Written by Scott Swerbinsky

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The worlds premier middleweight champion Jermain Taylor puts his belt on the line tonight when he takes on Kassim Ouma in a world championship bout on HBO this evening. Taylor is coming off a draw with fellow top pound for pound fighter Winky Wright, and will look to set up a rematch tonight with a win against the former junior middeweight champ Ouma. The Spoon Man sets the stage for tonights fight. It has been 6 months since we have seen Jermain Taylor fight. Tonight, live from his hometown in Little Rock, Arkansas, the champ returns.

It seems a lot longer since his draw with Winky Wright. Taylor has been one of the busiest fighters we have seen in some time. His last two fights have been against two legends, a victory over Bernard Hopkins and then the draw with Winky. Tonight, Taylor (25-0-1, 17 KO's) takes on former junior middleweight champ Kassim Ouma (25-2-1, 15 KO's).

Ouma brings in a very busy style and is immensely experienced, having fought 63 amateur bouts (winning 60 of them) in his native Africa before coming over to the states. Ouma caught the boxing world by storm, dominating opponents en route to the IBF Junior Middleweight title before a stunning upset loss to Roman Karmazian. Ouma has since rebounded, unsuccessfully chasing bouts against Shane Mosely, Bernard Hopkins, and Winky Wright. Tonight he gets his big break, as he will try to become the first fighter to defeat Jermain Taylor.

That will be a tough task. Taylor has yet to lose, has dominated the middleweight division, and is the total package and is still learning and growing his skills. He has quick hands, good power and defense, and is a great athlete. Taylor enjoys a five inch height advantage, and will enter the ring much heavier than the challenger despite both making weight in the middleweight weight class. Taylor's promoter, Lou DiBella, described the match saying, "Really a light heavyweight against a small junior middleweight who's moving up. We have a lot of respect for Kassim but this is an opportunity for Jermain to look spectacular.'' Making matters even tought for Ouma ... Taylor also works with the world’s best trainer in Emanuel Steward. Jermain is a 8-1 favorite tonight.

I am looking forward to what should be an action packed fight. Jermain Taylor will continue his winning ways and probably set up a rematch with Winky Wright somewhere in the near future with a win tonight. My favorite fighter is back in the ring this evening and I can’t wait to see it. If you haven’t had a chance to see Taylor fight, I would recommend you tune in to check it out.