Meldrick Taylor's Career & Potential

[CarlosG815]

I think the look of his face was worse than it actually was.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J4fkq...eature=related

Terrible, terrible call. 2 seconds to go. Actually, after the standing 8 count it probably would have been over. Should have gone to the cards.

2 F'ing seconds. Wow.

[Dynamite Kid]

Nope. He just stares blankly and looks over at the corner. Around the seven minute mark: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W3aktPchPes

Well at 7.11 he looks to me like he nods to Steele slightly to acknowledge he is okay, difficult to tell from the angle if he says anything though, watch right before Steele gets close to look in his eyes.

[Dynamite Kid]

Duva says it to around 7.24, now i know Duva is going to say that anyway but it does look as though he does nod to acknowledge to Steele.

[Suckmedry]

I hate watching that video, i just imagine myself as Meldrick, what a terrible feeling that must have been, **** Steele

[JAB5239]

It was one of the worst calls in boxing history. He was fully capable of finishing the fight.

He wasn't even capable of a simple response.

[JAB5239]

I think Taylor won more rounds AND the fight, but he exhausted everything he had doing so. Chavez caught up to him and took advantage, but bottom line is Chavez would not have been able to even throw another punch if the fight continues. There was no danger of anything worse happening to Taylor.

True, but its not the refs job to assess how much time is left. Had he responded to Steele's questions he would have won that fight. I feel for him, but he has no one to blame but himself.

[TBear]

I remember the kid coming up, well he's not a kid anymore, but he was back then. He had probably the fastest hands I had seen in a long time. Meldrick, I did noticed slowed down later in fights. The longer a fight progressed the more he would throw arm punches. But his overall ability carried him through the distance. I remember hearing early in his career how the Duva stable already had a premere lightweight so Meldrick was moved up to 140.

I remember meeting him after the first Primo Ramos fight and he was very polite and fan friendly, unlike his stablemate Tyrell Biggs who looked at us and said, "I don't have time for this" and turned away brushing us off! Made me enjoy his fight later with Tyson even more!
Anyways, Meldrick Taylor continued to rise in the rankings and captured the IBF title.

Being a fan of Meldrick, do I think Steele stopped his unfication bout with Chavez incorrectly?

Well first, it was not that one right hand that had Meldrick down, it was 12 rounds of pressure and body punching. It was the final round of a grueling bout. Meldrick knew to protect himself at all times and was exhausted. Steel waited for a response and didn't recieve one. It would have been more wrong if Steele turned to the time keeper after the knockdown and asked "how much time left" giving Taylor time to recover and ran out the clock. So I say Steel did the right thing in stopping it, which does not erase the fact that it was unfortunite it ended as Meldrick was seconds away from victory but I feel now and I felt on that night that the call was right.

Ask yourself this, if the fight was scheduled for 15 or if the knockdown happened a minute earlier, would the outcome be different? I don't think so, Meldrick was really hurt and very tired.

[bojangles1987]

[/B]

True, but its not the refs job to assess how much time is left. Had he responded to Steele's questions he would have won that fight. I feel for him, but he has no one to blame but himself.

Still, he should be somewhat aware of it. Taylor was out of it, but the fight was 2 SECONDS from being over. While Chavez did lay some punishment on Taylor, the knockdown felt more to me like Taylor just being too exhausted to stay on his feet, not like he was incredibly hurt. I disagree, what else can I say. That fight is a big reason I was never a Chavez fan and thought he was very overrated.

[CarlosG815]

He wasn't even capable of a simple response.

I understand your point, and a lot of others feel the same way.

I feel if he had let the fight continue he would have caught much less slack.

Wasn't he never asked to ref. a fight again after that call?

That call, to me, was like the phantom foul called on bill lambeer all those years ago. Not something you do in a competition so important.

[crold1]

I understand your point, and a lot of others feel the same way.

I feel if he had let the fight continue he would have caught much less slack.

Wasn't he never asked to ref. a fight again after that call?

That call, to me, was like the phantom foul called on bill lambeer all those years ago. Not something you do in a competition so important.

Steele reffed for many more years, retiring briefly after Mayweather-Corrales. I think the Steele call was exactly why he was there...refs have to make the tough calls. I have always understood the other side of the debate; agreed with it for years.

Then I saw the fight again years later and understood it in the light of endings like McClellan-Benn, Garcia-Ruelas etc. Taylor was a beaten man; badly beaten. Broken bones in his face, internal bleeding, a stay in the hospital after the fight. He looked better than he was which is a scary thought.