Randy Couture faces Brock Lesnar this Saturday, but if MMA isn’t your thing then HBO has a nice alternative as Jermain Taylor takes on Jeff Lacy. Both men were members of the 2000 Olympic boxing team but Taylor was the only to emerge with a medal, winning a bronze in Athens. Both are also former world champions looking to get back into title contention. The fight is an eliminator for the WBC Super Middleweight title that was vacated by Joe Calzaghe when he moved up in weight. In the undercard, Kermit Cintron takes on Lovemore N’dou in an IBF Welterweight title eliminator.
Jermain Taylor vs. Jeff Lacy
Odds: Taylor -550; Lacy +350
Jermain Taylor built up quite an impressive undefeated streak which included two wins over Bernard Hopkins. Taylor has since lost his last two fights, both to Kelly Pavlik. This will be Taylor’s first fight at 168 pounds, a move Taylor has been saying would be more comfortable for him for the last couple of years. Taylor hasn’t knocked out an opponent in his last seven fights, with his last KO dating back to early 2005.
Jeff Lacy was the “next big thing” until Joe Calzaghe embarrassed him in 2006. Lacy suffered his first loss that night and despite winning his three fights since then, he hasn’t looked very good. He hurt his shoulder in his first fight after Calzaghe but shouldn’t have been given the decision in that fight against Vitali Tsypko. Lacy was rocked several times in his last fight against Epifanio Mendoza but was awarded a majority decision in a close fight. Lacy announced his retirement days later but that carries no merit in the sport of boxing (thanks Sugar Ray Leonard) and here he is fighting for a world title again.
Fight Predictions
Trent: Lacy’s fifteen minutes were up two years ago. His desire to box has dwindled and there is no reason to expect Lacy to show up motivated. This matchup reminds me of Oscar De La Hoya and Ricardo Mayorga in which Oscar basically picked the biggest name that he had no chance of losing to. Jermain Taylor needs a win after getting bested by Kelly Pavlik and Jeff Lacy presents the best low-risk resume builder. Lacy has never been knocked out in his career but that stops this weekend. Jermain Taylor will wear Lacy out and it won’t go the scheduled 12 rounds. Taylor by TKO in the 9th round.
Corey: Taylor is clearly the better boxer here and wins this one on points as it gets a bit dull down the stretch. I don’t expect Taylor to finish the job if Lacy is hurt, and I don’t really expect a drubbing either, though it should be a wide points win for the better man. Taylor will win a unanimous decision, something like 118-110. It will be a good win for Taylor to get some momentum going at 168lbs, a division he could definitely conquer within a year. For Lacy, this will probably be his last major fight. It’s sad to think he’s this close to retirement at so young an age.
I’m looking more forward to seeing Kermit Cintron and Lovemore NDou battle it out than anything else. NDou always comes to fight, and Cintron packs a hell of a punch. It will be interesting to see if Cintron can stop a guy that’s in his face all night but known to have a solid chin (NDou took Miguel Cotto’s best punches back in 2004). I see Cintron dropping him once or twice and winning a wide decision on points in a fight that isn’t boring by any stretch.
