18.02.08 Pavlik wins and eyes the WBA belt

LAS VEGAS -- Kelly Pavlik proved his superiority and fattened his bank account with a second victory over Jermain Taylor. Now this frugal people's champion is finally ready to go shopping -- for two really ugly belts.

Moments after winning a unanimous decision in his rematch with Taylor on Saturday night, Pavlik reiterated his plan to add the WBA and IBF middleweight titles to the WBC and WBO championships he took from Taylor last year.

"My No. 1 goal since I won the middleweight title has been to unify the belts," Pavlik said. "That's been a dream of mine since I started fighting, and that's what I'd love to do now."

Pavlik showed both mettle and resourcefulness against Taylor, using improved defensive skills and taking control of the fight late to win the decision. In particular, Pavlik got Taylor moving backward in the final three rounds after Taylor's inspired game plan staked him to an early lead.

Taylor also performed well in the rematch, showing more discipline and tenacity on his way to a $3 million payday. He faced trouble only in the 11th round, when Pavlik staggered him and came close to a knockout.

"That 11th round, if there was five or 10 more seconds, he was out," said Pavlik, who made $2.5 million plus a percentage of pay-per-view sales. "I hit him with some big punches. He was hurt, and you could see it. I just ran out of time."

Pavlik hopes to follow in the big footsteps of Bernard Hopkins, who held all four major middleweight belts until Taylor beat him by split decision in July 2005.

Pavlik would be a huge favorite against the other two champions. Arthur Abraham, the IBF middleweight titlist from Germany, is 25-0 in a career spent entirely in Europe. Felix Sturm, another German fighter, is the WBA middleweight champion.

A popular scenario has Pavlik fighting Irishman John Duddy on June 7 in New York for a matchup sure to draw a raucous sellout crowd. Top Rank also has talked to Don King about a match with Felix Trinidad for another lucrative bout. Then, Pavlik will aim for the other belts.

"It took me seven years to win the title, and I want to keep it for a while," Pavlik said. "I'll fight whoever they throw out there, whatever's the best for the sport."

discuss in FORUM HERE