Josh Taylor and Teofimo Lopez will both be seeking redemption on Saturday in New York City.
Taylor was the undisputed 140-pound champion and a blossoming star when he fell flat against Jack Catterall in February of last year in Taylor’s home country of Scotland, winning a split decision that many believe Catterall deserved.
Lopez shook up the boxing world by upsetting 135-pound king Vasiliy Lomachenko in October 2020 only to lose a decision, his titles and all of his momentum to George Kambosos Jr. a year later in Australia.
One of them will take a significant step toward regaining whatever respect they lost when they meet for Taylor’s WBO junior welterweight belt at Madison Square Garden Theater (ESPN, ESPN+). The other will be in trouble.
They’re confident. Taylor could’ve been speaking for both of them when he told TalkSport, “I feel like I’ve found myself again. I feel brilliant and everything has gone to plan, I’ve got a spring in my step.”
Taylor (19-0, 13 KOs) had climbed onto many pound-for-pound lists after an impressive run between 2017 and 2021, highlighted by victories over unbeaten foes Ivan Baranchyk, Regis Prograis and Jose Ramirez that made him undisputed champion.
Then came the relatively weak performance against fellow southpaw Catterall, a solid all-around fighter but a significant underdog.
Catterall scored consistently with a sharp jab and straight left even if he never hurt the champion. And he did a good job of clinching when the more-aggressive Taylor got inside, further frustrating him.
Taylor went down from two overhand lefts in Round 8, which stunned the local fans and gave the challenger considerable momentum. An upset seemed to be brewing.
However, Taylor fought with more urgency from then on and had some of his strongest rounds down the stretch. That rally allowed him to pull ahead on two cards and eke out a 114-111, 113-112 and 112-113 decision.
Taylor said immediately afterward that the pressure of fighting at home for the first time in almost three years got to him.
“I put a hell of a lot of pressure on myself being the heavy favorite and it showed in the first half of the fight. But once I got my rhythm, I started catching him with the bigger shots.
“It wasn’t my best performance but I believe 100 percent I got the win.”
Taylor had to cope with more issues than just his homecoming, though. He had difficulty making weight, which raises questions going into the fight this Saturday. He also had a bout with COVID and was nursing a leg injury.
All that combined with a gritty performance by Catterall was a perfect storm that almost resulted in his first setback.
Taylor said fans can expect to see the old, dominating champion against Lopez under new trainer Joe McNally.
“I’ve got … my mojo back,” he told Sky Sports. “I feel like I’ve got it back. I just feel like I’m back to my old chirpy self, the way I was before in the lead up to the [Regis] Prograis fight.
“I feel I’m back to that kind of mentality, that sort of form as well.”
Lopez (18-1, 13 KOs) is tough to figure out.
The Brooklyn native looked like he was on his way to becoming a superstar when he upset pound-for-pound king Vasiliy Lomachenko at 23 to become the undisputed 135-pound champ in October 2020 in “The Bubble” at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
Then he crashed as quickly as he ascended, getting outpointed by George Kambosos Jr. in November 2021.
We learned afterward that Lopez fought with a dangerous condition in which air surrounded his chest wall and heart. Doctors suggested he could’ve died. He was also dealing with emotional issues that became so overwhelming that he considered suicide.
Lopez rebounded from his hell to win his next two fights, a knockout of Pedro Campa last August and a split decision over a survival-minded Sandor Martin in December.
Still, fans wonder whether he can regain the form that allowed him to take down a legend in Lomachenko. He insists he’s in a good place emotionally after getting out of a bad marriage.
“I’m at peace, man,” Lopez told Punsh Drunk Boxing. “I don’t have a parasite sucking me dry going home. I think that’s what it was, man. People was on the run for their money now. For five years I was dealing with that. I had to learn along that way. God made me go through life. Made me go through the cycle of it. Still have my soul, still have my mind, still have my body here with me.
“Yeah, man, I’m in a great state, very great state, man.”
We’ll see on Saturday where the bodies and minds of the fighters are.
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