Snubbing Cameron’s message, Hopkins inspiration and no talk -Taylor just wants to get down to business
TUNNEL VISION: Chantelle Cameron, promoter Eddie Hearn and Katie Taylor during a press conference at the Dublin Royal Convention Centre, Dublin.
According to her team, the change came over Katie Taylor immediately after the first defeat of her professional career. In the elevator afterwards she called for a rematch. When Chantelle Cameron sent her a message a few days later, Taylor did not reply.
On Thursday, Cameron explained the communication was sincere. It was a private message thanking the Irish champion for the opportunity. Keeping with the mood of the week, the 38-year-old did not speak to media at the press conference and thus was unable to clarify the matter. Taylor kept it short and sweet, taking part in the top table formalities with promoter Eddie Hearn alongside her trainer, Ross Enamait.
His theory is obvious. Talk is cheap. That will come later. In the past, Enamait has used former Hall of Famers with Taylor as a theme during their training camp in Vernon, Connecticut. Once it was Willie Pep, who famously won a round without throwing a punch. Micky Ward’s 2002 body shot on Arthur Gatti and Roy Jones Jr’s devastating blow to Virgil Hill in 1998 have previously been deployed. At the press conference, he revealed which famous night is in their minds this week.
“It is a huge night and I just can’t wait for Saturday to come,” Enamait declared. “I feel like we are in a much, much better place than we were last time around. A lot healthier. There is no pressure on us. Nobody here thinks we have a shot. We are here to prove everyone wrong.
“It is about getting in there and winning. Katie doesn’t love being up here, I can tell you that. I don’t think anybody does apart from yourself (Hearn). We are just here to fight. This is part of the game, we understand that.
“A lot of people are writing us off. To me it feels like Hopkins fought Pavlik. At the end of that fight Hopkins stood over media and took a look at everyone. That is what I am expecting to do on Saturday.”
In 2008, a then-43-year-old Bernard Hopkins ended Kelly Pavlik’s unbeaten record in a fight that would go to become Ring Magazine’s Upset of the Year. The parallels are obvious. Hopkins won thanks to his superior ring craft. It was a technical masterclass by an accurate and awesome boxer. The 38-year-old finds herself in the same realm. She is the underdog. Cameron is the undisputed ruler at 140lbs. Her best chance is copying that same formula.
In preparation for this weekend, the Bray Bomber has been sparring with WBO female welterweight champion Sandy Ryan. Cameron calmly batted off that association when asked if she paid any attention to that: “No attention. I don’t send her messages.”
Taylor was flying high for her homecoming until Cameron crashed right into her. As they recovered the black box from May, several factors that may have hindered her in that fight were identified. One was the emotional toll of a draining week. The other was lingering fitness issues from prior battles. Both have been put right this week. It is about being with a team, her family, the ring. All safe places.
“I don’t really take too much notice of what people are saying,” Taylor said at the press conference. “I am very much single-minded. The only people I really listen to are my team, my family and the people I trust. I understand this is a huge fight. I understand it is a must-win fight for me. I can’t wait to step in there at this stage.
“I know I am going to perform to the best of my ability on Saturday and it is going to be a completely different fight to last time.”
It is that simple. A victory opens the door to a trilogy. A defeat will lead to all sorts of questions. Time now to cut all of that off at the source.
“There is nothing else to say really. I am just ready to fight. I hate all the talk. I hate all the press conferences. There is nothing to say, I am just ready to fight.”
