Mikkel "The Viking Warrior" Kessler

[Master]

Joe Galzaghe
Carl Froch
Jermain Taylor
Kelly Pavlik

[Phil]

Joe Galzaghe
Carl Froch
Jermain Taylor
Kelly Pavlik

Calzaghe done it, think Taylor would have a very good chance but would favor Kessler, don't think Froch or Kelly would beat him

[Lance Uppercut]

Joe Galzaghe
Carl Froch
Jermain Taylor
Kelly Pavlik

I am sure Kessler will have an opportunity to duck every one those fighters.

After all, he has spent the last year fighting the extremely dangerous Dimitri Sartison, and the explosive Danilo Haussler

Next for Kessler: TV personality Andy Dick; whom the WBA has named mandatory challenger for the WBA super-middleweight regular interim super title which Kessler has proudly defended against the worlds most talented tomato cans.

[El Kabong]

Jermain Taylor is a good one, I think he'll do well at 168.

Kelly Pavlik hasn't sold me at 168

Anthony Dirrell and Andre Ward might have a shot at him eventually

[Dizaster]

Are Taylor/Kessler scheduled?? I thought that Kess was having an incredibly hard time getting a fight with ANYONE, and Jermain was one of them?

Would love to see this fight though, and maybe I missed the news of these 2 guys being in talks or whatnot.

[CutMeMick]

Depending on what version of Taylor shows up....

I agree...

I think Jermain Taylor has looked pretty good in his last 2 fights, i think he matches up quite well with Mikkel Kessler.

You think he looked good in his last 2 fights...

He was out hustled vs. Pav in the rematch, yes he went the distance this time but still I wouldn't consider that a good performance considering he lost.

Then he fought Lacy in one of the more boring fights of last year. A fight which he was dropped but the ref. called it a slip and JT was hurt. Let's be honest here Lacy is not the hardest boxer to outbox.

I personally would say JT looked OK vs. Lacy he was working his jab and connecting with some good shots.

It would be a tactical battle, and i could see him outboxing the much more robotic and stiff Mikkel Kessler.

Kessler stiff & robotic? Really? Since when?

Last I checked Kess was considered a good boxer with angles and good combinations, good foot movement in the ring and a very good jab.

[El Kabong]

I thought Taylor did extremely well in the rematch vs Pavlik maybe did enough to win by some people's standards

[CGM]

I thought Taylor did extremely well in the rematch vs Pavlik maybe did enough to win by some people's standards

Agree. Taylor outboxed Pavlik. A little busier and all doubt would have been removed.

As for Kessler, I can see what ICB means about stiff and robotic, maybe mechanical is a better word, but defiinitely he's got a very conventional unimaginative style.

Kessler's ok, An average champ in a weak division. But I can't see him making any all time top 200 lists or anything.

[Dizaster]

Depending on what version of Taylor shows up....

I agree...

I think Jermain Taylor has looked pretty good in his last 2 fights, i think he matches up quite well with Mikkel Kessler.

You think he looked good in his last 2 fights...

He was out hustled vs. Pav in the rematch, yes he went the distance this time but still I wouldn't consider that a good performance considering he lost.

Then he fought Lacy in one of the more boring fights of last year. A fight which he was dropped but the ref. called it a slip and JT was hurt. Let's be honest here Lacy is not the hardest boxer to outbox.

I personally would say JT looked OK vs. Lacy he was working his jab and connecting with some good shots.

It would be a tactical battle, and i could see him outboxing the much more robotic and stiff Mikkel Kessler.

Kessler stiff & robotic? Really? Since when?

Last I checked Kess was considered a good boxer with angles and good combinations, good foot movement in the ring and a very good jab.

I agree with that.. He's an incredibly sharp and thoughtful boxer. He didn't quite have the best game plan and adaptability to hang with Joe for the 12 rounds, but he was with him for 8 or 9 of them. He's accurate and fast enough with the basics, combo's and angles to give most guys trouble if their defence isn't up to scratch.
A tough and rejuvinated Kess hitting the States will spell at least 10 rounds of trouble for whoever he's in with.
I don't see any of the guys around that weight making easy work of him by any means

[Rantcatrat]

Kessler should be a favorite against any current super middleweight contender. He would beat Froch, Taylor, and Bute. At 168, Kessler would beat Pavlik - recall Pavlik looked horrible at 170 and shouldn't fight at 168 until he can't fight at 160 any longer.

At 175, I would favor Dawson over Kessler. I'm not sure about Hopkins, but props to Kessler for calling Hopkins out after the Calzaghe/RJJ fight.

[Violent Demise]

Who can beat him

Nobody. Cuz he ain't been fighting anybody good. He's been facing crap fighters

Depending on what version of Taylor shows up....

I agree...

I think Jermain Taylor has looked pretty good in his last 2 fights, i think he matches up quite well with Mikkel Kessler.

You think he looked good in his last 2 fights...

He was out hustled vs. Pav in the rematch, yes he went the distance this time but still I wouldn't consider that a good performance considering he lost.

Then he fought Lacy in one of the more boring fights of last year. A fight which he was dropped but the ref. called it a slip and JT was hurt. Let's be honest here Lacy is not the hardest boxer to outbox.

I personally would say JT looked OK vs. Lacy he was working his jab and connecting with some good shots.

You serious? I actually thought it was a pretty entertaining fight. And I didn't consider that to be a knock down.

[ICB]

Depending on what version of Taylor shows up....

I agree...

I think Jermain Taylor has looked pretty good in his last 2 fights, i think he matches up quite well with Mikkel Kessler.

You think he looked good in his last 2 fights...

