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5'2", 108-115 lb Elena "Baby Doll" Reid was born in Phoenix, Arizona on November 1st, 1981
and now lives and trains in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Elena, who was interested in sport from an early age and began boxing at age 15,
says "a guy friend" sparked her interest in the sport. She did not compete
as an amateur boxer, but began her career in combat sports in karate and
kickboxing and won an Arizona state kickboxing title at age 17.
She also participated in soccer, basketball, softball, volleyball and
cheerleading from fifth grade through high school. She was the only girl on
her brother's soccer team.
Elena made her pro boxing debut on April 18, 2000, at Midnight Rodeo n Phoenix,
weighing in at 120 lbs and defeating debuter Jo
Ellen Caldwell (117½ lbs) by a four-round unanimous (40-36,40-36,40-37) decision.
This would be Caldwell's only pro fight. On July 16, 2000 at Arizona Charlie's in Las Vegas,
Nevada, her second pro fight pitted her against a tough opponent ...
Layla McCarter (126 lbs) of Las Vegas. Layla improved her
own record to 3-4-1 with a four-round unanimous decision over Elena
(122½ lbs) ... then went on to become the youngest boxer to win an
IFBA world title by defeating Sandra Yard for the IFBA Featherweight
belt on October 7, 2000.
On August 26, 2000 at Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas,
Nevada, Elena (118 lbs) TKO'd Jessica Elgin-Combs (121 lbs) at 0:58 in the first
round. Elgin-Combs, making her pro debut, was overwhelmed by Elena's
aggressiveness and the bout was stopped with Combs bloody-nosed and unable to
defend herself.
On October 2, 2000 at Celebrity Theater in Phoenix, Arizona, Elena
(114 lbs) won a four-round unanimous (40-36,40-36,39-37) decision over
Yvonne Caples (112 lbs), who dropped to 2-3. Reid pressured
Caples throughout the fight, throwing many accurate combinations.
On October 10, 2000 at Webb Theater in Phoenix, Arizona, Elena
(119½ lbs) won by a TKO over
debuter Brandy Leon (121½ lbs) of Prescott, Arizona at 1:07 of the first round. Reid overwhelmed Leon with
straight lefts and right hooks and the referee stopped the bout because Leon was
not fighting back.
On November 19, 2000 at Celebrity Theater in Phoenix, Arizona,
Elena (117 lbs) won a four-round unanimous decision over Nina (Bertha) Gonzalez
(118 lbs) of California. Reid got
a nasty gash over the right eyelid by a clash of heads in the opening round, but
she overpowered a plucky Gonzalez in all four rounds. Gonzalez dropped to 2-3-1
with the loss.
On January 28, 2001 on a card fought in an outdoor ring on a
parking lot at Park 'N Swap in Phoenix, Elena (116 lbs) battled to a four-round majority
draw in a rematch with Yvonne Caples (113 lbs). Elena won the
odd rounds, but Yvonne came back in the even stanzas as they fought to tallies
of 38-38, 38-38 and 39-37 (for Reid) on the scorecards. Yvonne's record moved to
3-3-1 with 1 KO.
 On
September 25, 2001 at Midnight Rodeo in Phoenix, Elena weighed in at 113 lbs and
won by a TKO at 1:21 of the first round over Valerie Williams (118 lbs) of Las
Vegas, who was making her pro debut. Williams attacked the smaller Reid
aggressively but Reid's boxing skills soon dominated the bout. Williams took six
straight shots to the head that brought referee Nico Perez in to stop it.
On January 25, 2002 at the AVI Casino in Laughlin, Nevada, Elena
(112 lbs) battled Luz Rodriguez (113 lbs) of Mexicali, Mexico to a bloody
four-round split (39-37,38-38,37-39) draw. Reid moved her record to 6-1-2 (3 KO's) while Rodriguez's
record went to 1-2-1 (0 KO's).
On April 5, 2002 at Celebrity Theater in Phoenix, Elena (116 lbs)
won a hard-fought six-round decision over a game Monica Michel (113 lbs) of
Albuquerque, New Mexico, who fell to 0-3-0. My correspondent described it as
"six rounds of exciting, non-stop action" and said the fight was best of the
night with the crowd cheering hard for local favorite Reid (who had enough left
when the dust settled to celebrate her narrow win!). Reid took two attempts to
make the agreed weight for the fight.
