Meldrick Taylor: What Could've Been?

Durability was going to be an issue with him regardless. Especially in the hot era in which he fought.

 

I think regaurdless of what did happen or what could have happened or what should have happened after Chavez knocked him down. The Chavez fight was the beganing of the end for him.

 

I've always thought that Taylor was too stubborn to become an ATG. He could have safely boxed Chavez to a win. Why? Why did he opt to stay close?

 

I definately think he could have become an ATG.

 

Heart over mind. Meldrick is one of my fav fighters and I'll always be a fan.:good ATG, HOF, or not he's very entertaining and I look forward to getting his career set:bbb

 

He wasn't big enough to compete at welterweight. Many of the welterweights then were around 6 feet tall, far bigger than Meldrick. He could have only been a force at 140.

 

He could perhaps have got a bit more mileage out of his career if he got the right matchups if we assume he never fought Chavez:

e.g.

Camacho/Haugen in 1990 @ 140
Aging Starling in 1990 @ 147
Maurice Blocker in 1991 @ 147
Aaron Davis in 1991 @ 147
McGirt rematch in 1992 @ 147
Whitaker @ 147 in 1993

That's about as good a trajectory for his prime as he would have been likely to see.

Facing guys like Chavez, Tito, Quartey and maybe even an aging Brown would have been disastrous for him.

 

Blocker was too big of a risk at 6'2. He was also tough to beat when you couldn't knock him out. Other than that I agree.

 

Maybe... I think Meldrick's speed and aggression would have troubled him though. He wasn't the biggest hitter in the world either, which would give Meldrick a chance to get on the inside and flurry away a bit.

 

Looking at the welterweight division of the early 1990's, there really aren't any "safer" opponents for Meldrick than Maurice Blocker so maybe you're right. Being 5'7 sounds like a mismatch against a 6'2 opponent though, not that Blocker was so great that Meldrick Taylor wouldn't have had a reasonable chance against him.

Taylor beat Luis Gabriel Garcia by a split decision in 1991 so perhaps I'd have that fight take place instead of Taylor vs Blocker.

I think he would have given decent showings against McGirt again and Whitaker and thus would likely be viewed as a greater fighter than he turned out to be under that scenario.

 

Without the Chavez fight which left him a bit vulnerable, I'd say he would have made a pretty good fist of it against all those guys listed and would have been looked at as quite a bit better overall. I don't think we should assume the Taylor that fought Garcia & Espana would be the same Taylor that would face a Blocker in 1991 in this hypothetical - though I suppose some might argue that Chavez didn't really damage him significantly anyway, and it was Norris more than anything that put an end to him. I wouldn't agree with that. He definitely lost something after the Chavez fight.

 

And Curry, Leonard, and basically Mugabi. Norris at his best was a beast.

 

Exactly! His greatest assets were footwork & blazing speed, which could only be diminished at a heavier weight. Plus as fast as Meldrick was he didn't have the big power punch. Which would be less effective at a higher weight. Also he liked to exxchange punches. and against bigger 147 Lb. fighters, He would feel the effects even more so. Add up all of these factors & the result of Meldrick moving up was inevitable.

 

Whatever Meldrick Taylor may have had left in him as a top class fighter, the Norris fight surely took it away. I never understood the decision to match a former 140 lber against the best 154 lber around. Taylor didn't have the power to bother Norris and Norris, not exactly known for his awesome chin, said he would simply walk through "pillow-punching" Meldrick Taylor, which he did.

Taylor seemed about as good as ever against Aaron Davis but struggled with Glenwood Brown, Garcia. Perhaps welterweight was never his ideal weight but I guess he would have performed better without the Chavez loss in between.