Former Olympic teammates Jermain Taylor and Jeff Lacy squared off at Vanderbilt University Saturday night in Nashville, with Taylor coming away with a 12-round unanimous decision in a WBC super middleweight fight.
Taylor (28-2 17 KOs) looked impressive, throwing an array of jabs and hooks that kept Lacy off balance throughout the fight. Other than a fifth-round visit to the mat that wasn’t officially ruled a knockdown, Taylor dominated Lacy.
In the fifth Lacy threw a left jab that missed but then appeared to connect with a right hook, glancing off the head of Taylor and sending him to the canvas. But the referee ruled it was not a knockdown and Lacy didn’t win the extra point for the round.
It was the first fight for Taylor since February, when he lost a second straight fight to Kelly Pavlik. Lacy was super middleweight champion until he lost to Joe Calzaghe in March 2006. Lacy was unbeaten since that loss.
But Lacy (24-2, 17 KOs) hasn’t been the same since the loss to Calzaghe and other than the fifth-round flurry, Taylor imposed his will on him.
Taylor landed 48 percent of his 442 punches and by the fourth round Lacy’s left eye began to swell.
Two judges scored the fight 119-109 and the third had it at 118-110 for Taylor.