On April 20, 2002 at MGM Grand Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, Elena
(114½ lbs) won a four-round unanimous (39-36,39-37,39-37) decision over Luz
Rodriguez (111 lbs) of Mexicali, Mexico who fell to 1-3-1 (0 KO). Reid started
the bout slowly and Rodriguez was able to land clean lefts and rights to the
head, including a straight right that badly bloodied Reid's nose in the second
round. But Reid has been bloodied before and fought on to win, and this was no
exception as she roared back in the third and fourth rounds with hard-hitting
combinations that had Rodriguez hurt and covering up. Reid and Rodriguez had
previously battled to a bloody draw in January. [See
fight
photos by Roger Williams of Boxing in Las Vegas]. On
June 7, 2002 at Rawhide Wild West Town Theme Park in Scottsdale, Arizona,
Elena (114 lbs) won a four-round unanimous (40-36,40-35,40-35) decision over
Tracey Moulton (118 lbs) of Denver, Colorado, who was returning to the ring
after a layoff since August 2000. Moulton looked flustered by the southpaw
Reid's speed in the opening round and was knocked down for a quick count by
a straight left to the ear. Moulton got up quickly and Reid continued to
press the issue with both fists, though losing leverage by swinging her
punches against her taller opponent. Moulton used her reach advantage to
better effect in the second and caught Reid with some straight shots
although Reid continued to throw more leather. Reid became more mobile in
third and controlled the action from the outside, then went back to the
attack in the fourth and kept Moulton off balance all round. Moulton tried
to wrestle Reid and punch while they were tangled up, but Reid handled this
tactic well and cruised to a clear win on all the scorecards. Moulton fell
to 4-4-1 (2 KO). The bout was seen live on ESPN2's Friday Night Fights
because the men's Main Event was stopped early.
On July 19, 2002 at Yakima Legends Casino in Toppenish,
Washington, Elena (113½ lbs) won by TKO over Yolanda Gonzalez (114¼ lbs) of
Newark, New Jersey at 1:35 in the fifth round. Reid dropped Gonzalez twice in
the opening round and had the upper hand for the rest of the bout, landing
frequently with hard straight lefts and stunning Gonzalez again at the end of
the fourth. Gonzalez fell to 7-5-1 (3 KOs).
On October 1, 2002 at Dodge Theatre in Phoenix, Arizona, Elena
(119 lbs) won a six-round unanimous (58-56) decision over Terri Lynn Cruz (123
lbs) of Denver, Colorado. Reid dominated the first four rounds with hard shots
and a wicked jab. Cruz then came on stronger to take the last two rounds and had
the crowd on its feet cheering both on. Cruz fell to 4-3-2 (2 KO).
On November 19, 2002 at Dodge Theatre in Phoenix, Arizona, Elena
(117 lbs) won a six-round unanimous (60-54,58-56,58-56) decision over LaKeysha
Williams (119 lbs) of Philadelphia. Despite the lop-sided score by one judge,
this was a good fight that had the crowd on its feet as they exchanged punishing
shots. Reid's boxing skills made the difference as she used good lateral
movement to keep Williams at bay. Williams fell to 6-4-1 (1 KO).
Elena Reid battles Linda Tenberg
© Copyrighted photo taken by Dale S. Hausner
On February 11, 2003 at Celebrity Theatre in Phoenix, Arizona, a crowd
estimated at just 600 saw Elena (117 lbs) win a six-round unanimous (60-54,60-54,59-54)
decision over Linda Tenberg (122 lbs) of Austin, Texas. According to one
ringside correspondent, Tenberg got off to a good start in the opening round
but seemed stunned after taking four hard left hooks midway though the
fourth round in what may have been the bout's decisive moment. Another feels
that Tenberg won the fight and was "jobbed by the judges", however.
Tenberg falls to 6-7-0 (2 KO).