He was out hustled vs. Pav in the rematch, yes he went the distance this time but still I wouldn't consider that a good performance considering he lost.

Then he fought Lacy in one of the more boring fights of last year. A fight which he was dropped but the ref. called it a slip and JT was hurt. Let's be honest here Lacy is not the hardest boxer to outbox.

I personally would say JT looked OK vs. Lacy he was working his jab and connecting with some good shots.

It would be a tactical battle, and i could see him outboxing the much more robotic and stiff Mikkel Kessler.

Kessler stiff & robotic? Really? Since when?

Last I checked Kess was considered a good boxer with angles and good combinations, good foot movement in the ring and a very good jab.

Yes i do think Jermain Taylor looked good in his last two fights, when he fought Kelly Pavlik. In there 2nd fight thats the best Jermain Taylor has ever looked in any of his championship fights. He threw good combinations and looked sharp.

And also since when can't you look good just because you lose a fight ? i think everyone on this site was impressed with Jermain Taylor against Kelly Pavlik, and i think everyone agrees he looked better than he had in any other of his championship fights.

Roberto did you not see the replay regarding the Jeff Lacy/Jermain Taylor knockdown ? the replay clearly showed it wasn't actually a knockdown, the punch was on JT's shoulder as i remember it.

I don't know how you think Jermain Taylor didn't look good against Jeff Lacy, yes Jeff Lacy isn't one of the best Super Middleweights, but its still a decent win. And Jermain Taylor won almost every round except for 1 round on my card, and he was letting his hands go fine and his combinations looked pretty good to me. And i also agree with VD i didn't find the fight boring at all, let alone one of the most boring fights of the year, i think thats an over the top comment.

And yes Mikkel Kessler is robotic and stiff how can you say he isn't ? he is a very good fighter with good skills and a good jab, but he is a typical European fighter who stands straight up, and is stiff in his upper body movement. And robotic like similar to Kelly Pavlik but not quite like that.

[Trainer Monkey]

I used to like Kessler quite a bit,but since he hurt his hand before the Calzeghe fight, he doesnt look right.
I dont know if he cant get over being overworked by Joe, and cant get his confidence back, or if the hand never healed right.

[Rantcatrat]

Depending on what version of Taylor shows up....

I agree...


You think he looked good in his last 2 fights...

He was out hustled vs. Pav in the rematch, yes he went the distance this time but still I wouldn't consider that a good performance considering he lost.

Then he fought Lacy in one of the more boring fights of last year. A fight which he was dropped but the ref. called it a slip and JT was hurt. Let's be honest here Lacy is not the hardest boxer to outbox.

I personally would say JT looked OK vs. Lacy he was working his jab and connecting with some good shots.

It would be a tactical battle, and i could see him outboxing the much more robotic and stiff Mikkel Kessler.

Kessler stiff & robotic? Really? Since when?

Last I checked Kess was considered a good boxer with angles and good combinations, good foot movement in the ring and a very good jab.

Yes i do think Jermain Taylor looked good in his last two fights, when he fought Kelly Pavlik. In there 2nd fight thats the best Jermain Taylor has ever looked in any of his championship fights. He threw good combinations and looked sharp.

And also since when can't you look good just because you lose a fight ? i think everyone on this site was impressed with Jermain Taylor against Kelly Pavlik, and i think everyone agrees he looked better than he had in any other of his championship fights.

Roberto did you not see the replay regarding the Jeff Lacy/Jermain Taylor knockdown ? the replay clearly showed it wasn't actually a knockdown, the punch was on JT's shoulder as i remember it.

I don't know how you think Jermain Taylor didn't look good against Jeff Lacy, yes Jeff Lacy isn't one of the best Super Middleweights, but its still a decent win. And Jermain Taylor won almost every round except for 1 round on my card, and he was letting his hands go fine and his combinations looked pretty good to me. And i also agree with VD i didn't find the fight boring at all, let alone one of the most boring fights of the year, i think thats an over the top comment.

And yes Mikkel Kessler is robotic and stiff how can you say he isn't ? he is a very good fighter with good skills and a good jab, but he is a typical European fighter who stands straight up, and is stiff in his upper body movement. And robotic like similar to Kelly Pavlik but not quite like that.

Kessler doesn't fight like Pavlik at all. That isn't a good comparison.

Kessler may be robotic, but he is fast and fluid. I loved Emmanual Stewart's comment before the Calzaghe fight: "Like Kessler said, Calzaghe may be faster, but he's not THAT much faster."

Kessler fought two gimme fights. No more. He needs international exposure. Unfortunately, given the current economic climate, Kessler may need to take riskier fights for less money than he is used to. Maybe he needs to fight on Versus?

He came to NY to watch Calzaghe and Jones. He called out Bhop. He should fight Bhop at MSG or Atlantic City on HBO. Fighting Bute in Canada on Showtime would help too as would a fight with Jermain in Vegas on HBO. I would also understand a fight with Denis Inkin in Germany for the WB0 strap because it would build his resume although it may not help him obtain international exposure. Dawson at a catchweight of 170 would be interesting, but at 175 Dawson may be too much for Kessler. Or the risk may outweigh the reward. Kessler would dominate Froch and it wouldn't really garner him much exposure that he doesn't already have from British fans because of the media attention he received from the Calzaghe fight.

Kessler fought last at the end of October. He is due to line up a fight soon. Anything less than the following opponents would be disappointing:

1. Bhop at MSG at 170.
2. Jermain for the WBA strap in Vegas.
3. A fight for the IBF and WBA straps with Bute in Montreal.
4. A fight for the WBO and WBA straps with Inkin in Germany.
5. Dawson at a catchweight
6. Some top ten opponent like Allen Green on Versus.