05.12.06 – By Justin Hackman: As a fan of boxing, I would love for Jermain Taylor to move up to 168. Say what you will about the results of his last three fights–if the scoring was not clear, the message was: he proved he could hang with the best in town, and that he shares the title of “Co-Best” with Winky Wright at middleweight. Even if one chooses to pose an argument that says Taylor is better than Wright, or vice versa, I say, “Who cares?” They each currently own the rights to being the undisputed best at 160.
This much is virtually not open to debate even without seeing Taylor take on the likeable, yet soon-to-be over classed Kassim Ouma, which should easily be nothing more than a sparring session; and considering the level of opponent in the fearless Ouma, Taylor will soon plainly prove his worth in defense of his title. There is no one else to give Wright and Taylor a good fight at 160, except each other.
Should Taylor move up in weight, he could up the ante a large amount on his level of intrigue, as firstly, he is attempting to prove himself against a bigger division–that is obvious, yet a test in and of itself. Secondly, 168 is currently the division boasting the tougher and more numerous challenges: a division that the young champion could generate a higher level of curiosity than is the case currently due to the fact that the young anomaly could make it perfectly clear on his appropriate merit. If he beats the best at 168, he is no fluke, and deserves the recognition he has not yet received (and I say, arguably, rightfully so) as the champ at middleweight. Or should he not beat the best up there, it will be clear that maybe he was not the “heir apparent” as apparently as many once thought. So yes, as a boxing fan, “Bring me the drama! Take Taylor to 168!”
And here’s how it may go.
While against a top ranked guy at 168 like Mikkel Kessler who–while he looked very strong, athletic, sharp, and dangerous against Beyer–I feel, in addition looked very ordinary against the naturally smaller southpaw who stood directly in front of him with his head perfectly still BEGGING for a hard, straight right hand down the pipe. And 8:50 into the fight, Kessler gave it to him…I say, “It was about time!” Not to take anything away from his knockout, but my point is Jermain Taylor is just as strong, just as athletic, just as sharp and just as dangerous as Kessler…but Jermain has all of that in spades.
Mikkel Kessler is a guy who has proved himself to be atop many super middleweight rankings, looking up only to the champ in Joe Calzaghe. Jermain Taylor would likely beat Kessler in a match-up of two guys worthy to be in the same ring with one another, yet it would be a case of one having trumped the other’s skills because Taylor’s are all a bit better.
Yes, as a boxing fan, I cannot wait until Jermain Taylor charges into another gauntlet this time in a higher weight class. However, I will say I happen to be a huge Jermain Taylor fan. It’s not a crime. Often when the slightest hint of bias is detected in the boxing world, it is a bad thing. Is it a bad thing when an American boy stands by his team so loyally he swears they will win the World Series EVERY YEAR!?–impenetrable loyalty provides us with the passion of being a fan which keeps the sport alive!
When it was time for Taylor to fight Bernard Hopkins and then Winky Wright, I admittingly would often lean more in the direction of claiming Taylor to be the future victor in boxing discussions because of nothing other than bias and a need to support my “team,” as it would be in any major sport in the U.S., and as it would be for any country’s soccer team in Europe. 2-0-1 out of 3 ain’t bad.
Having said that, I must admit, the best at 168, Joe Calzaghe, beats the best at 160, Jermain Taylor. Taylor is an incredibly gifted talent. While he would further impress his fans and continue to disprove his critics by beating the best challengers currently at super middleweight, Joe Calzaghe’s style is all wrong for Jermain Taylor.
Calzaghe is not as hard to hit as Bernard Hopkins or Winky Wright, but then again, who is? Calzaghe is still hard to hit, and Taylor would be all but baffled. In addition, Jermain Taylor is not good with pressure–even Winky Wright with virtually no power walked him down for 11 rounds during their encounter June 17th of this year. Taylor is also relatively easy to hit…but there’s a catch: he is easy to hit, given a fighter can get past his best defense which is his offense. Calzaghe is awkward and busy enough to do just that.
When Jermain Taylor is getting hit solidly, his offense dimishes, therefore is declared open-season. This was proven in the very first fight in which he faced ANY adversity whatsoever–July 16, 2005, his first fight with Hopkins. In the second half of the bout, Taylor, while he fired back with ferocity, did not impose the typical Taylor-onslaught that he is capable of, mainly because he was taking clean punches to the head while lagging on Hopkins’ momentum trail.
Calzaghe has a stamina solid enough to frustrate Taylor in this fashion for all 12 rounds, as he is no stranger as of late to going the distance, whether in an easy fight such as against Jeff Lacy, or a rough fight such as Evans Ashira or Sakio Bika.
Taylor is close to being unbeatable. If that sounds funny, just ask Bernard Hopkins: a guy who defended his title 20 straight times and got better only with age, and eventually thoroughly embarrassed the former light heavyweight champ, Antonio Tarver. Hopkins had 24 rounds to mangle Taylor the way he did Tarver, yet he could not. Winky Wright had 12 rounds to give Taylor a boxing lesson the way he did to the Puerto Rican legend and future hall-of-famer Felix Trinidad, and yet he could not.
Not to say Joe Calzaghe is a better boxer than Winky Wright or Bernard Hopkins, but styles make fights, and as previously stated, Joe Calzaghe’s style is all wrong for Jermain Taylor. By no means would this fight turn out to be Calzaghe/Lacy 2. Jermain Taylor would give Calzaghe a tough fight, and in the end, the reason fighters fight is because anything could happen.
While neither Hopkins nor Wright has the bragging rights to claim they have a win over Taylor, they both together laid a blueprint on how to beat him: a mix of pressure and elusiveness—anything less will not be enough to defeat Jermain Taylor. Hopkins was invincibly elusive in their two matches, yet could not find a way to impose enough pressure to beat Taylor. Winky Wright applied constant pressure, yet somehow could not find a way to be elusive enough to get the win over Taylor. Only the fighter with Hopkins’ elusiveness, and Wright’s precise pressure enough to get past Taylor’s offense, will be the fighter to beat Jermain Taylor.
Those two hall-of-famers only did enough to claim “controversy” on their respective bouts with the young fighter. However, a blend of pressure and elusiveness are the skills which are embodied in Joe Calzaghe. Other great fighters have other great assets; Calzaghe has the ones needed to defeat Taylor. They are the skills which he has utilized enough in order to strive for a record number of title defenses along with creating an unblemished record over so many years.
As a boxing fan, I cannot wait until Taylor moves up in weight to show us some action in preparation for a super-fight with Calzaghe. As a Taylor fan, I then will have to muster the agony of watching him lose to the man at 168, Joe Calzaghe.