meldrick did like his shorts. I remember whatching him one time and he had black leather shorts studded with chains and rivets- he looked like a bondage gimp, albeit a bondage gimp who could kick serious arse!
That was against Espana, in a fight where he most certainly didn't do any ass-kicking. One of the most brutally one-sided fights of the 90's. Espana demolished him.
That was straight after Taylor-Norris too so Meldricks management sure didn't give him much respite. Whatever happened with Espana? He thrashes Taylor defends a few times then gets stopped late in a close,gruelling fight with a peak Ike Quartey (absolutely no shame in that) and then nothing. He really could've added to the deep mix of top mid 90's Welterweights (Trinidad,Ike,Oscar,Pernell,Lopez) if he kept his form but it didn't happen.
He didn't have a long time at the top, that's for sure. I think the Quartey loss took something out of him at that age. Shame, as prior to the stoppage I had him winning that fight pretty clearly. A prime Espana would've given anyone since hell at Welterweight, in my opinion, and beaten a good amount of them as well.
I know taylor didnt win in his leather & chains but hed been a great fighter. Those shorts against espana were roton luck, whoever talked him into wearing the gimp shorts!! They were even more alarming than the beating he took. It was a double whammy.
