MEMPHIS—The final press conference prior to Saturday’s showdown between World Boxing Council and World Boxing Organization middleweight champion Jermain “Bad Intentions” Taylor and International Boxing Federation super welterweight champion Cory “The Next Generation” Spinks, who is moving up to 160 pounds for this fight, took place today in the Grand Lobby of the FedExForum in Memphis.

The main event and Edison Miranda vs. Kelly Pavlik will be broadcast on HBO beginning at 10:15 p.m. ET/7:15 p.m. PT.

Why do you look and sound so confident?

Cory Spinks:  “I’ve finished my training and now I know I’m fully prepared to face Jermain on Saturday night.  I’ve come to win and I will win.  I don’t know if it’s going to go 12 rounds or if it will end in a knockout.  My goal is to pitch a shut out.”

Are you looking forward to having your dad, “Neon” Leon Spinks in your corner on Saturday night?

Cory Spinks:  “It’s a boost.  Having that guy in my corner is a blessing.  This is my time.  I’m ready.  I plan to shock the world on Saturday night.

“I’ve had enough of these press conferences and public appearances.  Now I’m just ready to fight.  I’ve prepared for months and now I’m ready to go.

Critics say Jermain is now facing opponents who are naturally smaller than him in you and Kassim Ouma.  How do you respond to that?

Cory Spinks:  “He picked the wrong guy this time, I’ll tell you that.  I’m comfortable at 160 pounds.  I feel stronger and I’m still fast.  I’m going to do what I do.

“Jermain and I are good friends.  We grew up together in the amateurs.  It’s like friends who play each other in basketball.  We’re boxers.  This is what we do.  We’re going to try to rip each other’s heads off in the ring on Saturday.  Count on that.”

Is there anything special you see in Jermain Taylor?

Kevin Cunningham (Cory Spinks’s longtime manager and trainer):  “I respect Jermain’s jab.  We’ve trained to deal with that strength of his.  Other than that, I’m not overly concerned about any of Jermain Taylor’s other skills in particular.

“You've got the bigger, stronger guy versus the slicker, quicker, faster guy.  Now let’s see what happens.”

Jermain Taylor:  “These guys [Cory Spinks, Edison Miranda and Kelly Pavlik] are nothing but money in the bank for me.  I sit here undefeated no matter what any of the writers or other middleweights write or say.

“I don’t do all this talking.  It doesn’t mean nothing to me.  It’s not the way I was raised.  I want to look and sound like I have some sense.

“When I’m in the ring I don’t play.  I stuttered when I was a kid so when a guy would start talkin’ to me, I’d just knock him out.  I got some dog in me.  I’m not scared of nobody.

Emanuel Steward (Jermain Taylor’s trainer):  “Jermain is tough.  He kept his titles because he fights hard.  He’s a fighter.  That’s what I love about Jermain Taylor.

“It’s going to be hard for anyone to take his titles away.  How can you look good against Cory Spinks?  He’s a great fighter, fast hands.  But Jermain will win because he’s a fighter.”

Don King:

Don King announced logos of two of his joint ventures will adorn the ring mat on Saturday night, My Lil Star diapers and Lloyd Price’s Lawdy Miss Clawdy sweet potato desserts, which Price says comes in 16 different flavors.

“We have the only sweet potato product in dessert form in the world,” Price said.  “We have them in cookies, pound cakes, cheesecakes, waffles, pancakes, flat bread, biscuits and more.”

They’re healthier than any dessert I’ve seen because they come from potatoes and they’ll be in Wal-Mart super centers beginning June 4 in Florida, Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and Georgia.”

5-17-2007