Rematch?
Josh Taylor isn’t obligated to give Jack Catterall a second shot at his undisputed 140-pound championship after winning a split decision Saturday in Glasgow, Scotland, Taylor’s home country.
Catterall earned it, though.
Taylor (19-0, 13 KOs) was a significant favorite to successfull defend his four titles following victories over Regis Prograis and Jose Ramriez, opponents who are more accomplished than Catterall (26-1, 13 KOs).
However, Catterall arguably outperformed Prograis and Ramirez against Taylor, who went down in the eighth round and was never able to take charge of the fight between southpaws.
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 stronger rounds.
Both fighters lost points for fouls, meaning they didn’t play a role in the decision.
The final scores were about as close as it gets: 114-111 and 113-112 for Taylor, 113-112 for Catterall, who shook his head in disgust when the announcement was made.
The CompuBox numbers support Catterall. He outlanded Taylor 120 (of 525) to 73 (of 306).
Taylor said afterward that he believes he deserved the decision but suggested that the pressure of defending his belts in from of his home-country fans.
“It wasn’t my best performance,” he said. “I put a hell of a lot pressure on myself this week, these couple of weeks, being my homecoming the first time in three years, the first time since lock down and all that.
“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.”
What about the rematch? Not likely.
One, Taylor said afterward that the fight on Saturday was likely his last 140 because it’s difficult for him to make that weight. And, two, he doesn’t see the decision as controversial.
“I don’t think there’s any need for a rematch,” he said. “I think I won the fight, I won the fight by a couple of rounds. I won the fight in the second half of the fight.”
Some of those who watched the fight will never agree with him.