Hypothetical matchup: Kessler vs. Taylor at 168

[jangeorg]

Who do you think will win and why?


Taylor is a big middleweight, but Kessler is a big supermiddleweight, so the size factor will be in play as well

[deliveryman]

lol... Taylor and easily.

Kessler isn't in Taylor's league.

[jangeorg]

lol... Taylor and easily.

Kessler isn't in Taylor's league.

Not sure about that

Kessler`s jab is so accurate; as well as being an offensive weapon, it breaks up his opponents' rhythm in a way that is confounding. Some ppl think all he does is stand in front of his foe & pump out repetitive left jabs, but that isn't true. He's an artist with the jab, very accurate & effective

[deliveryman]

Not sure about that

Kessler`s jab is so accurate; as well as being an offensive weapon, it breaks up his opponents' rhythm in a way that is confounding. Some ppl think all he does is stand in front of his foe & pump out repetitive left jabs, but that isn't true. He's an artist with the jab, very accurate & effective

Problem with that is, Taylor has an even better jab, which will undoubtedly negate Kesslers.

[TheHoff'sGhost]

both are overated imo but taylor is far better than kessler and would destroy him probably by ko within 6

[jangeorg]

Problem with that is, Taylor has an even better jab, which will undoubtedly negate Kesslers.

Taylor has too much going for him at 160. There are money fights, when the likes of Duddy are ready. There is a continuation of the amateur rivalry (ala Cotto-Pinto) with Sturm. A bout with entertaining slugger Miranda; prospects Al Green & Pavlik;tricky veteran Mundine who'd come down from 168 for a title shot. After some of those fights, he should demonstrate his improvement vs Wright. Get some closure, even if WW is hard to get in the ring JT's image needs a W over him.

Not sure he's as massive as ppl say he is. He has a very narrow waist and doesn't have big bones. If he were to move up, IMO he might look a bit bloated or overmuscled. A tad manufactured.

I feel a Taylor win is a tad fanciful for the moment. I mean, a lot of ppl were confident that he would demolish Wright. But no way did he do that, even though Wright had to come out of the comfort zone, it was pretty much a stalemate. Kessler (and Calzaghe for that matter) would be able to throw punches freely, and wouldn't have to fight out of character.

On top of that, if Taylor would be stronger at 168, there is a counter argument that fighting 168-pounders would be a real strain. Because he might not be used to fighting proper 160-pounders just yet.

There ARE ahortcuts in the Taylor body of work. When Kessler secures a truly outstanding opponent, he can say that he stepped it up to that level gradually. For me, Taylor's development suffered for a lack of good/decent middling opposition. He never really had to sustain quality boxing under real mental/physical pressure until 2005.
Given that both have warrior mentalities, and actually want to fight the best, it's best to have one at 160-pounds and another at 168! Maybe in 2 years they should fight