Saw the earlier thread about Jermain and decided to score this one again. First time around I scored it 116-112 Taylor. This time I scored it a little closer, but still thought Taylor clearly won. Hopkins dug himself in a hole with inactivity and it was too much to overcome. Hopkins/Taylor 1.9-10 2.9-10 3.9-10 4.10-9 5.10-9 6.9-10 7.9-10 8.9-10 9.9-10 10.10-9 11.10-9 12.10-9 113/115 Taylor
I thought Hopkins did next to nothing for 8-9 rounds really, he gave the fight away, or Taylor took it from him, with all due respect to Taylor he was sharp as razors that night....
Taylor has a bit of a heros story though doesn't he, athlete turned to boxing to support his fatherless family and beating one of the greatest of all time for middleweight crown. He's 1 of the good guys but didn't really have enough of an interest in boxing to progress.
He really is one of the good men in the sport. I followed him closely during his rise and subsequent downfall, and it breaks my heart to see him continuing to take punishment and watch his faculties fading.
I ain't drinking the "Hops gave it away by doing nothing" kool aid...Taylor's effectiveness was dismal and it's not as though he swept all those rounds. God awful fights.
Even though Taylor stood there, 20 years younger and just took lead rights at will? And its his Hops' fault for it? :!:
I had it a draw but concede that if you had to award a win it goes to Taylor. Hopkins gave that fight away. Had it been a 15 rounder he would have stopped Taylor. The second fight Hopkins deserved. Taylor is tough to figure. He was pretty protected on the way up, then manages to beat Hopkins twice, then defends against three junior middleweights and doesnt look very convincing in any of those fights, then loses to Pavlik in his first defense against a full blown middleweight outside of Hopkins. He just never looked that good to me at the highest level of the sport.