Elena Reid and Mariana Juárez fought to a majority draw
© Copyrighted photo taken by Dale S. Hausner
On June 28, 2003 at Celebrity Theater in Phoenix, Arizona, Elena (116 lbs) was
held to a majority draw over six rounds by Mariana Juárez
(5'4", 113½ lbs) of México City, México. The decision (57-57,57-57, and 58-56
Juárez) drew some boos from the crowd, who had cheered both fighters, both of
whom took hard shots throughout the fight. After a feeling out round in which
Juárez was warned for holding Reid behind the head while hitting, Juárez began
to take the action to Reid harder in the second, although Reid got busier as the
round went on. Juárez kept coming forward with Reid using more lateral movement
in the third, Reid looping her punches while Juárez more often came straight
through the middle. Juárez roughed Reid up against the ropes in the fourth and
appeared to have her in trouble but she didn't press her advantage hard enough
in the fifth. Reid picked up her pace and was more aggressive in the sixth but
Juárez met her blow for blow (and did just enough to win the fight in my view).
Juárez's record was now 9-3-3 (6 KO). (See
WBAN Photo Gallery #73 on the
WBAN Records Member Site.)
On September 26, 2003 at Celebrity Theatre in Phoenix, Arizona, Elena
(118 lbs) won
a six-round unanimous decision over
Linda Tenberg (120 lbs) of Austin, Texas.
Tenberg was in good shape but could not do
enough to offset Reid's quickness and movement. Reid advanced to 14-1-3
(4 KO) with the win while Tenberg fell to 8-8-0 (4 KO). (See
WBAN Photo Gallery #103 on the
WBAN Records Member Site).
Elena Reid fought Johanna Pena Alvarez to a draw in 2003
© Copyrighted photo taken by Dale S.
Hausner
On November 7, 2003 at Desert Diamond Casino in Tucson, Arizona, Elena
weighed in at 114 lbs and fought Johanna Pena Alvarez (113 lbs, 20 years old) of
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic to an exciting four-round (39-37 Pena, 39-37
Reid, 38-38) split draw. Reid landed the harder punches for most of the fight but Pena
came on strong in the final round to make it a close call on the scorecards.
Pena was 14-1-1 (10 KO) after her first bout outside the Dominican Republic.
(See WBAN Photo Gallery
#120 on the WBAN
Records Member Site)
Punishing Regina Halmich in Germany
On September 11, 2004 at DM Arena in Karlsruhe, Germany, local favorite and
German media darling
Regina Halmich (111¾ lbs) of Karlsruhe battled Elena
(111¾ lbs) to a draw over ten hard-fought and exciting rounds to retain her WIBF
Flyweight title. The scoring of this bout was highly controversial, Judge
Oliver Evers of Germany logging it as 98-94 for Halmich, Judge Leszek Jankowiak
of Poland assessing it as a 97-97 draw, while Judge Roger Tillerman of Belgium
had it 97-93 for Reid.
More people who saw this fight appear to agree with the Belgian
judge's assessment than with either of the other tallies. The media called the
scores of the German and Polish judges “scandalous” and the German television
commentator interviewing Halmich told her they felt she (Halmich) lost
convincingly. “I felt I was able to hit her with everything I
threw,” said Reid, "she was a very tough fighter.” Halmich
moved her record to 45-1-1 (15 KOs) while Elena progressed to
14-1-5 (4 KO).
Despite the controversy and her disappointment over the result, Elena remained
positive about her experience in Germany. “They were so wonderful to me,”
she said, "the people were so nice to me everywhere I went. I’ll never forget
them. They were really wonderful people."
Elena added in an
open letter
to WBAN: "Thank you, Thank you, Thank you,
to all the German fans and press. Despite the heart breaking decision, my
experience in Germany was more than wonderful. Everyone, including the workers
at the hotel, the media, all the German people, and Universum warmed my heart
with their compassion and kind words. I will certainly never forget the feeling
of being embraced by a country I thought saw me as the enemy. I pray to God,
that I get a second chance around. That Regina will do the right thing and give
me a rematch. After all she is not the one who made the decision, but she does
have the power to make it right. This was my first fight past six rounds.
I am more hungry than ever! I hope to light the world with my performances and
vow to always train and fight with all my heart. I still have a lot to learn. I
also would like to say thank you to my outstanding trainers, UNLV boxing, and
everyone that has taken the time to voice their opinions. I truly appreciate
everything. Thank you, thank you, thank you. With lots of Love, Elena Babydoll
Reid".
Elena Reid vs. LaKeysha Williams in Las Vegas
© Copyrighted photo taken by Mary Ann Owen
On January 29, 2005 at the Silverton Hotel Casino in
Las Vegas, Nevada, in the main event on an all-female card promoted by Rock and
Sock Productions, Elena (117 lbs) knocked out LaKeysha Williams (120½ lbs) of
Philadelphia at 1:59 in the fifth round of a scheduled eight-rounder.
