By Kevin Kincade

Anticipation and excitement hung as thickly in the air Friday afternoon as the stifling humidity in the city of the Delta Blues.  The weigh-in for the World Middleweight Championship was at hand and in true Memphis fashion, the soulful sounds of the "penny band" playing on a make-shift stage helped the crowd forget about the heat as they awaited the two best middleweights in the world to make their appearance in Handy Park.  Five O'clock came and went, still no participants; but the band played on as sweat poured and drinks were consumed.  Seven minutes later, Winky Wright and Jermain Taylor walked onto the stage and the air burst into cheers, applause, and camera flashes as they approached the scales. 

There were no Castillo-Corrales III weigh-in dramatics in Memphis.  Both the challenger and champion had done their preparation and were ready for the time honored tradition that is second only to the fight itself.  The challenger, Wright, tipped the scales at 159 1/2 while the Champion, Taylor came in weighing the division limit of 160 Lbs.  Though only a half a pound separated these two, the size difference seemed enormous.  Wright looked like a welteweight standing next to Taylor, who will surely grow into a Light-Heavyweight someday; but strength has never been a dominant part of Winky's repertoire.  With the "Winkster", it's always about skill, timing, and defensive wizardry.

Enter Emanuel Steward. Steward began compiling a formidable reputation as one of boxing' s premiere trainers years ago, developing young fighters such as Hilmer Kenty, Thomas Hearns, Milton Mcrory, and Michael Moorer into future champions; and added to his reputation by masterminding Evander Holyfield' s victory over Riddick Bowe in their second bout as well as Oliver McCall's win over Lennox Lewis, which consequentially convinced Lewis to seek out Manny' s expertise for his own benefit.  Is it any wonder that young World Middleweight Champion, Jermain Taylor has enlisted Steward for his sage advice and counsel as well?  How is Steward going to change the way Jermain fights; what is he going to fine tune?

"Jermain Taylor's not going to make any drastic changes," says Steward.  "He's going to be fairly sharp and he' s going to be doing a few different moves he hasn't done in the past...  He's been sparring with the best competition available and when you work with the best competition, your game goes up.  You're sharper, your crisper, you're faster, and you're more alert.  Right now, you'll see a much more focussed Jermain Taylor throwing a few left hooks, uppercuts, body shots...things he hasn't been doing in the past; and punching with a lot of power."

Some pundits, especially those giving Wright the nod Saturday night, have pointed to the way Taylor "cocked" his right had before he threw it against Hopkins.  Surely such a habit could prove costly against the ringwise Wright.

Steward's response:  "We've been working with Jermain on not cocking his right hand and making him a little bit more tricky with everything he does.  And, when you box with the kind of guys he's been boxing with, you hve to do that; and that's why  we've had him sparring with the best competition.  That automatically takes care of the problem. "

"You can't change a fighter overnight.  To try to have a fighter try and be something he's never been is a mistake.  You'll see a little more aggression, probably [Saturday Night]; but mainly, you're going to see a speedier and crisper puncher.  And not just one's and two's; just crisper and sharper and a greater variety of punches."

Obviously, only so much knowledge can be absorbed over a six week period when compared to years of practice; but we've seen the kind of results having Steward in a fighter's corner can have over the long haul.  Saturday night's going to be interesting, to say the least.