Calzaghe says Kessler would beat Pavlik-him too...

Joe Calzaghe was 5,000 miles away from Las Vegas, but his interest in the rematch between Kelly Pavlik and Jermain Taylor was greater than that of most people at ringside.


The 35-year-old super middleweight champion will challenge Bernard Hopkins for the world light heavyweight title on April 19, but Calzaghe's keeping his super middleweight belts.

There are only a select group of fighters whom Calzaghe wishes to encounter at this stage of his career. As he sat in the early morning watching the action taking place at the MGM Grand, he acknowledged that the winner of the Pavlik-Taylor rematch would be one of them.

"I'm only stepping up to light heavyweight because Hopkins wouldn't come down to super middleweight and I've always wanted to be a champion at two weights," the native of Wales explained. "I'd move back down again to fight either Pavlik or Taylor as either one would be a big fight."

[+] EnlargeChris Farina/Top Rank

Kelly Pavlik carried 164 pounds with ease. So what's stopping him from a move up to 168?
Even though Pavlik, who defeated Taylor by unanimous decision at a catchweight of 166 pounds, intends to return to 160 to face either Ireland's John Duddy or the faded remnants of Felix Trinidad in June, a potential meeting with Calzaghe would be fascinating.

Weighing within four pounds of the super middleweight limit, Pavlik still looked strong and his 6-foot-2 frame could carry another four pounds easily. Down the stretch, he demonstrated superior stamina and his ability to keep coming a woren-down Taylor's resolve.

Through 10 rounds, Calzaghe saw it close but he gave the last two to Pavlik. Calzaghe was impressed by Pavlik's relentlessness and his ability to adapt to a different kind of challenge than Taylor posed for him five months ago.

"Pavlik's a good champion and, yes, I'm impressed by him. He comes to fight and I like his no-nonsense style," Calzaghe explained. "In the first fight with Taylor, he showed great heart after being floored heavily in the second round and he came back to secure an exciting win. The rematch was more of a thinking fight and Pavlik showed that he could box a bit. Taylor's tactic was to sit back and box more and Pavlik dealt well with that and got a win that I thought he deserved. He's a young kid, too, and he'll get better but he's doing fine just now."

Pavlik's dilemma is that there are no compelling challenges at 160. His chances of unifying the alphabet belts are slim, given that Germany's Felix Sturm and German-based Armenian Arthur Abraham hold two of them.

Those would be interesting fights: Sturm pushed Oscar De La Hoya to the precipice of an embarrassing defeat just three months prior to De La Hoya's knockout by Hopkins; Abraham is probably the better of the two, but he has boxed only once outside of Germany.

"From my own experience of trying to get a fight for many years with another German, Sven Ottke [who held a title at super middleweight for six years], I can assure Pavlik that he'll struggle to get a fight with either Abraham or Sturm," Calzaghe insisted. "Neither Ottke nor his promoter [Wilfried Sauerland] wanted to know."

So where can Pavlik go? Duddy is brave and he is also an attraction; he has built up a massive following in New York, having moved to the Big Apple from his native Derry. But Duddy's defense is too porous to leave him with a realistic chance of toppling Pavlik. Instead, the worry is that he could sustain a bad beating.

Trinidad is a fighter on the slide whose inactivity has created the illusion that he might still have something to offer at 35 years old. Surprisingly, many people were able to forget how ineffective he looked against Winky Wright in 2005 when he decided to come back last month to face Roy Jones, who was able to have his way with him.

Wright, Sebastian Sylvester, Javier Castillejo, Amin Asikainen, Randy Griffin and Raymond Joval -- all ranked in the top 10 at middleweight by The Ring -- represent a distinctly uninspiring group of challengers for Pavlik. A confrontation at super middleweight with Calzaghe -- should the Welshman beat Hopkins and continue his career -- makes sense.

"Pavlik was able to grind it out and in the end he managed to bully Taylor a bit," Calzaghe said. "There were cracking body shots which seemed to take the wind out of Jermain."

Calzaghe feels he already has the blueprint to beat Pavlik.

"He's a bit crude, Pavlik, and doesn't do anything exceptional," Calzaghe said. "I'd stop him from jabbing with my movement and my workrate would wear him down late on. I don't see [Pavlik] beating Mikkel Kessler [whom Calzaghe defeated in November] because he wouldn't have the punching power to hurt him but I think he could be effective at super middle. He showed that last night [by] boxing just a few pounds under the super middleweight limit."


If Pavlik decides to go all the way, Calzaghe will be waiting.

Good read man. I'd love to see the fight, though I would prefer for Kelly to take a couple of fights at the full 168 to get acclimatized to the weight. Pavlik/Andrade would be great, as would Pavlik/Miranda so he can break Edison down again. After that, Pavlik in with either Calzaghe or Kessler would be huge fights, and serious tests for Pavlik.

I'll be amazed if Joe fights at 168 again.

