Kelly Pavlik (left) threw more punches and received more votes from the judges than Jermain Taylor in Las Vegas.
(JAE C. HONG/Associated Press)
LAS VEGAS - Kelly Pavlik is no one-hit wonder. With tactics instead of theatrics, he found another way to beat Jermain Taylor.
The knockout artist from Youngstown, Ohio, stayed patient and proficient last night to beat Taylor for the second time in 4 1/2 months, winning a unanimous decision to remain unbeaten at the MGM Grand Garden.
Pavlik (33-0, 29 KOs) failed to knock out his opponent for the first time in his last 10 fights, but he threw more punches and landed more memorable exchanges than Taylor (27-2-1), who came up just short on all three judges' scorecards despite a markedly improved performance.
"We both did a better job tonight than the first fight," Pavlik said. "The key was inside pressure. My fight strategy was to put the pressure on him, back him up. My jab and punches landed more this time. Nothing will top the first victory over Jermain, but it was a great win tonight."
Pavlik handed Taylor his first loss with a seventh-round knockout victory in Atlantic City, a thrilling fight widely considered one of the sport's best in 2007. Pavlik's belt wasn't at stake this time, with both fighters agreeing to a rematch at a catch weight of 166 pounds.
Judge Dave Moretti favored Pavlik, 117-111, while Patricia Morse-Jarman had it 115-113 and Glenn Trowbridge scored it 116-112. The Associated Press also scored it narrowly for Pavlik, 115-113.
Pavlik dominated the punch stats, throwing 845 total blows to Taylor's 456, with both landing a roughly equal percentage. Pavlik's jab was the difference, with 484 of them keeping Taylor at bay despite the Arkansas native's edge in power punches.
Taylor kept the early rounds in the middle of the ring, using his jab to prevent Pavlik from backing him into a corner and trading power shots. Pavlik needed a few rounds to figure out how to counter Taylor's discipline, which hasn't always been Taylor's strongest attribute.
Though Pavlik was more active in nearly every round, Taylor conserved his energy and only got in trouble in the 11th, when Pavlik staggered him with a combination late in the round. Taylor wrapped Pavlik in clinches until the round ended, snuffing either fighter's best chance at a knockout.
On the undercard, Fernando Montiel stopped Martin Castillo in the fourth round to retain his World Boxing Organization 115-pound title.
Cristian Mijares also retained his World Boxing Council super flyweight title with a bloody split decision over Jose Navarro. Ronald Hearns, the son of Thomas Hearns, also remained unbeaten.
Montiel was inspired in his third title defense, knocking down Castillo with a sneaky left hook midway through the first round before cutting Castillo above his left eye in the second. The fight was stopped after Montiel landed a series of blows in the fourth, including a decisive liver punch.
That left hand to the body dropped Castillo to his knees, where he stayed until the 10-count was finished.
"I felt very strong, and when I put him down in the first round, I knew it was going to be my night," Montiel said. "Fighting is about styles, and tonight I think he just couldn't figure out what I was doing."
Mijares's fourth defense in 10 months was both more brutal and more beautiful. Navarro was cut early in the fight, but the Los Angeles native showed remarkable courage in his fourth failed shot at a 115-pound title, finishing with an astonishing 1,222 total punches thrown - the second-most ever recorded by CompuBox in a 115-pound fight - to Mijares's 842.
Navarro traded head blows with Mijares despite a steady flow of blood that turned his trunks from pink to light red by the 11th round, when the referee twice asked the ring doctor to check Navarro's cuts. Navarro had a cut next to his right eye and a nearly closed left eye, and both fighters raised their arms in victory after the final bell.
Hearns stopped Juan Astorga in the eighth round to improve to 18-0, mostly against lackluster competition.
© Copyright 2008 Globe Newspaper Company.
