SerhanOnX:

It was six weeks after the world witnessed the greatest upset in boxing history when James “Buster” Douglas upset Mike Tyson to become the heavyweight champion of the world.  The shock was still there well after it happened as everyone was still talking about that night in Tokyo, Japan. The question had everyone in the boxing community asking: what could actually top this?

Fast forward to the night of St. Patricks’s Day 1990 at the Las Vegas Hilton in Las Vegas, Nevada, and there was classic that everyone in the boxing and sports communities had been looking forward to before the fight took place, and had everything you would want in a fight:  two undefeated champions, both at their peaks, and among the top 5 fighters in the world in the pound-for-pound rankings, going head-to-head in a fight with high stakes and high expectations.

The fight was billed as “Thunder Meets Lighting” as 3-Division world champion and legend Julio Cesar Chavez (66-0) from Mexico met the young upstart and 1984 Olympic Gold Medalist Meldrick Taylor (24-0-1) from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in a matchup of undefeated 140-lb. champions at the peaks of their respective careers.  It was also billed as “the biggest little fight money can buy”, because it was the one the world was looking forward to.  The winner was going to ascend to the distinction of the best fighter in the world and become the marquee fighter below the heavyweight division in boxing (at least).

Not only was Julio Cesar Chavez was recognized as the best fighter in the world in the pound-for-pound rankings, but was regarded as the toughest fighter in the sport at the time.  Having won 4 world championships in 3 different weight divisions, it was understandable why many gave him that recognition.  His 66-0 record going into this fight was the 3rd longest winning streak to start a career, and the longest in 78 years.  But maybe the most impressive stat of his was his 16-0 record in championship fights, which was the best among active world champions.  He was doing it with a grit and grind approach, gradually breaking down his opponents with body punches in the early rounds and going for the kill in the later rounds.

Meldrick Taylor was a part of arguably the greatest Olympic boxing team ever assembled in the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles. A team that featured all-time greats Evander Holyfeld and Pernell Whitaker, and had already won 8 gold medals, Taylor would make it 9 on the final day, and doing it as the youngest member of that Olympic team. Once he turned pro, he became the best of the class as he dazzled with his excellent hand speed and foot work, drawing comparisons to the legendary Sugar Ray Leonard with his ability to put together multi-punch combination in a blur of an eye.  However, given the deep rich tradition of great fighters to come out of Philadelphia, Taylor thought of himself as a “Philadelphia fighter”, which turned out to be a blessing and a curse for him.  Despite all of this, he became a world champion in his 21st pro fight when he stunned the vastly experienced James “Buddy” McGirt in 1988. 

After Taylor’s win over McGirt, the buildup for the Chavez-Taylor super megafight began as the fight everyone wanted to see.  The fight, after extensive negotiaions and conflicts between the respective management teams and promoters, was finally agreed to on March 17, 1990.  Even after the fight was officially signed, there were hurdles.

Debate came as to who would referee the match.  Standard out referee Richard Steele, who had been the referee of many superfights (including the vicious Marvelous Marvin Hagler–Thomas Hearns fight in 1985), was selected for this mega fight. Despite his track record for among the best referees in the world, the Taylor camp questioned the selection due to his so-called relationship with Chavez’s controversial promoter Don King, which goes back to the feud Taylor’s traniner and promoter Lou Duva and Dan Duva had with King for many, many years for various reasons.  The concerns were presented to well-respected Nevada State Athletic Commissioner Marc Ratner, who worked closely with Steele for a long time, stood firm on his decision for Steele to referee this fight.

After all of this, the stage was finally set for the fight to take place on HBO World Championship Boxing.  Everything on the line.  Winner takes all. 

The fight begins with Taylor controlling the first 4 rounds with his speed, quickness, and lateral movement, keeping Chavez at range to where Chavez was unable to get inside where he does his most damage.  Taylor was in control all the way as he built an early lead on the judges’ scorecards, outlanding Chavez 2 to 1 as the fight went into the middle rounds as he showed no signs of slowing down, which turned out to be a shock to everyone.

Especially to the Chavez fans at the Las Vegas Hilton, who spent their hard earned money to make the trip to see their idol fight.  Even the people in Chavez’s corner did everything to fire their fighter up, saying “for the love of God, throw everything you got, Julio!”, realizing their fighter was beginning to fall behind and he needed a knockout to win the fight. 

It was clear to virtually everyone that Taylor was winning.  However, something was happening as the fight was going on.  Despite being outlanded 2 to 1, the 1s of Chavez started to make an impact on Taylor to where his face was starting to show signs of damage.  From massive bleeding from his nose and mouth, both eyes began to grotesquely close, and Chavez started to gain momentum in round 10 as he showed the heart and determination that made him an all-time great.  

Then came the end of round 11, where a left hook at the bell by Chavez made Taylor woozy to where he needed Steele and his trainers to guide him to his corner. 

There were 3 minutes left in this great fight.  3 minutes away for Taylor to secure the biggest win of his career.  As he was in his corner in between rounds 11 and 12, his trainers were advising him to go win the round in a fight he had full control of despite taking a physical beating.  The advice Taylor was given for the final round raised eyebrows in a fight he was winning going away, and all Taylor had to do was stay away and avoid getting hit in a fight he basically had won. 

