Taylor sat on the bench, his elbows on his knees. He was unusually calm.
"Highfield started as a light heavyweight boxer. He is one year older than me. He used to compete in the amateur league, and he won a bronze medal in the Olympics. He later entered the professional leagues, also in the light heavyweight cla.s.s. He was able to win the champions.h.i.+p belt from the World Boxing Council, the World Boxing a.s.sociation, and the International Boxing Federation within four years."
Taylor was saying this to Ayres and Dai Li, but to them, it looked more like he was talking to himself.
Taylor went on to say, "After that, Highfield gained weight and entered the heavyweight division. But his experience in the heavyweight division wasn"t the same as when he was fighting in the light heavyweight division. He fought in the division for five years, and even though he was always a t.i.tle challenger, he never managed to win the champions.h.i.+p belt. But that was until the match against me!"
Taylor suddenly looked agitated. "Everyone thought that I would win that match. I also thought that I would be able to defeat Highfield easily. I had no idea that it would be the toughest fight of my life. Highfield chose the right strategy. He played me through the entire match."
"During that match, Highfield kept moving around me. When he wasn"t able to do that, he just clinched me. I kept trying to attack him, but not only did it not have any effect, it also drained most of my energy. After the fourth round, I started to feel like I was going to lose the match."
"I remember during the sixth round, I"d already depleted most of my energy. I was not able to maintain my aggressive fighting style. But Highfield was still running and jumping all around me, trying to keep exhausting me. He kept using small tricks to annoy me. Finally, I lost my cool, and when he was holding on to me, I bit his ear!"
"I felt instant regret after biting his ear. I was too rash. I felt like I had just ended my professional boxing career. The truth was that I turned that match into one of the biggest jokes in the boxing world. I almost ruined myself with my impulsive behavior."
"But in all fairness, Highfield had some of the best defensive techniques in the world. At least when it comes to the people that I have fought, he was the best. His defense was almost impenetrable. If Highfield kept avoiding a head-on fight, I really would have had no way of winning."
...
In the athlete"s lounge, Highfield stared at the clock. The ticking of the clock sounded like war drums, pumping him up for a fight.
However, Highfield kept reminding himself to stay calm. He couldn"t act too rashly. He needed to keep a cool head because his opponent today was Kevin Taylor.
"Only an idiot would get into a head-on fight with Kevin Taylor!" Highfield pouted. He still vividly remembered the match from three years ago. When he fought against the fierce Kevin Taylor, everyone thought that Taylor would win. But Highfield was the one who walked away with the champions.h.i.+p belt from the World Boxing a.s.sociation.
Of course, he had to sacrifice his ear in the process, but he won sympathy from the audience, and it pushed him into the ranks of the top heavyweight champions.
"I only need to keep dodging Taylor when I face him, just like three years ago." Highfield couldn"t help but touch the ear that Taylor had bitten. It had already healed, and the scars had already disappeared, but the scars in his heart were still there.
"I remember it was in the sixth round. Taylor was agitated, and bit my ear. I think he knew that he didn"t have enough stamina to hold on any longer. Now that he is three years older, he should be in worse condition. He definitely won"t be able to last long. Maybe he will bite my ear in the third round!"
Highfield looked at the clock. It was almost time. He stood up and walked towards the door.
...
It was a world-famous boxing match, but the crowd was surprisingly quiet. Strictly speaking, it didn"t sound that much different from a regular boxing match.
"Are they actually going to fight? It is already the third round, but neither of them has attacked."
"Highfield is staying at the back. Taylor is also staying at the back. They are both just avoiding each other and circling around the ring. We are here to watch a boxing match, not a staring compet.i.tion!"
"Where was the epic fight that was promised? The best attacker versus the best defender. What are we watching right now? Can you guys please get on with it!"
Many members of the audience were getting angry. In the commentary box sat three well-known commentators, but none of them knew what to say. The match had just been the two fighters avoiding each other and trying to test each other out. No direct attacks were coming from either of them. It really wasn"t an entertaining fight.
The bell rang. That meant the third round had ended. Both contestants went to their corners.
Highfield"s chest was only moving slightly. He wasn"t out of breath. He hadn"t used much of his stamina, and he suspected it was the same for Taylor.
"Taylor got smarter. He wasn"t impatient in trying to attack. I think that this time, he is prepared to fight all twelve rounds," the coach who stood beside Highfield said.
"I know. Taylor hired the "White Devil" Ayres as his coach. Judging by Ayres" skill, he wouldn"t let Taylor repeat the mistake he made three years ago," Highfield said.
"Then we have to change our strategy. You need to provoke him. You can even create a few fake openings for him to attack. But if you do this, you may lose some points," the coach reminded him.
"Relax, I understand. If I can exhaust Taylor, losing a few points doesn"t matter. Taylor without stamina is a toothless tiger. He will be like a lamb waiting to be slaughtered. When that happens, not only will I be able to win back some points, but I will be able to knock him out," Highfield said while nodding.
"Be careful. Don"t get hit. Taylor"s punches are very powerful. Once you get hit, it will be hard for you to recover," the coach reminded him.
"Relax, I know what I"m doing!" Highfield said. He stood up and returned to the match.
...
"The sixth round has just started!" the commentator shouted, almost simultaneously with the sound of the bell.
