McGirt Appears to Be Next Foe for Norris

In the aftermath of Terry Norris’ demolition of Meldrick Taylor on Saturday night in Las Vegas, talk of a Norris-Julio Cesar Chavez match cooled. Instead, a Norris-Buddy McGirt match during September in New York seemed more likely Sunday.

Norris, from Alpine, Calif., defended his World Boxing Council junior-middleweight championship with a surprisingly easy fourth-round technical knockout of Taylor at the Mirage. Earlier, Norris and his manager, Joe Sayatovich, expressed hope for a Norris-Chavez bout, possibly in San Diego.

But a highly placed source for Home Box Office, requesting anonymity, said: “The only way Norris-Chavez happens is if Chavez picks up the phone and asks for it. He’s a junior-welterweight and Norris is a junior-middleweight. After what Norris did to Taylor, I don’t expect that to happen.”

The source said the McGirt probably will be Norris’ next opponent.

Sayatovich said HBO could make Norris-Chavez happen with a phone call of its own.

“It will happen if HBO wants it to happen,” Sayatovich said. “It’s just a matter of HBO paying Chavez what he’d want.”

On Sunday, Sayatovich said HBO might even have a problem getting McGirt for a Norris fight in Madison Square Garden.

“Right now, everyone wants Norris-McGirt,” Sayatovich said. “Terry and I want it, HBO wants it and Madison Square Garden wants it. Problem is, (I don’t know if anyone’s) talked to McGirt yet, and we know he was watching (Norris-Taylor) Saturday.”

McGirt, from New York, is the WBC welterweight champion. It wasn’t known Sunday at what weight the two would fight, or whose title would be at stake.

But Norris, who weighed 149 Saturday, down from the junior-middleweight maximum of 154, said he is weary of coming down to his opponents’ weights.

“How about if for once someone comes up to my weight?” he said. “But if they want me to fight McGirt at 150 1/2 (the contracted-for weight for Taylor), that’s OK.”