 Reid
put on a convincing performance using quick combinations and great defense to
control and outpunch the heavier Williams, who often fights at featherweight.
Elena snapped Williams's head back repeatedly with sharp left leads and
three-punch combinations, but she delivered the coup de grace with a hard left
to the solar plexus that dropped Williams to the canvas in obvious pain.
"This was Elena's best performance," said trainer Chris Ben.
"All I want is a chance to fight for the world title," said
Reid, adding that she was
looking for a rematch with Mariana Juárez or
Regina Halmich. "All my training is paying off."
Reid moved to 16-1-5 (5 KO's) with the win while
Williams fell to 8-7-3 (1 KO).
(For more photos and video clips from this
all-female fight card and its weigh-in, see WBAN
Photo/MPG Galleries #234, #235 and #236 on the
WBAN Records Member Site).
Alicia Ashley outboxed Elena in March 2005
© Copyrighted photo taken by Mary Ann Owen On March
26, 2005 at Harrah’s Hotel and Casino in Laughlin, Nevada, USA,
Alicia Ashley (5'5", 116 lbs) of Westbury, New
York TKO'd Elena (116¾ lbs) at 1:04 in the seventh round of a scheduled
eight-rounder. Referee Jay Nady stopped the fight because of a cut over
Reid's right eye. Ashley had outboxed Reid before the stoppage in this match
between two southpaws, using her longer reach, hand speed and ring movement
to control the action. Ashley continually popped Reid with jabs and straight
lefts, one of which opened the cut over Reid's eye in the sixth. "I
hurt her in the third round," said Ashley. "After that, she didn't
want to come in any more." Ashley improved to 11-5-1 (1 KO) while Reid
fell to 16-2-5 (5 KO's).
"I'm a little disappointed," said Reid, adding "I have to go back
to the gym and improve." On July 2, 2005 at the Events
Center in Reno, Nevada, Elena (111½ lbs) won a six-round unanimous decision
(60-51,60-51,60-53) over tough but overmatched
Stephanie Dobbs (111 lbs) of Moore, Oklahoma. Dobbs fell to
17-18-2 (9 KO's) with the loss.
On December 3, 2005 at Bördelandhalle in Magdeburg, Germany, Elena (110½
lbs) lost a unanimous (97-94,96-94-94) decision to Regina Halmich of Germany
in a hard-fought rematch of their controversial draw for the WIBF Flyweight
title. Reid was bloodied by the much-improved Halmich in this second
encounter, but her supporters still felt that she had done enough to win the
bout.
Halmich had clearly learned more from their previous drawn bout which most
observers felt she had lost. WBAN correspondent Peter Guedens summarized
the result saying "When seeing the fight for the
first time, I thought it was very close, but the more I’ve seen the highlights,
the more I get convinced that it was a clear win for Halmich. Using a very
clever game plan, she outboxed an overconfident Elena who seemed like she was
already celebrating before the fight had even started."
(See Peter's illustrated
round-by-round report). Reid fell to 17-3-5 (5 KO's) with the loss while Halmich
improved to 49-1-1 (15 KO's).
Elena trades with Mary Elizabeth Ortega
© Copyrighted photo taken by Alan MessickOn August 31, 2006
at Harvey's Lake Tahoe, Stateline, Nevada, Elena (111½
lbs)
won the WIBA Flyweight title with a ten-round
unanimous (98-92, 98-92, 97-93) decision over Mary Elizabeth Ortega
(112 lbs) of Kansas City, Missouri. As
reported
by Lee Bates of Inside Women's Boxing, "From the opening
round, Reid flashed her superior hand speed by boxing beautifully from her
southpaw stance, and countering the on-rushing Ortega with head-snapping
combinations. This trend continued on until the middle of the fight, when
Ortega's consistent pressure finally paid off and she was able to back Reid
into the ropes where she landed head shots of her own, winning a few rounds
in the process. Having been on the bad end of decisions in her two
previous attempts at a world title, Reid was not going to leave any doubt to
the judges. She began to use Ortega's pressure against her in the home
stretch of the fight, beating her to the punch and fighting of the ropes.
The two fighters had the entire crowd on their feet as they slugged it out
toe-to-toe in the fi |
