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SYDNEY - Anthony Mundine easily overcame veteran Shannan Taylor in a scrappy bout in Wollongong on Wednesday night and now has some important decisions to make as he tries to add some more lustre to his boxing career.
A two-time former super middleweight world champion, 33-year-old Mundine was fighting at middleweight for the first time and controlled the bout from the outset, throwing more punches and troubling Taylor with his renowned hand speed.
The Bulli Blaster did open a cut under Mundine's left eye in the eighth round, but the outclassed underdog lost every round and often reverted to head clashes, elbows, knees and low blows in search of an unlikely victory.
Mundine never really hurt Taylor, but he comfortably outboxed the 36-year-old, who was lucky not to be disqualified for some of his disappointing and desperate tactics.
Already the No 1-ranked WBA middleweight contender before the bout, Mundine showed he can make the lower weight class and is in the perfect position to tackle world champion Felix Sturm in his native Germany later this year.
But Mundine's manager Khoder Nasser strongly hinted just prior to the fight against Taylor a re-match with Danny Green is foremost in their thoughts.
That would surely be a step backwards for Mundine, who would have to pack weight on to take on light heavyweight Green, although it would result in another hefty pay day for one of the most controversial figures in Australian sport.
Having done the work to get to middleweight, it would have to be in Mundine's favour to stay there.
"I worked hard to get to middleweight," he said.
"I didn't know how I would hold up but the longer I stay at middleweight, the better I'll get.
"Shannan was a tough and worthy opponent."
Fans and critics alike have grown tired of waiting for Mundine to stop lining his bank account against lower-ranked opponents and back up his stated desire to head overseas to test himself against some better credentialed pugilists.
In 38 fights, Mundine has fought outside Australia just three times and not since 2003.
If he is to ever prove he can be the man internationally, Mundine must fight Sturm and try to add a third world belt to his collection.
He had far too much class for Taylor, a former world title contender who is well past his prime, to improve his record to 35-3.
It was a spiteful fight but Taylor, who fell to 48-7 with three draws, is clearly a fan of the maligned Mundine.
"He's slick," he said. "I hope he uses me for sparring.
"It's not the Mundine circus, it's the Mundine show and I was glad to be part of it."
- AAP
