'Fight someone your own size'

May 19 2007 By The Journal

Jermain Taylor says he has no worries about growing criticism of his reign as world middleweight champion as he prepares to defend his WBC and WBO belts against Cory Spinks in Memphis tonight.

Spinks is the third consecutive natural light-middleweight Taylor will have fought since claiming the title over two fights with the fading former champion Bernard Hopkins in 2005.

But despite leaving his genuine 160lb rivals out in the cold and gambling the future prospect of a fight with WBO super-middleweight king Joe Calzaghe in the process, Taylor is unperturbed.

Taylor, who has won 26 of his fights against one controversial draw against Winky Wright last year, said: "I sit here undefeated no matter what any of the writers or other middleweights write or say.

"I am just going to win, that's what I do. I have got a lot of people saying `you do this wrong, you do that wrong', but I always win somehow.

"I don't go in there thinking about how I'm looked at - I go in there to win."

Spinks, a former undisputed welterweight champion who was a replacement for former Contender star Sergio Mora, would appear to have no business entering the middleweight division against Taylor.

But Spinks hopes family history can repeat itself, with father `Neon' Leon and uncle Michael both winning world titles by beating men who weighed considerably heavier than them.

Spinks will have his father in his corner for the first time. He said: "It's a boost. Having that guy in my corner is a blessing.

"This is my time, I am ready, and I plan to shock the world."

Spinks stands a chance. An excellent mover and superb defensive boxer, he has what it takes to frustrate the swarming and relatively one-dimensional Taylor and haul the fight into the gruelling later rounds.

That was what the equally slippery Wright, who also gave away significant weight, managed against Taylor last June.

Wright believed he had done enough before the bout was declared a draw.

Claiming a points decision is a major task but it is not out of the question for Spinks, who is arguably hungrier than a champion who shows little apparent interest in establishing any sort of enduring middleweight legacy.

It would certainly be a win which would add another chapter to the extraordinary story of the Spinks fighting family. And it would scupper the ambitions of Calzaghe, who is expected ringside for the contest. Calzaghe and his promoter Frank Warren hope to entice Taylor to Britain for a super-fight later this year. But Taylor's latest intimations appear to suggest he will price himself out of the market.

First he must see off Spinks, which he ought to do given Spinks' record of hitting the canvas twice at welterweight against Zab Judah. But if focus is the key, Spinks could be about to take his father on a memory jog to remember.