Sunday Convo: Taylor-Catterall Defines The Term ‘Styles Make Fights’

Taylor & Catterall Settle The Score In A Great Fight

Catterall started quickly with the right jab, and the fight began to look like the end of their first battle in 2022. Taylor couldn’t find a way to block it as he didn’t move his head and was coming in on a straight line. Taylor would finally find his way in the second and third rounds as he was landing a left hook to the body of Catterall and a right hook over Catterall’s left hand. It was something that Taylor kept seeing success with as some of their sequences began to repeat themselves.

From rounds six through nine, Catterall faded a bit while Taylor seemed to be coming on. Those body shots from Taylor started to add up but in spurts, Catterall was landing that straight left land that was punishing the right side of Taylor’s face. There were moments where Taylor would hurt Catterall with some of his body shots, but Catterall did too. The ebbs and flows of the fight had everyone on the edge of their seats. When the fight arrived at the championship rounds, it was Catterall who once again took control. In the 11^th round, Catterall would land two of the biggest punches of the night: straight left hands that nearly folded Taylor. How Taylor managed to weather that storm is unbelievable, and he somehow managed to make it to the final bell in the 12^th after leaving it all in the ring.

Post-Fight Shenanigans

The scorecards were wide, but Catterall won the fight, and although Taylor would later say he thought he edged it slightly, his body language said something different: he lost the fight. One man who was not afraid to tell those in attendance how he felt was Top Rank’s Bob Arum, who grabbed the mic and had this to say:

“Those scorecards were a disgrace, an absolute disgrace. I really feel sorry for Josh (Taylor), I thought he won the fight. Those scorecards were ridiculous. I will never, ever allow an American fighter to come here with the British Board scoring the fight. Those scores were ridiculous.”

Arum was defending Taylor, who he co-promotes, but it was a pretty clear Catterall victory. The fight was great because their styles meshed so well. Regardless of how anyone felt, Taylor & Catterall delivered an entertaining fight everyone enjoyed on Saturday night.

What’s Next For Taylor & Catterall?

First, Catterall, who came out victorious, seemed receptive to a third fight with Taylor, but his promoter, Eddie Hearn, wants to get him a world title. Knowing Hearn, he’ll likely try to get Catterall a title soon, putting him against Ismael Barroso, the WBA interim junior welterweight title. If victorious, that would buy him some time to face one of the other champions (Isaac Cruz, Devin Haney, Subriel Matias & Teofimo Lopez) later this year.

For Taylor, the best fight financially would be a third fight with Catterall. If he cannot land the trilogy, he has to move up to welterweight. He can go the WBO route and face Brian Norman Jr. but a fight or two at the division to feel it out would have to take place first. Taylor must move quickly because, at 33, the wear & tear has caught up with him faster than others.

My Three Cents

The story of the fight shouldn’t be the wide scorecards but the actual fight itself. Boxing fans continue to get treated with these great fights that aren’t always on PPV, and it can only help the sport grow. If Taylor were to face Catterall ten times, we would probably see the same fight ten times in a row, which is why we all love the sport of boxing. It’ll be interesting to see how both fighters move forward after Saturday night’s fight.