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For those of you who have gone through hell and high water to defend “the Pride of Wales”, it appears that your loyalty and stern resolve may finally be paying off.
Joe Calzaghe’s hope of becoming a household name in the US seems to be coming to fruition at the able hands of boxing network giant HBO. The Welsh warrior will be seated ringside in Memphis as a spectator while universally recognized middleweight champion Jermain Taylor defends his WBC and WBO titles for the sixth time, against former 154 lb and 147 lb champion Cory “The Jinx” Spinks.
Seeing that most consider Taylor vs. Spinks to be a tune up for the middleweight champ, Calzaghe and his promoter Sports Network now seem poised to break the bank with a $4 to $6 million dollar offer in order to secure a shot with the budding young American star Jermain Taylor, in what this writer considers an easily winnable bout for the Italian Dragon.
With that being said, one must stop and smell the roses blooming further down the row, on the other side of the garden.
For almost the better half of a decade, Calzaghe has had his heart set on one thing, conquering the former middleweight king Bernard Hopkins. In the past, Hopkins has supposedly priced himself out of lucrative bouts with Roy Jones Jr., Calzaghe, and James Toney.
Roughly two years ago, negotiations and purses began bouncing left and right across the pond as Sports Network and Calzaghe tried to entice Hopkins into globetrotting over to Cardiff for a super fight in Joe’s backyard. It would have been a big money fight and one that the purists could have sunk their chompers into.
Whether the fight fell apart over egos, stomping grounds, or monetary constraints it matters not…because we may actually be on the threshold of possibilities.
Of late, Hopkins has expressed a desire to match wills and skills with Calzaghe due to the fact that Joe recently made the 20th defense of his super middleweight title, thus matching Hopkins record of 20 consecutive defenses at middleweight and driving a nail into the unsealable coffin of Hopkins’ pride.
One can only imagine Hopkins’ desire to face Calzaghe if Joe were to conquer Jermain Taylor, who has bested Hopkins twice and drawn with Winky Wright, Bernard Hopkins’ next opponent at light heavyweight.
Ronald “Winky” Wright has already proven to be the dark horse of boxing in both the 154 lbs and 160 lbs divisions. This writer, both a die hard fan of Hopkins and Winky, has serious doubts regarding whether or not Winky can rise to the occasion and conquer another weight class..especially against such a seasoned veteran as Bernard Hopkins.
Depending on how the chips may fall over the course of two or three upcoming championship matches, Sports Network could make or break Calzaghe by not securing the Taylor match. Taylor now seems as critical to Joe’s future as Jeff Lacy was a year and a half ago.
Many fans and boxing pundits argue amongst themselves that the door opening clinic Calzaghe put up against Lacy was slammed shut by Sports Network and that Taylor may be Calzaghe’s only way to saving face within the boxing scene.
One thing is certain, a win over Taylor goes a step further into securing bigger and better things like the winner of Hopkins vs. Wright but the question remains; will Calzaghe’s future sail across the pond or sink into obscurity at the bottom of the lake?
Time will tell, but this writer is hoping that the oars start parting the waters as Calzaghe and company push onwards stateside.
