LEWISTON — In 1965, this building was known as the Central Maine Youth Center. Now it’s called the Androscoggin Bank Colisee, but it’s still the place where Muhammed Ali dropped Sonny Liston in the first round for the heavyweight championship on May 25, 1965.

One of the great, iconic photos in sports history was taken here. Ali, standing over Liston, yelling at the old boxer to get up and fight. In one moment, the photo encapsulates Ali’s entire career: strong, brash and controversial.

Some say Ali won because of a phantom punch, that Liston took a dive. Others say Ali ended the fight with a perfect punch. Either way, it doesn’t change the fact that Ali crept here.

On Saturday night, the building that hosted one of the shortest and most controversial title fights of all time hosted boxing for the first time in almost 20 years.

You couldn’t look at the ring set at Androscoggin Bank Colisee without thinking of that famous photo. Even if you didn’t see it in your mind’s eye, it hangs near the concession stand as a reminder of the building’s history.

Any fighter on Saturday’s card with any sense of history had to appreciate the opportunity to fight where arguably the biggest sporting event to take place in Maine occurred.

On Saturday night, West Forks native Brandon Berry fought for his first title here. As the main event, Berry fought Eric Plamer, of Pittsburgh, Penn. for the Northeast Junior Welterweight title. The history of the building was not lost on Berry.

“It’s pretty cool to think my name will be announced in the same building where Muhammed Ali and Sonny Liston fought once,” Berry said, a few days before the fight. “I fought in the Boston (TD) Garden, the (Portland) Expo. This is another place I can put on my list.”

At 6:15 p.m., just 45 minutes before the scheduled start of the first fight but still a few hours before his main event, Berry met fans as they entered the arena. He shook hands, gave hugs, and was a one-man welcoming committee, soaking in the entire experience.

Maine’s most accomplished professional boxer is Joey Gamache. A Lewiston native, Gamache won world titles in super featherweight and lightweight classes in the early 1990s. Gamache wasn’t in attendance Saturday night, but his son, Stevie Gamache, was one of the 12 fighters on the card. Another nod to Maine’s boxing history. Nine of the dozen fighters on the card call Maine home. Despite the surge in popularity of mixed martial arts, boxing is doing just fine in Maine.

Approximately 2,500 fans were in the arena for the Ali-Liston fight. Even with half the arena blocked off by black curtains, the crowd for Saturday’s fight was around 1,000. The first pro bout in the building in almost two decades featured Paulo Souza, of Brazil, against James “Boxcar Willie” Carville, of Lisbon.

There was no phantom punch. Just plenty of the real things. The fight went the full scheduled four rounds, with Carville taking a unanimous decision win, to the delight of his many fans who made the short trip from Lisbon.

The entire boxing world wasn’t watching Lewiston, liked it did in 1965. The eyes of Maine boxing fans were focused on the Colisee, though, for the first time in a long time.

Travis Lazarczyk — 861-9242

tlazarczyk@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @TLazarczykMTM

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