Showing great determination as well as a very powerful right hand, Kelly Pavlik (32-0) became the undisputed middleweight champion after defeating Jermain Taylor (27-1-1) through TKO in the seventh round in front of approximately 10,127 fans at Boardwalk Hall.

The Youngstown, Ohio native managed to endure Taylor’s 15-punch assault in the second round that saw him winding to the canvas to recover. In the third, Pavlik came out stronger than before, pushing forward and went right back to work with his long jab and hard power punches. In the seventh round he delivered several series of demoralizing right hands to leave the former champion crippled on the canvas.

The referee put an end to the fight at the 2:14 mark. "I thought I had him in the second," a battered Taylor said afterward. "But I threw too many punches. Kelly fought a great fight."

Few ringside spectators gave Pavlik a chance to make it out of the second round. Even former heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis thought the fight was over when Pavlik was knocked down.

"It was a tough fight. When I went down I said to myself '(Shoot), it's going to be a long night,' but I showed the heart of a champion," Pavlik said.

Pavlik’s triumph is even more satisfying as he entered the ring as a heavy underdog despite his flawless record and big knockout ratio. Even Emmanuel Steward, Taylor's trainer, couldn't resist talking about Pavlik’s pedigree and about the fact that he wouldn’t be prepared for the weight of a title fight. He also thought Pavlik wouldn’t last for more than a couple of rounds and he was almost right when the boxer went down in the second round.

"I was hurt, but I wasn't done," Pavlik said about the episode at the press conference.

Pavlik became a professional boxer in 2000 and is still undefeated. 29 of his 32 wins were knock outs. On October 7, 2005, he won the then vacant NABF Middleweight Title belt by beating Fulgencio Zúñiga by technical knock out in the ninth round. His recent fights include a successful title defense against former Light Middleweight Title holder Bronco McKart.

Pavlik successfully defended his title on January 27, 2007, against Mexican Jose Louis Zertuche (19-4-2).