Froch vs. Taylor - Final Press Conference Quotes

[Twis]

Taylor actually looks bigger.

[ragingvic]

This is going to be great fight. Props to Froch for his 1st defense being in the US against none other then JT.

[mathed]

I'm going to dl a Carl Froch fight tonight so I can see how good he really is. I have my money on Taylor right now but I might change my mind once I watch him in the ring.

[Dave Rado]

Froch is no worse that Jr Witter calling out Hatton all these years..

Hatton's retired? News to me! Must be some other dude fighting Pacquiao then?

[Kesslerfan#1]

cant believe we arent getting this in australia...i was looking forward to seeing Froch get smashed...but hey if he wins good for him.
Cant even get the live streaming as its only in UK...does anyone know how i can get it??

[mathed]

cant believe we arent getting this in australia...i was looking forward to seeing Froch get smashed...but hey if he wins good for him.
Cant even get the live streaming as its only in UK...does anyone know how i can get it??

try justin tv or myp2p.eu and dl sopcast program or tvu.

[Dubious-Dutch]

Didnt Steve Bunce say they were asking for too much? part of me wants him to win because ****** Americans are saying Froch is a bum another Gary Lockett. But part of me wants him to lose badly as he has hyped himself up so much and dogged Calzaghe so bad.

If Froch loses he might go into hiding.

Nobody is saying that about Froch and if they are it is a parody. There are far more people that predict a Froch win, including me.

[HattonFaithful]

man i really hope that this fight turns out to be as good as im hoping it will. im pickin taylor by decision

[Lacrimosa]

Froch looks like an owl... Can he turn his head 180 degrees?

[dstew]

More press conference quotes from Taylor and DiBella:

Taylor soaking up familiar experience
BY CHRIS GIVENS ARKANSAS ********-GAZETTE

NEW YORK — Gallagher’s Steak House in midtown Manhattan.

A private dining room packed to capacity with reporters, cameras and bright lights.

A mouthy, trash-talking opponent who holds a World Boxing Council championship belt.

Jermain Taylor couldn’t help but smile as a familiar scene played out in front of him Wednesday.

Taylor’s career has come full circle, as proved by Wednesday’s news conference, thefinal one before Saturday’s WBC super middleweight title fight between Taylor and Carl Froch. The fight will take place at MGM Garden Arena in Mashantucket, Conn.

Taylor was back at Gallagher’s for the first time since a May 2005 news conference announcing the Taylor-Bernard Hopkins middleweight championship fight. Taylor beat Hopkins to win the title that July, but since then Taylor has lost his belts and again finds himself as the challenger hoping to join boxing’s ruling class.

The New York landmark restaurant’s private upstairs room was swarmed with reporters Wednesday, a far cry from the sterile Vanderbilt cafeteria where Taylor held his last prefight news conference in November before facing Jeff Lacy.

Taylor said he has missed thebright lights.

“It’s good to be back,” said Taylor, of Little Rock. “I don’t mean back in boxing. I mean back in the limelight, back in the almost-No. 1 position. I’ve been here before.

It’s a great feeling.

“My last fight with Jeff Lacy, I don’t think I saw none of you reporters. There were a couple of cameras, and they were the throw-away kind.

“I’ve missed this. I missed being in the No. 1 position, and I have to go through Carl to get it. So, that’s what I’ve got to do.”

Taylor (28-2-1, 17 KOs) appeared at ease. He repeatedly talked about how excited he was to know that he will soon be champion again, much to the irritation of Froch (24-0, 19 KOs).

“I’m glad he’s underestimating me,” said Froch, of Nottingham, England. “Maybe he’s covering up, maybe it’s a smokescreen. But he sure seems confident and happy, a bit cheeky, talking about taking my belt.

“Whether he’s underestimating me or not, he’s in for a serious shock Saturday night.”

Then Froch, while still addressing the reporters, turned to look directly at Taylor. Froch was playing the trash-talking champion’s role - one in which Hopkins excelled - to perfection.

“Jermain Taylor seems very confident, talking about being back in the No. 1 spot. But make no mistake, that’s my belt,” Froch said. “From the sounds of the way Jermain Taylor is talking, he’s going to be very disappointed come Sunday morning. He really is. He’s looking at the champion right now.

“I think he knows, deep down, that he’s in deep water.”

Taylor clapped his hands and laughed.

“If he’s that great a swimmer, I guess I’ll have to beat him up on the beach,” Taylor said later. “I love that. When we’re in the ring fighting, I need that. [Froch] can never get into my head. I don’t know what he’s trying to do, but it won’t work.

“If Hopkins can’t get in my head, no one can.”

Lou DiBella, Taylor’s promoter, was there when Hopkins tried to intimidate Taylor. DiBella said it didn’t work then, and it won’t work now.

“I think Jermain likes that kind of stuff,” DiBella said. “Froch talks alot of s***, and so far he’s been able to back it up. But talking like that and fighting Jermain Taylor is a whole different ballgame. When a guy barks in his face and makes it personal, Jermain tends to respond well to it.”

Taylor said he also responds well to pressure, like the kind he will face Saturday night, knowing that a loss will end his hopes of regaining elite status.

If dealing with hordes of reporters was a prelude to that pressure, Taylor did just fine Wednesday. Of course, he has some experience in that area.

“I like that we’re here with this many camera crews, this many people,” DiBella said. “When he’s fighting, the spotlight agrees with Jermain Taylor. It motivates him. It doesn’t work the other way. He doesn’tget nervous by it.”

“I remember sitting in the same place when I fought Hopkins,” Taylor said. “I’m telling you, I’m back, y’all, and I’m not playing with this boy.

“I’m needing that No. 1 spot, and I’ll do anything to get it.”