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Taylor gets hit with 1-2
BY CHRIS GIVENS
A Jermain Taylor-Winky Wright fight moved one step closer to reality Monday, which is about one step closer than team Taylor wants right now.
World Boxing Council President Jose Sulaiman ordered Taylor’s and Wright’s camps to begin negotiations for a mandatory title defense between the two middleweights, who are universally regarded as the top two boxers in the 160-pound division.
After Taylor defended his WBC, WBO and WBA belts with a victory over Bernard Hopkins on Dec. 3, Taylor’s promoter, Lou DiBella, announced that Taylor’s next fight would be against a lesser-known fighter at Alltel Arena in a homecoming fight.
However, unless Wright agrees to allow Taylor to take another fight, Taylor will be forced to choose between fighting Wright next, likely in Las Vegas again, or vacating his WBC belt.
DiBella said a Taylor-Wright fight will happen, at some point. But after what DiBella called Wright’s less-than-inspiring victory over Sam Soliman in front of 4, 682 fans in Uncasville, Conn., on Saturday, he thinks both Taylor and Wright should have at least one more fight before facing each other.
But DiBella also said Taylor will not give up the WBC belt for a homecoming fight.
“We were not surprised [by the WBC ordering negotiations ], we were not shocked,” DiBella told the Arkansas ********-Gazette. “I just don’t think it’s [a Wright-Taylor fight ] a big pay-per-view fight right now, it needs building. Winky’s fight on Saturday night didn’t help him at all. He didn’t look good, and he didn’t draw well. The fight with Jermain is not ready yet.
“ Besides, we’d get a huge gate for a fight in Little Rock, and Jermain really wants to fight there.”
Under WBC orders, DiBella and Wright promoter Gary Shaw will have a “free negotiation” period that will last until Jan. 20. If no agreement is reached by that time, a purse bid would be ordered on that date in Mexico City.
At the purse bid, whichever promoters choose to participate will make a silent bid on the fight, and the highest bid wins the right to promote the fight. Taylor, as champion, would earn 75 percent of the winning bid with the remaining 25 percent going to Wright, the challenger.
“I am extremely pleased with the WBC’s decision to proceed with the mandatory title defense, and I look forward to meeting Jermain head-on in the ring in my next fight,” Wright said in a statement. “Everyone knows that after every fight, I have always asked for another big fight. No breathers for me. I only want the biggest fights against the best fighters because I am a competitor and I believe a champion should act like a champion. Now we are going to see who the best middleweight really is — Jermain Taylor or me.”
DiBella said he hopes something can be worked out during the free negotiation period that will allow Taylor to take an optional defense in a March or April fight in Arkansas. That could involve Taylor giving Wright some “step aside” money and / or guarantee Wright a lucrative spot on a Taylor undercard.
Sources indicated Wright wants a 50 / 50 split with Taylor, which DiBella said is out of the question.
DiBella said he doubted the two sides could reach an agreement. If the sides go to a purse bid, a location and date would be turned in with any bid.
“We’ll commence negotiations and see what happens,” Di-Bella said. “I doubt we will reach an agreement, but we could. If we don’t and it goes to a purse bid, we get the majority of the revenue, so we’ll see if Winky fights for 25 percent. But we’re not going to give up the [WBC ] title to avoid Winky Wright.”
Taylor’s mandatory defenses for his WBO and WBA belts are not due for another 12 months, making this the top priority.
In the meantime, sources have told the ********-Gazette that plans have already begun toward setting a Taylor fight at Alltel Arena. Dates have been discussed with Alltel Arena General Manager Michael Marion in March and April, and opponents have also been discussed.
Middleweights Soliman, Felix Sturm (the WBO No. 1 contender ) and Macelino Masoe were mentioned as possible opponents. Two super welterweights were also mentioned — IBF 154-pound champion Roman Karmazin and No. 3 contender Kassim Ouma.
DiBella said the ideal economic situation for both Taylor and Wright would be for Taylor to fight one of those five opponents, then look to Wright in late summer.
“I don’t think it’s out of the question that we could fight Winky next, but I think it’s idiotic and ******,” DiBella said. “We prefer to do the fight when it makes more sense, but we’ll pursue the negotiations and see what happens.”
