TAYLOR DOMINATES EDOUARD.

Byline: Robert Morales Staff Writer

Jermain Taylor's nickname is ``Bad Intentions.'' He lived up to that moniker Saturday night at Staples Center.

Every punch Taylor threw at Daniel Edouard had a vicious purpose, and when he landed seven hard ones to Edouard's head late in the third round, he came away with a third-round technical knockout.

Referee Ray Corona of Bassett stopped the middleweight bout at 2 minutes 26 seconds in the third. Edouard never went down, but he was being pummeled in a neutral corner and appeared defenseless.

Taylor, of Little Rock, Ark., is 23-0 with 17 knockouts. He is considered by many to be the heir apparent to the middleweight crown. Edouard, of Haiti via West Palm Beach, Fla., is 16-1-2.

``This was exactly the kind of performance I wanted,'' Taylor said. ``He was a great fighter and came to fight. I just wanted to put him away early.''

Edouard was chagrined.

``I am very disappointed,'' he said. ``He stopped me, but he didn't show me anything I hadn't seen before. I just didn't get it done.''

The professional debut of 2004 U.S. Olympian Vicente Escobedo went splendidly, to say the least.

Escobedo dropped a right hand on the chin of Abraham Verdugo, knocking him out at 1:06 of the second round. Referee Raul Caiz of West Covina immediately waved off the bout, as it was obvious Verdugo would not be able to get up. Verdugo, of Tucson, Ariz., was tended to by the ringside physician for about a minute, then helped onto a stool.

The junior lightweight bout was scheduled for four rounds.

Escobedo, of Woodland (near Sacramento), went 1-1 in the Athens Games for Team USA.

``It wasn't my hardest punch, but I just threw it out there and it landed on the chin,'' said Escobedo, who is trained by Joe Goossen in Van Nuys.

Escobedo was being modest. The punch was very hard and very clean. Talent like that can bring pressure, but Escobedo said he felt none as he entered the ring for the first time without headgear.

``Joe just told me to relax,'' Escobedo said, referring to Goossen. ``I was confident. We were ready.''

Goossen gave his fighter a high mark.

``That was an A-plus because he listened to me in the corner,'' Goossen said. ``I told him to pressure this guy. He was the type of guy who was better going forward than backward. Once we had him going backward, I knew we would knock him out.''

Escobedo fights for Golden Boy Promotions, Saturday's promoter.

His stablemate, Abner Mares, also was victorious in dramatic fashion. He knocked out Frankie Soto with a right uppercut at 2:47 of the fifth round. Soto was counted out by referee Ray Corona of Bassett.

Mares (2-0, 2 KOs), of Los Angeles via Mexico, fought for Mexico in the Athens Games, but did not medal. Soto, also of Mexico, is 10-13-2.

``I have learned how to be patient,'' Mares said. ``I knew this guy had a lot of experience.''

Demetrius Hopkins, the nephew of Bernard Hopkins, is 17-0-1 after a unanimous decision over Mexico's Javier Francisco Garcia (5-4-1) in an eight-round junior welterweight bout.

Hopkins, of Philadelphia, won by scores of 80-71, 80-71 and 79-72.

Kingsley Ikeke, a 6-foot-4 top 10 middleweight from Nigeria, improved to 22-1 with 12 knockouts with a fourth-round technical knockout of Marcos Primera of Venezuela. Primera (17-10-2) could not answer the bell for the fifth round, claiming an injury to his left eye.

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Photo:

Jermain Taylor, right, connects with a right hook against Daniel Edouard in their middleweight bout at Staples Center.

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