By Rick Reeno
The hunger of the boxing public will be satisfied in a big way. Later tonight at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, WBC/WBO middleweight champion Jermain Taylor (27-0-1, 17 KOs) will defend his his titles against the number-one threat to his throne, Kelly Pavlik (31-0, 28 KOs). One of the most anticipated and debated middleweight encounters since Taylor took on Winky Wright in 2006.
Taylor, in his final appearance as a middleweight, steps up to the plate with a younger, hungrier and stronger opponent. Can he defy the critics by getting past what some are calling an overhyped challenger, and in the process redeem his mediocre performances against Kassim Ouma and Cory Spinks?
In 2005, when Taylor fought Hopkins, he was the young lion coming up to take out an old dog. Now it's Taylor with the titles and a young, hungry lion is in full pursuit.
Pavlik, with the entire town of Youngstown making the Jersey trip, has a lot of pressure on his back to win in a big way. He showed what he can do against one-dimensional fighters like Edison Miranda. Now it's time to see if the unbeaten puncher can live up to the hype.
In the opener, welterweight prospect Andre Berto (19-0, 16 KOs) will face the biggest challenge in his career when he takes on David Estrada (21-3, 12 KOs). Estrada will be serious test for the 23-year-old Berto. Estrada went the distance with Shane Mosley and had a fight-of-year punchfest with Kermit Cintron.
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