which ignited his offense, as he battered Irrizarry around the ring.

All three judges saw the bout 40-36. Hasson raises his record to 3-0 (1) while Irrizarry drops to 2-5.

Luis Esquilin, 131, Philadelphia, was successful in his professional debut, out-boxing and out-maneuvering, Tommy Garcia, 129, Hartford CT, over four relatively uneventful rounds.

Esquilin used his advantages in speed and ring generalship, landing his southpaw jab and straight left hand enough to thwart Garcia, whose offensive attack was as bland as his plain white trunks.

Esquilin was victorious on all three cards by scores of 39-37 and 40-36 (twice), and is now 1-0 as a professional. Garcia sees his record fall even at 2-2 (1).

Martinus Clay, 150, Philadelphia, scored a 3rd round TKO over Shawn Purdy, 151, Detroit MI. Clay, a good scrapper despite his sub .500 record, attacked early, sending Purdy to the ropes and landing a volley of punches to the chin. Unable to put Purdy down, Clay was successful slicing him open with a sizzling punch in the 3rd round, prompting the doctor to stop the bout.

Clay improves to a deceiving 13-18-5 (5) while Purdy dips to 3-5 (3).

In the evening’s opening bout, Anthony Flores, 131, Philadelphia, scored three knockdowns against Ramon Guevara, 136, Grand Rapids MI, winning a unanimous decision. Flores, who has an uncanny resemblance to junior welterweight champion Paulie Malinaggi, both in boxing style and funky hairstyles, boxed and moved early, forcing Guevara to alternate from orthodox to southpaw, trying to find openings.

Flores scored a flash knockdown in the 2nd round, but was then hurt by a series of Guevara hooks. Guevara’s success was short-lived as he was dropped again by a combination in the 3rd round and was totally outgunned in the 4th, taking a knee in the final seconds.

Flores won on all three cards 40-34 and ups his record to 3-0 (1) while Guevara falls to 8-17-2 (6).

Several notables were in attendance including IBF cruiserweight champion Steve “USS” Cunningham and former world champion Vinny “The Pazmanian Devil” Paz, who served as color commentator for CN8.

The card was promoted by Peltz Boxing Promotions, Inc., and Joe Hand Promotions, Inc. The next boxing card at the New Alhambra will be on Friday, August 29, with undefeated prospect Mike Jones in the main event.

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