Ouma beaten
Dec 10, 2006
KASSIM Ouma fought gallantly, but at the end of 12 gruelling rounds at Little Rock’s All Alltel Arena, homeboy Jermain Taylor proved the better puncher, retaining the WBC/WBO middleweight belts.
Ouma-25-3-1,15kos
Taylor-26-0-1,17kos
Score-117-111, 115-113,118-111 in favour of Taylor
Attendance -10,119(Arkansas record)
KASSIM Ouma fought gallantly, but at the end of 12 gruelling rounds at Little Rock’s All Alltel Arena, homeboy Jermain Taylor proved the better puncher, retaining the WBC/WBO middleweight belts.
“He’s a great fighter. I give him all the respect,†Taylor, nursing an almost closed eye, said of Ouma at the post-fight press conference.
Taylor followed Hall of Fame trainer Emmanuel Steward’s strategy of strong combinations in an opening round that followed a Ugandan anthem sang by Juliana Kanyomozi .
He shook Ouma with some hard shots but the plot of an early knock-out proved futile, as an extremely fit Ouma refused to hit the canvas.
Ouma nevertheless won respect from the passionate crowd in the Razor Bucks’ home ground for his never-say-die attitude.
But ‘The Dream’ had his moments, unleashing his trademark punches in bunches, which by the sixth round paid off with a cut on Taylor’s left eyelid in the fifth round.
But it was always the American fighter in charge of the first seven rounds as the experimental WBC format of publicly displaying points proved. Taylor was 40-36 ahead by the fourth, before Ouma closed the margin to 78-74 at the close of the eighth round.
But, at the end of the bout, Ouma’s camp was not convinced, insisting that all that Taylor did all night was to keep clutching at their fighter.
“That’s not a true champion. A true champion has got to rumble. He did not. I will be a champion again,†Ouma vowed as he walked to the dressing rooms.
Taylor-26-0-1,17kos
Score-117-111, 115-113,118-111 in favour of Taylor
Attendance -10,119(Arkansas record)
KASSIM Ouma fought gallantly, but at the end of 12 gruelling rounds at Little Rock’s All Alltel Arena, homeboy Jermain Taylor proved the better puncher, retaining the WBC/WBO middleweight belts.
“He’s a great fighter. I give him all the respect,†Taylor, nursing an almost closed eye, said of Ouma at the post-fight press conference.
Taylor followed Hall of Fame trainer Emmanuel Steward’s strategy of strong combinations in an opening round that followed a Ugandan anthem sang by Juliana Kanyomozi .
He shook Ouma with some hard shots but the plot of an early knock-out proved futile, as an extremely fit Ouma refused to hit the canvas.
Ouma nevertheless won respect from the passionate crowd in the Razor Bucks’ home ground for his never-say-die attitude.
But ‘The Dream’ had his moments, unleashing his trademark punches in bunches, which by the sixth round paid off with a cut on Taylor’s left eyelid in the fifth round.
But it was always the American fighter in charge of the first seven rounds as the experimental WBC format of publicly displaying points proved. Taylor was 40-36 ahead by the fourth, before Ouma closed the margin to 78-74 at the close of the eighth round.
But, at the end of the bout, Ouma’s camp was not convinced, insisting that all that Taylor did all night was to keep clutching at their fighter.
“That’s not a true champion. A true champion has got to rumble. He did not. I will be a champion again,†Ouma vowed as he walked to the dressing rooms.