I agree with most of what he says, except the part where he does not think Pavlik has the power to hurt Kessler. Pavlik I think has the power to hurt anyone up to and including Lt Heavy.

Pavlik might be crude in some aspects, but he is a legit challenge to anyone except for maybe a true speedster like Joe.

i like the way calzaghes become an expert and has the blueprint to beat pavlik, he'll no dbout side step pavlik if he beats hopkins.

i'm sorry but i just dont like joe anymore, hes a good fighter, good hand and foot speed high workrate exciting style, longing reigning champ..................but he's stay away from the big names for far to long but he now pass's judgement on everyone else. i know i'm nit picking but its just i no longer am a fan of his............ years ago i thouight we in britan had a fighter who could hold a high ranking postion in the p4p ranks and give us a few big nights to remember as fans of the sport but he's stayed in a comfort zone for almost 10years and now wants world wide glory by fighting a semi retired 43year old b-hop

he's always talked himself up as a A grader but kept fighter at B grade level on home soil. ricky hatton is the p4p britsh number 1 still even after his lose. if joe beats b-hop it wont make much diff if you look at it on paper

What a joke ...... 10 years running away from top notch competition, a win against Kessler and the guy now thinks he owns the stage. What have you done for me lately? A few more big name wins for Pavlik and Joe will have to come down in weight to fight Pavlik and there I see him getting KTFO. That is if Senior Citizen BHOP does no expose him beforehand.

Absolute BS from Nuclear bull there the only time i see you post is the have a digg at Calzaghe, just another hater.

And a few more big name fights for pavlik and Joe will have retired by then
Addicted to boxing.If he fancies Calzaghe he would have to move to super middle on the double.

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Originally Posted by Addicted to_boxing

What a joke ...... 10 years running away from top notch competition, a win against Kessler and the guy now thinks he owns the stage. What have you done for me lately? A few more big name wins for Pavlik and Joe will have to come down in weight to fight Pavlik and there I see him getting KTFO. That is if Senior Citizen BHOP does no expose him beforehand.

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Such as???

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Addicted to_boxing

What a joke ...... 10 years running away from top notch competition, a win against Kessler and the guy now thinks he owns the stage. What have you done for me lately? A few more big name wins for Pavlik and Joe will have to come down in weight to fight Pavlik and there I see him getting KTFO. That is if Senior Citizen BHOP does no expose him beforehand.

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Sorry but your well off on this one, the division has been weak but Calzaghe beaten every Super Middleweight that had to be beat except Ottke who didn't want no part of Calzaghe. All the other big names were at different weight classes.

Pavlik - Kessler would be a very good fight.I think who ever get the jab working first wins the fight on points.

I could see Pavlik/Lacy happening at some point, but I would love to see Kess/Pavlik. Pavlik may make a few defenses at MW, but his biggest fights are all at 168. Maybe he can make a fight with Sturm, but AA won't leave Germany and Kelly shouldn't have to go to Germany.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by NUCLEAR BULL

i like the way calzaghes become an expert and has the blueprint to beat pavlik, he'll no dbout side step pavlik if he beats hopkins.

i'm sorry but i just dont like joe anymore, hes a good fighter, good hand and foot speed high workrate exciting style, longing reigning champ..................but he's stay away from the big names for far to long but he now pass's judgement on everyone else. i know i'm nit picking but its just i no longer am a fan of his............ years ago i thouight we in britan had a fighter who could hold a high ranking postion in the p4p ranks and give us a few big nights to remember as fans of the sport but he's stayed in a comfort zone for almost 10years and now wants world wide glory by fighting a semi retired 43year old b-hop

he's always talked himself up as a A grader but kept fighter at B grade level on home soil. ricky hatton is the p4p britsh number 1 still even after his lose. if joe beats b-hop it wont make much diff if you look at it on paper

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Let me get this straight, you're a fan of Calzzaghe for a number of years, yet when he finally unifies the division (in impressive fashion) and moves up a division to fight a legend on his own soil, you go off him??????????????

Perhaps if he refused to fight Kessler on the grounds he didn't want to give him a payday he'd have earned more respect from you.

don't think joe has faced anyone like kelly yet. kessler looked too timid and afriad of getting into a brawl with joe, i thought he was winning the first few rounds until joe starting to step up the pace. even if joe beat bernard, he's an old champ that lost twice to taylor twice, one win against a B rated fighter in tarver shouldn't make him a pound for pound fighter. so this fight if it ever does take place would be awsome for both guys. if joe can take this fight, don't think anything can say much after.....

Quote:

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Originally Posted by RozzySean

I could see Pavlik/Lacy happening at some point, but I would love to see Kess/Pavlik. Pavlik may make a few defenses at MW, but his biggest fights are all at 168. Maybe he can make a fight with Sturm, but AA won't leave Germany and Kelly shouldn't have to go to Germany.

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I think pavlik would beat up lacy. From looking by how he seemed so much in his comfort zone with Miranda, I think sluggers should avoid him.