Elijah Tillery
| Elijah Tillery | |
|---|---|
| Statistics | |
| Real name | Carlton Elijah Tillery |
| Nickname(s) | Phoenix Steel |
| Rated at | Heavyweight |
| Nationality | American |
| Born |
August 8, 1957 Staten Island, NY, U.S. |
| Stance | Orthodox |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 30 |
| Wins | 23 |
| Wins by KO | 15 |
| Losses | 7 |
| Draws | 2 |
| No contests | 0 |
Carlton Elijah Tillery (born August 8, 1957) is an American former boxer in the heavyweight division, nicknamed "Phoenix Steel".
Amateur career
Born in Staten Island, NY, Tillery had an amateur record of 45-2.
Professional career
Tillery turned professional in 1980 and was a hard punching journeyman heavyweight during his career. He is best known for his two fights against Riddick Bowe in 1991. His first fight with Bowe is known for its bizarre conclusion. Bowe dominated the first round and dropped Tillery. After the round ended, Tillery walked toward Bowe and taunted him, and Bowe responded by punching Tillery. Tillery then landed several kicks on Bowe, and Bowe then unleashed a flurry of punches on Tillery as Tillery lay on the ropes. Bowe's trainer, Rock Newman, then grabbed Tillery and pulled him over the ropes as Bowe continued to throw punches. Tillery somersaulted over the ropes and was quickly detained by security.[1] After order was restored and the fighters returned to the ring, Tillery and Bowe continued a war of words, and there continued to be minor incidents as the ring was cleared. Tillery was disqualified for the kicks with Bowe getting the win, much to the surprise of the television announcers. The fighters rematched two months later, with Bowe dominating and TKO'ing Tillery, his first TKO loss. Tillery's next fight was his last, a TKO loss to James Smith two years after his loss to Bowe.
Professional boxing record
| 23 Wins (15 knockouts, 8 decisions), 7 Losses (2 knockouts, 5 decisions) | |||||||
| Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round | Date | Location | Notes |
| Loss | 36-11-1 |  James "Bonecrusher" Smith |
TKO | 6 | 14/09/1993 |  Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States |
Referee stopped the bout at 2:51 of the sixth round. |
| Loss | 27-0 | Riddick "Big Daddy" Bowe |
TKO | 4 | 13/12/1991 | Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States |
Referee stopped the bout at 1:14 of the fourth round. |
| Loss | 26-0 | Riddick "Big Daddy" Bowe |
DQ | 1 | 29/10/1991 | Washington, District of Columbia, United States |
WBC Continental Americas Heavyweight Title. |
| Loss | 17-2-1 | "Big" Art Tucker |
UD | 10 | 02/11/1990 |  Albany, New York, United States |
91-98, 92-97, 94-96. |
| Win | 8-5-1 | William "K.O." Morris |
MD | 10 | 17/08/1990 | Newark, New Jersey, United States |
97-93, 97-93, 95-95. |
| Win | 7-1 | Fred Whitaker |
RTD | 4 | 08/07/1990 | Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States |
Whitaker could not answer the bell for round five. |
| Win | 5-0 | Mike "The Duke" Dixon |
UD | 6 | 08/05/1990 | Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States |
57-54, 58-54, 58-55. |
| Win | 12-6-1 | Dorcey Gaymon |
UD | 8 | 15/06/1987 | Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States |
|
| Win | 21-10 | Mike Cohen |
KO | 3 | 23/08/1986 |  Fayetteville, North Carolina, United States |
|
| Win | 19-8 | David Jaco |
KO | 9 | 11/07/1986 | Swan Lake, New York, United States |
|
| Win | 3-10-1 | Wesley Smith |
TKO | 8 | 31/05/1986 | Albany, New York, United States |
|
| Win | 13-2 | Rodney Frazier |
KO | 4 | 05/04/1986 | Latham, New York, United States |
|
| Loss | 16-2 | Anthony Davis |
UD | 12 | 19/09/1984 |  Las Vegas, Nevada, United States |
NABF Cruiserweight Title. |
| Win | 11-2 | William Hosea |
PTS | 10 | 09/08/1983 | Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States |
|
| Win | 3-4-2 | Louis Alexander |
KO | 1 | 15/04/1983 | New York City, United States |
|
| Win | 4-5 | Charles Vanderhall |
KO | 2 | 10/11/1982 | Latham, New York, United States |
Charles knocked out at 2:53 of the second round. |
| Loss | 13-1 | Alfonzo Ratliff |
UD | 10 | 13/03/1982 | Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States |
|
| Win | 6-14 | Henry "Bulldog" Patterson |
TKO | 3 | 11/02/1982 |  Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States |
|
| Loss | 2-2-2 | Quadir Muntaqim |
UD | 8 | 07/11/1981 | Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States |
|
| Win | 4-9 | Eddie Smith |
PTS | 8 | 24/07/1981 | New York City, United States |
|
| Win | 6-26-2 | Kid Samson |
PTS | 8 | 25/06/1981 | Tarrytown, New York, United States |
|
| Win | 15-15-2 | Fred "Flintstone" Brown |
UD | 6 | 11/05/1981 | New York City, United States |
|
| Win | 0-5 | Milton Hopkins |
KO | 1 | 18/03/1981 | White Plains, New York, United States |
|
| Win | 0-1 | Johnny Pitts |
KO | 2 | 08/03/1981 | Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States |
|
| Win | -- | Vincent "Vince" Johnson | KO | 1 | 28/02/1981 | Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States |
|
| Win | 2-9-1 | Calvin Langston |
KO | 1 | 18/02/1981 | White Plains, New York, United States |
|
| Win | 6-23-2 | Kid Samson |
PTS | 4 | 07/02/1981 | Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States |
|
| Win | -- | Kasim Stephenson |
KO | 1 | 07/01/1981 | New York City, United States |
|
| Win | 0-1 | Austin Johnson |
KO | 1 | 12/12/1980 | New York City, United States |
|
| Win | -- | Gerald Hardy |
KO | 1 | 23/10/1980 | New York City, United States |
Hardy knocked out at 1:19 of the first round. |
Personal
Tillery was sentenced to nine years in prison in March 2008 for hiding a sawed-off shotgun in a toy alligator in the back of his pickup truck. Before sentencing, Tillery read a 12-page statement about his life and cursed his attorney and the prosecutor.[2] Tillery has since been released and married to Joevonne Brace Tillery Hudson City Clerk Official.