"During the sixth round of the match three years ago, Taylor did something extraordinarily dumb that shook the world. He bit Highfield"s ear and created the biggest scandal in the boxing world. But today is different from three years ago. Both fighters are evenly matched, and in terms of points, Taylor is leading slightly. Although it isn"t enough for a clear win, a lead is still a lead. I think that under these circ.u.mstances, Taylor probably won"t repeat the dumb mistake he made three years ago," the commentator said.
In the boxing ring, Taylor was taking an offensive stance, and Highfield was on the defensive. But on the whole, they were still evenly matched. Highfield created some openings to bait Taylor, and Taylor did not let go of the opportunity. He took the bait and attacked. Nothing much came from the attack. He only gained a few points from it.
Amongst all the heavyweight champions, Highfield was the best at defending. The openings he gave Taylor didn"t really give Taylor much of an advantage. It was only a few points, and a few points were generally not decisive in a heavyweight fight. Knockouts occurred very frequently in heavyweight fights. Leading by points didn"t matter, as a knock out would render the points useless.
The bell rang, signifying the end of the sixth round. Highfield lost another point in this round, but he wasn"t too concerned by it. When he arrived at his corner, he couldn"t help but continue to check up on Taylor"s condition.
Taylor looks like he still has a lot of stamina. Looks like I need to keep depleting his energy for the next few rounds. Maybe he will start to get tired in the ninth, or tenth round. The last two rounds will give me the chance I need. But Taylor isn"t someone who can be easily beaten. I may not be able to knock him out in those two rounds, Highfield thought to himself.
...
The ninth round.
The spotlights shone on the boxing ring and reflected off the bodies of the two boxers.
Their sweat glistened, and both Taylor and Highfield looked as if they had just come out of a sauna. They were drenched in sweat. Just by looking at the amount of sweat, one could guess how much energy they had spent.
Boxing was a sport that required a ma.s.sive amount of endurance. ESPN did a poll on professional athletes and asked them to rank the sports that required the most endurance. Long-distance cycling and marathon running came first at 9.36 points. Third place was long-distance swimming with 9.25 points. Boxing came fourth at 8.63 points. Soccer only got 7.75 points, and basketball scored 7.38 points.
Heavyweight boxing took an even greater amount of energy compared to other weight divisions. It was the ninth round, and Taylor and Highfield had both depleted much of their energy.
Taylor should be tired now, Highfield thought. His breath was short, and Taylor was not in a better situation either.
Maybe Taylor is just barely hanging on! I should try to find out, Highfield thought, and he decided to try attacking.
The next second, Highfield started to move his body left and right. He skipped around to try to confuse Taylor and looked for an opportunity to attack. Taylor did not let up, reacting to his opponent"s every move.
In a flash, both of them attacked, trading several blows. They then retreated immediately. Their punches and reactions were too fast. The audience could only guess how many punches they had unleashed. Unless a slow-mo camera was used, there was no way to tell how many punches were meted out.
Highfield looked at Taylor. He wanted to use his hands to rub the area beneath his ribs. During their exchange, the right side of his ribcage took a punch from Taylor. That punch made him feel like his internal organs were coming out of his body. He felt like throwing up.
But what was on his mind wasn"t the pain, but Taylor. During their exchange, Taylor"s movements were fast, and his reactions quick. His punches were still very powerful. Evidently, Taylor had not depleted his stamina.
d.a.m.n. Taylor still has energy! Highfield thought, feeling anxious for the first time since the beginning of the match.
...
Below the ring, Dai Li crossed his arms, but he had a very proud look on his face.
Stop underestimating Taylor"s strength. I"ve even used my endurance aura!
Under the effects of the age-reduction card, Taylor had the body of a 27-year-old. This already increased his endurance. The recent endurance training also helped to increase his endurance.
However, in this match, Dai Li was still using the endurance aura.
In the previous matches, Dai Li used the explosive force halo. When used with Taylor"s three-ax-style attacks, it increased Taylor"s strength and speed, making Taylor unstoppable.
But today"s match was a tug-of-war. It might go on for 12 rounds. Dai Li chose to use the endurance aura instead of the explosive force halo. Although he lost some attacking power, he was able to gain some endurance. Because of that, even though it was the ninth round, Taylor was maintaining his endurance.
...
In the boxing ring, Taylor"s chest was pumping. He was in the same condition as Highfield, breathing haggardly. Their most recent exchange had expended a lot of his energy. Although he felt a bit tired, his body was feeling excited.
It is around the ninth round. Judging by my current condition, I should be able to fight till the 12th round. This will be the first time in my boxing career that I"ve fought a full match. I"m still not used to it. I think I managed to hit one of Highfield"s lower ribs just now, that should be a critical hit, right?
Taylor couldn"t help but glance at the right side of Highfield"s ribcage.
In the last few rounds, I managed several effective hits. In comparison, he also hit me a few times, but in terms of points, I am definitely ahead of him. This means that I am currently at an advantage. Before the match began, Coach Ayres told me that if I am leading in points and I have the advantage of the situation, I need to stay calm. Don"t rush, let the opponent attack!
Taylor started to calm down. In his eyes, he not only saw Highfield who was opposite him, but also the victory that was dawning!