Tweet
By David P. Greisman - Jermain Taylor cannot win.
It was but two years ago that Taylor was the heir apparent, a young prospect chosen as the man most likely to replace the supposedly soon-to-retire Bernard Hopkins as middleweight king.
It should have been so easy.
Taylor took two close, controversial decisions over Hopkins, disputed outcomes no matter how often HBO blow-by-blow announcer Jim Lampley has since reminded us that five of the fights’ six judges favored the humble Olympian from Little Rock.
Taylor didn’t win his next fight – but he didn’t lose it either. Taylor and Winky Wright battled to a draw, cementing that the bout’s contestants were the best two 160-pounders around. The order, however, remained inconclusive.
By defeating Hopkins, it seems, the heir apparent inherited much of the critical attention oft directed at “The Executioner.” The respect, though, is still pending.
He fights too many blown-up junior middleweights, the naysayers argue, and even then, he backs up and lets them dictate the action. His two wins and a draw against Hopkins and Wright could very easily have been three losses. He is a product of hype, of careful matchmaking, of good timing, of interested parties looking to protect their investment.
He’s undefeated.
He can’t win.
We expect an heir apparent to assume his role with enthusiasm and vigor, to prove himself as more than a fighter who was in the right place at the right time. But Taylor, some believe, has opened himself up to criticism. His battles against Hopkins were passive pugilism masquerading as tactical battles. His draw with Wright had a fortunate finish, a judge who punished Winky for taking his foot off the gas in the final stanza. His last fight was against a small junior middleweight, as is this Saturday’s defense against Cory Spinks. [details]
It was but two years ago that Taylor was the heir apparent, a young prospect chosen as the man most likely to replace the supposedly soon-to-retire Bernard Hopkins as middleweight king.
It should have been so easy.
Taylor took two close, controversial decisions over Hopkins, disputed outcomes no matter how often HBO blow-by-blow announcer Jim Lampley has since reminded us that five of the fights’ six judges favored the humble Olympian from Little Rock.
Taylor didn’t win his next fight – but he didn’t lose it either. Taylor and Winky Wright battled to a draw, cementing that the bout’s contestants were the best two 160-pounders around. The order, however, remained inconclusive.
By defeating Hopkins, it seems, the heir apparent inherited much of the critical attention oft directed at “The Executioner.” The respect, though, is still pending.
He fights too many blown-up junior middleweights, the naysayers argue, and even then, he backs up and lets them dictate the action. His two wins and a draw against Hopkins and Wright could very easily have been three losses. He is a product of hype, of careful matchmaking, of good timing, of interested parties looking to protect their investment.
He’s undefeated.
He can’t win.
We expect an heir apparent to assume his role with enthusiasm and vigor, to prove himself as more than a fighter who was in the right place at the right time. But Taylor, some believe, has opened himself up to criticism. His battles against Hopkins were passive pugilism masquerading as tactical battles. His draw with Wright had a fortunate finish, a judge who punished Winky for taking his foot off the gas in the final stanza. His last fight was against a small junior middleweight, as is this Saturday’s defense against Cory Spinks. [details]
Comment