KATV Channel 7 - The Spirit of Arkansas: Sully Says: I always root for Jermain

Let's back up to January, 2000.  It was my first live shot at Channel 7.  It was my first look at the boxing home of Little Rock's Olympic boxer, Jermain Taylor.  This future World Champion cut his teeth on a homemade ring.  The ropes for the ring were old garden hoses and the canvas was made from old mattresses.

Jermain and his trainer Ozell Nelson were'nt exactly great live shot material.  You think I talk fast, Jermain's delivery was a lot like his left jab. His words came at me in rapid fire fashion, and Ozell was so excited about Jermain and live TV, that he just did a lot of nodding. If you happened to be watching that night , you had to be wondering how that kid, in that gym ,with that trainer, earned a spot representing Arkansas and the United States in the Olympic games.  Boxing is full of these underdog stories.

I was hooked !!! Jermain and Ozell were living the dream . They were living proof that some dreams do come true. There was nothing big-time around this operation. Two weeks after earning an Olympic bronze medal, Jermain was putting on a show for students at a Little Rock elementary school.  Those were the good ole days. 

Fast forward 12 years, Jermain is now 33 years old. He's been a world champion, he's been knocked out three times, and he hasn't fought in 2 years.  In many ways, the calender has been turned back 10 or 12 years.  Jermain is back at square one.  Why return to boxing ? Jermain will tell you that it's the only thing he knows how to do.   

Win or lose, I'll always be a Jermain Taylor fan.  Yes, he's made mistakes both in and out of the ring, but he's still our former world champion.  The guy who put Little Rock and Arkansas on the boxing map. The guy who beat Bernard Hopkins twice.   A true warrior who loves his home state.

Can he be a champion again ?  I doubt it , but I thought the same thing when I showed up at the old gym for my first live shot.