Jermain Taylor returns October 12 in Missouri, ShoBox fights on same bill

Jermain Taylor, the former middleweight world champion whose career hit a wall in 2007 and has never really recovered, will be back in the ring on October 12 at the Ameristar Casino in Saint Charles, Missouri, facing veteran Raul Munoz in a 10-round fight.

That card will be a ShoBox event, but Taylor's fight will only have highlights shown. The main event will be a lightweight fight between Puerto Rico's Jose Pedraza (10-0, 6 KO) and Allan Benitez (6-1, 1 KO), who lost his pro debut but has beaten limited competition since then. The co-feature is a middleweight fight between Dominican prospect Jonathan Cepeda (12-0, 11 KO) and Hartford, Connecticut, native Lamar Russ (10-0, 6 KO).

Both of the televised bouts are set for eight rounds, while Taylor-Munoz is set for 10. Promoter Lou DiBella says that they tried to get something better for Taylor, but couldn't, and he's just staying busy. Taylor last fought on April 20, barely surviving against Minnesota club fighter Caleb Truax to win a ten-round decision, and nearly knocked out in the ninth round. It was the second fight of his comeback, following a win over undersized Jessie Nicklow last December.