With all precincts long heard from, I saw it a must to peek in at the Saturday nite HBO tape replay of the Pavlik repeat  win over Jermain Taylor.

More over curiosity than anything else when seeing the do over at catch weights went the full twelve candles - we’re talking about future expectations for both the younger Pavlik and the veteran Taylor.

Unlike the first barn burner, this one showed both displaying better discipline than before - and with six stanzas in the books, my sheet had it Taylor up 6-4 at the halfway mark of a closely debated affair.

Then it would be Pavlik turning the tables over the backside and punctuating the win by claiming the critical closing stanzas eleven and twelve.

Rest of the story: Pavlik (33-0, 29 KOs) ~ age 25 is the key to bigger and better things. Has size at 6-2 and maybe couple more middleweight adventures as in unify. For now, the toughness is real, the conditioning on the mark. Still, if stepping up a rung at s/middle the need is in upgrading the arsenal with more than a current jab-right hand two-punch combo. The left-hook a must addition to the basic 1-2 that has sustained him to date. Were he mine, he’d be tossing left-hooks at the heavy bag from dawn to sunset until it routinely arrives behind the right hand. 
                           Taylor (27-2, 17 KOs) ~ age 29 at 6-1, and still young of body. Only strength sapper is the two Pavlik battles of attrition. Improved in technique in this one and finished with something still in the tank. Think dropping Steward a loyalty error. Will now continue at s/middle - and a Edison Miranda who has recently stepped up in weight could well tell rest of the Jermain Taylor story.

 

GEL