It became a problem.

The began of arguably the most dramatic 12th round began.  Chavez needed a knockout to win.  Taylor needed to avoid getting hit to win.  As the round began, it was apparent that just surviving the round was going to be a challenge for Taylor as he was struggling to stay on his feet.  His face and body began showing the beating he took throughout this grueling fight, and you had a feeling Chavez would find a way to get to him before the final bell.

That moment came with 25 seconds left in the fight.  With a fatigued and beat-up Taylor in complete control of the fight, a right cross by Chavez right on Taylor’s chin buckled Taylor.  As Taylor was wobbling forward, Chavez was stepping back to set Taylor up for the finish.  After Chavez got Taylor in the corner and a lazy left jab by Taylor, it was Chavez who landed a vicious counter right over the jab that finally put Taylor down with 16 seconds left.

As Taylor went down and Steele was counting, Taylor would use the ropes to courageously pull himself to his as Steele continued the count of 9.  With Taylor’s eyes grotesquely swollen and face a bloody mess, Steele would look at him and ask, “Are you ok?” without an answer from Taylor. Then, as Taylor was looking away from Steele, Steele would ask him a second time, “Are you ok?” without an answer from Taylor as he looked completely away from Steele.  And after the second time, Steele waived his hands over Taylor, stopping the fight officially at 2:58 of the 12th and final round, declaring Chavez the winner by TKO of what turned out to be an all-time classic.

The result caused chaos from the Taylor and his camp as they stormed into the ring and went after Steele, who made the decision to stop the fight with 2 seconds left in the fight and Taylor having the fight won on 2 of the 3 judges scorecards.  The wild ending was filled with subplots.

The Taylor camp was criticized for giving him bad advice in a fight that he had won going into the 12th round.  His lead trainer, Lou Duva, was heavily criticized for jumping onto the ring apron during Steele’s count, and the feeling was Duva’s antics were what caused Taylor to look away as Steele asked him if he was ok.  The complete and controversial mismanagement of the last rounds by the brilliant minds of Lou Duva and George Benton were under massive scrutiny by those who observed the fight at ringside.  This led  everyone to believe that it was the  mismanagement by those two trainers that caused Taylor to lose the fight the way he did in the end because he would have gotten a split decision win had they managed the fight better, especially given Taylor was falling apart down the stretch as the fight continued.

The win elevated Chavez to as stature among the ultra elite in boxing history at the time.  It was the win he needed to validate his claim as the best of his era and maintain his stature as the best fighter pound-for-pound.  He would hold on to that dictionary for another 3 1/2 years before losing it via a draw to Pernell Whitaker in 1993, and would suffer his first loss after going unbeaten in his first 90 fights to Frankie Randall in 1994.  His status among the all-time greats was cemented on this night.

The price of a high stakes championship fight in boxing usually comes with a price, and Taylor paid a very high price as a result.  The physical pounding Taylor took in the fight was revealing as he needed to be helped to his corner to where he was examined by the ringside physician.  He examined Taylor after the fight and had him sent to a hospital to treat a facial fracture, was urinating pure blood, and needed a blood transfusion after the fight. 

In the end, Taylor would never recover from the stoppage and the beating he took in that fight, especially from being 2 seconds away from the biggest win of his his career, both physically and mentally.  His career and life would take a turn for the worse, which included deteriorating skills on the ring, with brutal KO losses to Terry Norris and Cristanto Espana in 1992, and another KO loss in a rematch with Chavez in 1994.  He would continue to fight well beyond his best years despite evidence that he shouldn’t, til the commission banned him for good in 2002.  The physical pounding that Taylor took in that fight and the mental challenges that he had from that fight were way too much to overcome as he could never once again get to that level, which proves that two seconds could make a heck of a difference to a man’s life and career, especially in boxing. 

There were many crazy and controversial angles that this superfight had.  Especially when the fight was going into the later rounds and everyone saw the performance of a lifetime from Meldrick Taylor to an epic collapse that needed to find a way to survive two seconds.  Plenty of blame was being tossed around, but the biggest one and the most controversial one falls on the complete mismanagement by Lou Duva.  From telling Taylor that he needed to win the final round to win a fight he had already won, to jumping on the ring apron and distracting Taylor when Richard Steele was asking critical questions and made Taylor look away.  Duva has been known to have a “panic” approach in key situations.  While virtually everyone questioned the decision to stop a high level, legacy defining fight with 2 seconds left, those questions should have gone Duva’s way because of his advice and decisions, something everyone in the boxing community refused to do for the longest time.

Those decisions of Duva cost Meldrick Taylor the biggest win of his career, where he only needed just two more seconds. Just two seconds away.  But a long two seconds that Taylor couldn’t get to claim his victory. 

The long two seconds will stay with him forever.

Photo Credits: WorldBoxingCouncil.com, JOSports inc., Olympedia, Badledthook, thefightcity, theindependent

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