Jermain Taylor withdraws from Super Six tournament

Jermain Taylor, former undisputed middleweight champion, has thrown a spanner into the works of Showtime's Super Six tournament by withdrawing from the event after consecutive final round stoppages against Nottingham's Carl Froch and Germany's Arthur Abraham.

"I'm going to take some time off from the sport of boxing and take myself out of SHOWTIME Sports World Boxing Classic tournament. It's important that I give my body and mind some much needed rest, because I have been boxing for nearly 20 years," said Taylor.

"I plan on keeping myself in shape and making a return to the sport sometime in the future.  This was not an easy decision for me, having discussed it with my family, trainer, friends and my adviser Al Haymon, because I'm a very competitive person - but I know this is the smart road for me to take. I want to thank SHOWTIME Sports for everything and I wish the best for my five counterparts who will continue on in the Super Six tournament.

"Most of all, I want to thank the many fans for their continued support."

Taylor was encouraged to take a break by his promoter Lou di Bella and after such devastating back to back defeats by Froch and especially Abraham, his decision looks wise.  Showtime now face a difficult decision on how to progress matters as Taylor will now not be able to fulfil his scheduled matches against Andre Ward or Mikkel Kessler.

Reserve boxer Allan Green is already contracted to fight Sakio Bika - it has been suggested that this will go ahead and the winner will take up the spare place.