Assuming Taylor gets by Lacy...which i think he certainly will and by stoppage IMO. Who would you favor in a Taylor vs Kessler fight?
Kessler. Better chin, better jab, higher workrate. Hand speed is quite similar, but Kessler puts combinations together better, throws his fast power punches with more disguise and fights better off the back foot too. Competetive, interesting fight, but Kessler is technically better.
people here have very short memories Taylor STIIL is a world class fighter and i think after the Lacy fight people will remember just how good he can be
Taylor is past his prime, thanks to getting his ass kicked x2 by Pavlik. Any decent fighter above 160 lbs will beat him nowadays. That does not include Jeff Lacy.
I think Kessler can win that one by KO and I also think Lacy can pull off an upset against him but I am favoring Taylor in that. The Taylor who showed up against Hopkins only showed up in the first Pavlik fight and was unlucky to lose imo. If he ever shows up again he can most definitely beat Kessler but it would be a pick em fight but if the Taylor who showed up in his last fight is the only Taylor we will be seeing from now on then I think you would have to say that even Lacy at current state stands a good chance.
JT is taking an unfair beating on this thread. I'd love to see him and Kessler. It's a very good fight with a good clash of styles. Here's the way I'd like to see it come about: Bika beats Manfredo for the vacant IBO title. Kessler beats Bika in his US debut, and looks REAL GOOD doing it. Froch beats Pascal. Taylor beats Lacy. Taylor becomes Froch's mandatory, and beats him. Taylor/Kessler becomes a very big unification bout, and a damn good fight.
economically if taylor beats lacy then the next fight that makes most sense is taylor v kessler ,and i do beleive that fight will happen if taylor comes through lacy unscathed.