Meldrick Taylor vs. Courtney Hooper

Taylor throws a right at Hooper

Meldrick Taylor 140 lbs beat Courtney Hooper 140 lbs by UD in round 12 of 12

• Date: 1989-09-11
• Location: Caesars Hotel & Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA
• Referee: Frank Cappuccino
• Judge: Tony Wolfe 118-110

  1 10 9	2 10 9	3 10 9	4 10 9	5 10 9	6  9 10	7 10 9	8 10 9	9 10 9	10 10 9	11  9 10	12 10 9

• Judge: John Stewart 117-111

  1 10 9	2 10 9	3 10 9	4  9 10	5 10 9	6 10 9	7  9 10	8 10 9	9 10 9	10 10 9	11  9 10	12 10 9

• Judge: Gary Merritt 118-110

  1 10 9	2 10 9	3 10 9	4 10 9	5 10 9	6 10 9	7  9 10	8 10 9	9 10 9	10 10 9	11  9 10	12 10 9

• IBF Junior Welterweight Championship (2nd defense by Taylor)

Taylor Tames Hooper In Title Bout
By Robert Seltzer, Philadelphia Inquirer, September 12, 1989

ATLANTIC CITY — Meldrick Taylor has begun a quest for the most elusive title in boxing - a title that can be bestowed but not won.

It is the honor of being considered "the greatest fighter in the world pound for pound."

That title is as unofficial as it is prestigious, but if Taylor ever acquires it, it may be because of such performances as the one he delivered last night.

Taylor, defending the International Boxing Federation version of the junior-welterweight title, won a unanimous decision over a determined but outclassed Courtney Hooper in a 12-round bout at Caesars Atlantic City Hotel- Casino.

Judges Anthony Wolfe and Gary Merritt scored it 118-110, and judge John Stewart had it 117-111.

Taylor, the 1984 Olympic gold medalist from Philadelphia, raised his record to 22-0-1; Hooper, of Detroit, fell to 24-2.

"Taylor, Taylor, Taylor," the crowd shouted when the decision was announced.

Taylor boasts as much talent as any fighter in the sport, but his skills are outmatched by his ambition. The champion had been brilliant in recent outings, but this driven athlete wanted to be spectacular.

He came close last night, though he became sloppy toward the end of the bout. The champion boxed and punched with equal facility, dictating the pace so thoroughly that, early in the fight at least, he seemed to be shadowboxing. Like most great fighters, he embodied a curious paradox, displaying a style that was both creative and mechanical - creative because he fired combinations

from all angles, mechanical because he did so with an almost arrogant ease.

Taylor (140 pounds), coming off an eight-month layoff after two operations to an injured knee, showed some signs of ring rust, but not enough to affect the outcome. He charged at his opponent (139 1/2 pounds) at the opening bell, throwing combinations so rapidly that he landed six punches before Hooper could react. The champion seemed intent on delivering the knockout he had predicted before the fight.

"It was a tremendous win for me," said Taylor, 22. "I'm very happy with the victory, because I came through a lot of adversity with my knee operations. I think I picked up where I left off."

Hooper scored effectively with the right in the third round, but the blows only spurred the champion to fight even more furiously. The challenger would land a solid blow only to take six in return.

Hooper, his mouth gaping open and his arms hanging at his sides, seemed to lose steam by the fourth round. Taylor, who had been concentrating on the head in the early rounds, took advantage of this stationary target by going to the body. He landed crunching hooks and uppercuts to the ribs that seemed to slow an already weary fighter.

Hooper showed flashes of skill, but Taylor was too aggressive to let those flashes become sustained rallies. Taylor seemed more determined to score a knockout in the later rounds, fighting inside and taking unnecessary chances. In the seventh round, he began bleeding from the mouth, and the cut apparently persuaded him to adopt the wiser strategy of darting inside, throwing combinations and retreating before his opponent could counter.

"I hurt him," said Hooper, 26. "I wanted to intimidate him so he would lose his composure, but he kept his composure. I couldn't catch him with a clean punch."

Taylor returned to his flat-footed stance in the 10th round, apparently hoping to land one big punch, and the tactic cost him. Hooper landed a solid right to the jaw in the middle of the round, stopping the champion in his tracks, and the crowd began chanting, "Hoop, Hoop, Hoop." The cheers did not last long; Taylor rebounded to land about 12 unanswered blows to the head as the bell rang to end the round.

Taylor, angered by a low blow in the 11th round, stormed out for the final round with the same fury and determination he had shown in the first. He threw punches for almost the entire three minutes. Taylor would have gotten his knockout against almost any other opponent, but Hooper compensated for his poor defense with a remarkably strong chin.

"I predicted a knockout," Taylor said. "But you all saw what happened. I threw a lot of punches that would have knocked out the average contender. I don't know . . . I guess he was determined not to get knocked out."

Taylor is hoping to meet Julio Cesar Chavez, the World Boxing Association junior-welterweight champion, in January, but that bout seemed to be threatened with recent reports that Chavez was trying to break away from promoter Don King. Dan Duva, who promotes the IBF champion, said he was optimistic that the fight would go on as planned. King has assured HBO that Chavez will meet Taylor early next year, Duva said.

On the undercard, Kimmuel Odum knocked out Art Tucker in the ninth round of a scheduled 10-round heavyweight contest; Romallis Ellis stopped Tony King in the second round of a scheduled six-round, junior-welterweight bout, and Fernando Rodrigues scored a first-round knockout over Curtis Dockery in a scheduled four-round featherweight bout. [1]