BY CHRIS GIVENS
A Jermain Taylor-Winky Wright fight moved one step closer to reality Monday, which is about one step closer than team Taylor wants right now.
World Boxing Council President Jose Sulaiman ordered Taylor’s and Wright’s camps to begin negotiations for a mandatory title defense between the two middleweights, who are universally regarded as the top two boxers in the 160-pound division.
After Taylor defended his WBC, WBO and WBA belts with a victory over Bernard Hopkins on Dec. 3, Taylor’s promoter, Lou DiBella, announced that Taylor’s next fight would be against a lesser-known fighter at Alltel Arena in a homecoming fight.
However, unless Wright agrees to allow Taylor to take another fight, Taylor will be forced to choose between fighting Wright next, likely in Las Vegas again, or vacating his WBC belt.
DiBella said a Taylor-Wright fight will happen, at some point. But after what DiBella called Wright’s less-than-inspiring victory over Sam Soliman in front of 4, 682 fans in Uncasville, Conn., on Saturday, he thinks both Taylor and Wright should have at least one more fight before facing each other.
But DiBella also said Taylor will not give up the WBC belt for a homecoming fight.
“We were not surprised [by the WBC ordering negotiations ], we were not shocked,” DiBella told the Arkansas ********-Gazette. “I just don’t think it’s [a Wright-Taylor fight ] a big pay-per-view fight right now, it needs building. Winky’s fight on Saturday night didn’t help him at all. He didn’t look good, and he didn’t draw well. The fight with Jermain is not ready yet.
“ Besides, we’d get a huge gate for a fight in Little Rock, and Jermain really wants to fight there.”
Under WBC orders, DiBella and Wright promoter Gary Shaw will have a “free negotiation” period that will last until Jan. 20. If no agreement is reached by that time, a purse bid would be ordered on that date in Mexico City.
At the purse bid, whichever promoters choose to participate will make a silent bid on the fight, and the highest bid wins the right to promote the fight. Taylor, as champion, would earn 75 percent of the winning bid with the remaining 25 percent going to Wright, the challenger.
“I am extremely pleased with the WBC’s decision to proceed with the mandatory title defense, and I look forward to meeting Jermain head-on in the ring in my next fight,” Wright said in a statement. “Everyone knows that after every fight, I have always asked for another big fight. No breathers for me. I only want the biggest fights against the best fighters because I am a competitor and I believe a champion should act like a champion. Now we are going to see who the best middleweight really is — Jermain Taylor or me.”
DiBella said he hopes something can be worked out during the free negotiation period that will allow Taylor to take an optional defense in a March or April fight in Arkansas. That could involve Taylor giving Wright some “step aside” money and / or guarantee Wright a lucrative spot on a Taylor undercard.
Sources indicated Wright wants a 50 / 50 split with Taylor, which DiBella said is out of the question.
DiBella said he doubted the two sides could reach an agreement. If the sides go to a purse bid, a location and date would be turned in with any bid.
“We’ll commence negotiations and see what happens,” Di-Bella said. “I doubt we will reach an agreement, but we could. If we don’t and it goes to a purse bid, we get the majority of the revenue, so we’ll see if Winky fights for 25 percent. But we’re not going to give up the [WBC ] title to avoid Winky Wright.”
Taylor’s mandatory defenses for his WBO and WBA belts are not due for another 12 months, making this the top priority.
In the meantime, sources have told the ********-Gazette that plans have already begun toward setting a Taylor fight at Alltel Arena. Dates have been discussed with Alltel Arena General Manager Michael Marion in March and April, and opponents have also been discussed.
Middleweights Soliman, Felix Sturm (the WBO No. 1 contender ) and Macelino Masoe were mentioned as possible opponents. Two super welterweights were also mentioned — IBF 154-pound champion Roman Karmazin and No. 3 contender Kassim Ouma.
DiBella said the ideal economic situation for both Taylor and Wright would be for Taylor to fight one of those five opponents, then look to Wright in late summer.
“I don’t think it’s out of the question that we could fight Winky next, but I think it’s idiotic and ******,” DiBella said. “We prefer to do the fight when it makes more sense, but we’ll pursue the negotiations and see what happens.”
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