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Jack Catterall beat the former undisputed world super lightweight champion Josh Taylor by a unanimous decision at their thrilling rematch in Leeds.
Catterall avenged his controversial split-decision defeat to Taylor in Glasgow two years ago, landing the heavier punches to finally settle the score in one of British boxing’s biggest grudge fights in recent memory. All three judges gave the fight at a sold-out First Direct Arena to Catterall, two by scores of 117-111 and the other by 116-113, although Taylor will feel aggrieved it was not scored closer.
Taylor worked busily behind his jab in the early rounds, while southpaw Catterall enjoyed particular success with his left hook. After an accidental clash of heads in the second round Taylor briefly backed his opponent on to the ropes, but Catterall responded with a swinging left before another head clash at the start of the third caused Taylor to wince.
Catterall landed two successive lefts at the end of the fourth and looked to take charge in the fifth, finding his range with his jab before hurting Taylor with a series of lefts and rights that pressed the Scot against the ropes. Taylor regained his composure in the sixth despite a swelling under his right eye, but Catterall’s punches continued to be more accurate and heavier. Two short rights from Taylor gave him momentum in the seventh as both fighters traded blows and the Scot proved more effective again in the eighth to even up the fight.
Catterall breached his opponent’s defence early in the ninth and both boxers went toe-to-toe. Taylor stalked his man in the 10th, now looking the more menacing fighter, and landed with a right and then an uppercut. But a thundering straight right from Catterall in the 11th had Taylor in trouble with little to separate the pair going into the final round as they punched themselves to a standstill.
The two fighters first clashed in February 2022 when Taylor controversially retained his WBC, WBA, IBF and WBO belts in Glasgow via a contentious split decision. Most observers felt Chorley’s Catterall did enough to win and in the two years since, the fighters have traded insults in person and on social media.
This second meeting was twice postponed, first in January 2023 due to Taylor’s foot injury and again in March this year when the Scot had a minor eye problem. Taylor, who became Britain’s first undisputed world champion in the four-belt era by defeating José Ramírez in Las Vegas in 2021, lost to American Teófimo López in June last year in his only fight since first facing Catterall. The Edinburgh man’s record now stands at 20-2, with Catterall’s at 29-1.
“I thought I won the first fight clearly and didn’t get the decision,” said Catterall. “Although I thought I won the fight tonight clearly, you never know, some of the score cards you see. So to get the decision, rightfully so, was a big relief for me.
“To win the world title has always been the dream for me. We didn’t get the undisputed world titles [against Taylor] and that’s fine. That chapter’s been written now. I want that world title fight now. [López] beat Taylor before I did, now I’ve had the win over him and I want to prove I’m better than [López].”
After the judges’ decisions were revealed, Taylor’s promoter Bob Arum grabbed the microphone and launched a tirade against them.
“Those scorecards were a disgrace, an absolute disgrace,” he railed. “I really feel sorry for Josh, 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.”
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