News - Jermain Taylor

The Bernard Hopkins-Jermain Taylor negotiations may have been drawn out, but IBF junior middleweight champion Kassim Ouma took five seconds to accept the Hopkins fight when ased if he would take the fight last week. "There was no hesitation," Ouma said. "I'm all about the challenge and proving who is best. Bernard Hopkins is the biggest test for any middleweight and I'm ready for him... read more ...

"Our greatest desire is to fight Bernard Hopkins and if something can be done to make this happen we would be on board," said Taylor promoter Lou DiBella, admitting the fight is indeed in trouble. Although financial terms for the July bout were agreed to and there are at least three sites interested in the fight, two key stumbling blocks remain that threaten to destroy one of the year's most anticipated matches. The first issue centers around the financial terms of a rematch clause, something that champions almost always require... read more ...

Undefeated IBF super middleweight champion Jeff Lacy has reiterated his offer to defend his title against undisputed middleweight champion Bernard Hopkins in light of comments made to the Las Vegas Review-Journal by Richard Schaefer, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions, Hopkins' promotional company, that there is still no deal for a fight against Jermain Taylor. Yesterday, Schaefer stated in an interview with the Las Vegas Review-Journal, "I keep reading where this fight is done, and I don't know where that's coming from...It sure is no done deal..." read more ...

Undisputed middleweight champion Bernard Hopkins and Jermain Taylor spoke publicly for the first time since agreeing to a July 16 PPV showdown on Friday night's ESPN2 "Friday Night Fights" telecast. Jermain, who was in the ESPN studio, was very respectful toward the champion, calling him "my idol." Later he said "I'm coming to fight. I'm ready. I'm training hard. I'm looking forward to the fight..." read more ...

- Knowing that you were on the undercard with Bernard and that you could potentially have a big fight with him down the line, did that affect your overall game plan and how you came out to fight? Jermain Taylor: "Could be. I felt a little bit of pressure. All the fans looking like, ‘Is he the future? Is he not the future?’ But I don’t worry about all that though, I just go in there and take care of business..." read more ...