Jermain Taylor

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Jermain Taylor : biography

August 11, 1978 –

Professional career

In December 2000, Taylor signed with boxing promoter Lou DiBella. Pat Burns became Taylor’s trainer as a professional and Ozell Nelson became an assistant. He made his professional boxing debut on January 27, 2001, at Madison Square Garden in New York City against Chris Walsh. Taylor managed to knock Walsh down twice with his right hand and won his debut after forcing a stoppage with 16 seconds left in the fourth and final round. He went on to fight six more times in 2001, resulting in six more victories. Taylor continued his winning streak through 2002 and 2003, before defeating Alex Bunema on March 27, 2004. Taylor’s next bout occurred on June 19, 2004 against former IBF Light Middleweight Champion Raúl Márquez. Taylor controlled the fight by using his jab and right hand throughout the one-sided contest. Near the end of the ninth round, Taylor landed a right uppercut that staggered Márquez. A follow-up right hand put Márquez down just before the bell rung to end the round. Soon after Márquez arrived to his corner, his trainer told the referee to stop the fight, resulting in a technical knockout victory for Taylor. On December 4, 2004, Taylor fought former WBA Middleweight Champion William Joppy in his hometown of Little Rock. For the majority of the fight, Joppy made the more aggressive Taylor chase him, while landing few punches and seeming more content to frustrate Taylor. Taylor landed several punches early in the fight and knocked Joppy down in the fifth round en route to a unanimous decision victory with scores of 120–107 from all three judges. In his next bout, Taylor fought Daniel Edouard on February 19, 2005. In the third round, Taylor landed a 10-punch combination that hurt Edouard to the point that the referee decided to stop the fight.

Fights with Hopkins

Taylor fought Bernard Hopkins for the Undisputed Middleweight Championship on July 16, 2005 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada. At age 40, Hopkins entered the bout with a record 20 consecutive successful title defenses and had not lost a fight in 12 years. Hopkins entered the boxing match as a 3–2 favorite to win. Taylor was able to successfully use his jab to control the first two rounds of the fight, though neither fighter was taking any major risks. He tended to move forward, while Hopkins was patient and waited for openings in Taylor’s defense. In round five, a clash of heads opened a cut on the top of Taylor’s head. In the tenth round, Hopkins hurt Taylor with two right hands that made his legs wobble and forced him to clinch. Taylor won the bout by split decision with two judges scoring the fight 115–113 for Taylor and the other judge scoring it 116–112 for Hopkins. With the victory, Taylor became the new Undisputed Middleweight Champion, winning the WBC, WBO, IBF, WBA (Super) Middleweight titles and The Ring Middleweight Championship. Hopkins appealed the decision, but was denied by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.

On December 3, 2005, Taylor defeated Hopkins by unanimous decision in a rematch at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas. In order for the rematch to occur, Taylor vacated his IBF Middleweight title on October 12, 2005. Days before the fight, tensions rose after Hopkins mocked Taylor’s speech impediment and called him a "phony champion." Taylor responded by bringing a doll with Hopkins’ name on it to the final prefight press conference to suggest that he was a "crybaby." In a similar situation to the first fight, Hopkins started slowly and began pressuring Taylor in the later rounds. Hopkins ended the fight with a 101–60 advantage in power punches, while Taylor had success with his jab, outlanding Hopkins 64–29. All three judges scored the bout 115–113 for Taylor. After the fight, Taylor said that he would welcome a challenge against the winner of a fight between former Undisputed Light Middleweight Champion Winky Wright and Sam Soliman. On December 10, 2005, Wright defeated Soliman by unanimous decision to retain his number one position in the WBC and WBA Middleweight rankings and take over the number one spot in the IBF Middleweight rankings.