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Battle Of Boxing’s Good Guys
It was once spoken by an idealistic young lass that there is no place like home. Recognized middleweight champion Jermain Taylor would surely echo those same sentiments as he gets the opportunity to ply his craft in front of his hometown congregation Saturday night at the Alltel Arena in Little Rock, Arkansas. This bout will mark the first time that Taylor will defend his middleweight crown in his hometown since wrangling the belts from future Hall of Fame inductee Bernard Hopkins. So who is the participant playing the role of spoiler in this equation? The hungry and dangerous Kassim Ouma.
Jermain Taylor’s meteoric rise to prominence came to fruition on July 16, 2005. It was on that night that Taylor shocked the world and scored a controversial split decision against the ruler of the middleweight division, Bernard Hopkins. Following this momentous victory was an immediate rematch with the miffed Hopkins.
While the outcome was just as controversial, Taylor did manage to win a unanimous decision that go around. After back to back battles with the extremely formidable Hopkins, Taylor’s next assignment was a much anticipated showdown with the adroit southpaw, Ronald “Winky” Wright.
Their showdown in Memphis was an entertaining affair that resulted in a somewhat disputed draw; Taylor’s third controversial ending in as many fights. Regardless of your opinion in those three fights, the simple fact remains that Taylor has gutted out 36 rounds with two of the most celebrated fighters of this era.
It’s not as if Jermain Taylor needed to spend the majority of 2005 and 2006 fighting future Hall of Fame pugilists to garner the fame and adulation he currently reaps. With his cordial demeanor and soft spoken southern charm, Taylor instantly became a media darling. It also didn’t hurt that he was a Bronze Medallist in the 2000 Olympics.
With medal in hand, it was not long before Taylor became a fixture on HBO and currently is the second biggest sports franchise in the state of Arkansas, after the Razorbacks of course.
While Jermain Taylor spent his childhood getting into mischievous adventures on the streets of Little Rock, Kassim Ouma was enduring horrors unimaginable to any child, or adult, for that matter.
Abducted from his home in Kampala, Uganda and forcefully recruited to fight as a solder in the national Resistance Army as a mere child, Ouma turned to boxing as a teenager in an attempt to escape the terrifying ordeals that his military duties subjected him to and in 1998 he had his chance. During an amateur boxing tour to the United States, Ouma defected and was granted political asylum.
With his infectious smile and energizing disposition, it’s hard for one not to instantly be taken in by such a positive persona. In fact, it is hard to believe that under such a jubilant individual would have survived horrors that would have consumed a lesser man’s soul.
Since dropping a unanimous decision to Roman Karmazin, Ouma has been on a tear in the junior middleweight division. He rebounded from his second career loss with a TKO victory over rugged fringe contender Freddie Cuevas. The same Freddie Cuevas went a full 12 rounds with Jermain Taylor two years earlier.
From there, Ouma went on to capture the vacant NABO Jr. Middleweight belt by stopping the durable Argentinean, Francisco Antonio Mora, in eight rounds. Ouma went on to defend his title with a hard fought victory over Marco Antonio Rubio, squeezing out a split decision to position himself as the WBC mandatory. However Ouma conclusively solidified his position as a major player in this sport with his thorough domination of celebrated young New York prospect, Sechew Powell.
With that win, Ouma was on the map once again and with that momentum an offer to play the spoiler in Taylor’s homecoming was set.
Kassim Ouma’s key to victory on Saturday night hinges on his ability to keep constant pressure on Taylor. Jermain Taylor likes to fight at his own pace and Ouma has the heart and ability to fire a never ending barrage of punches to keep the champion uncomfortable throughout the night.
Ouma would be well served to slip the piston like jab that Taylor posses, close the gap and let his hands go. If he can stay close to Taylor and not get caught on the end of the champion’s thudding rights, than it is very conceivable that Ouma could pull off the minor upset. This will be no easy day at the office for the smaller Ouma, but he has the heart and desire to bring the fight to Taylor.
The jab should be Jermain Taylor’s best friend on Saturday night and he will need to utilize that to keep the whirlwind of punches that is Ouma at bay. Once Taylor has Ouma measured at the end of his jab, he should follow up with his laser accurate right to the Ugandan challenger.
Taylor will be wise to impose his greater size on Ouma, who is a career jr. middleweight moving up a division for the fight. The main obstacle for Taylor will be keeping Ouma at a distance and not letting him get into any kind of rhythm. Not an easy task, regardless of what the betting lines may indicate.
This fight has every indication of being a real barn burner as Taylor is looking to win in decisive fashion to enrapture his hometown fans. Ouma is going into this fight looking to make a statement and carve his niche into boxing history. All I know is that at the end of the fight, fans can applaud the gallantry that these two individuals exemplify.
