Has the “Tartan Twister” blown itself out? Observers couldn’t assist however ponder this query because the lineal light-welterweight champion was steadily overwhelmed by a resurgent Teofimo Lopez in Madison Sq. Backyard Theater final week. The place did all go fallacious for the person who two brief years in the past turned the primary Briton to comb all divisional titles within the so-called “four-belt period,” the versatile southpaw whose stacked resumé contains victories over Viktor Pistol, Ivan Baranchyk , Regis Prograis and Jose Carlos Ramirez? Who may probably have seen this coming?
Regardless of being seven years his opponent’s senior at 32, Taylor was considered the seasoned and savvy veteran within the heavier weight class, whereas Lopez was extensively seen because the once-promising however wayward tyro who had seemed a shadow of himself since conquering Vasyl Lomachenko again in 2020. Undeterred, the Brooklynite punched holes by that simplistic narrative over twelve methodical rounds to gatecrash the title scene at 140 kilos.
Sarcastically, Taylor ought to look to Lopez for instruction on how, with the best hearth, focus and recreation plan, you may flip the script and alter the temper music. In spite of everything, “The Takeover” went into final weekend’s showdown having underperformed in consecutive bouts towards George Kambosos Jr, Pedro Campa and Sandor Martin. Many critics assumed he was completed, burned out at 25. Maybe Taylor’s scenario is much more precarious given the yr on the start certificates and the miles on the clock. Earlier than surrendering his title in New York, the Scot was the recipient of a contentious verdict over unheralded challenger Jack Catterall final February. The reality is it’s now been over two years since Josh Taylor seemed like, properly, Josh Taylor.
To which elements ought to we attribute this startling decline? Or wouldn’t it be an exaggeration to characterise the downfall as such? Catterall is a slippery buyer, somebody robust to look good towards – and Taylor had by all accounts endured a awful camp, one thing that was plain to see within the Portrait of a Fighter documentary aired by the BBC final June. As for the Lopez upset, it’s not that momentous: the champ – inactive for sixteen months, coming off a horrible efficiency, giving freely residence benefit to a firebrand with a degree to show – was in some methods ripe for the choosing.
Nevertheless, there are actually some worrying indicators of regression in Taylor’s armoury. He seemed far too straightforward to hit and pale badly down the stretch after a promising begin towards Lopez. He couldn’t impose his physicality as he has on different opponents, and for a fighter who has so usually showcased a beguiling bag of methods, he appeared out of concepts even by the halfway stage. Lopez was too fast, too robust and too decided, and Taylor couldn’t fend him off or harm him sufficient to achieve the respect and distance he wanted to do his finest work. It was a nasty night time.
Is it attainable Taylor peaked in simply his sixteenth struggle towards Regis Prograis 4 years in the past? He seemed unstoppable again then. Maybe he has suffered from a dearth of motivation since scaling the mountaintop by vanquishing Ramirez two years later. Or perhaps dropping lead coach Ben Davidson and recruiting Joe McNally was a mistake. Personally, I don’t suppose that’s the difficulty: Taylor seemed higher towards Lopez than he had towards Catterall, though that might be a matter of kinds. In the end, at 32, it doesn’t matter very a lot who’s within the nook for Josh Taylor offering he’s dialed-in. His formidable arsenal punched his ticket to the highest, not the edicts of Ben Davidson, Shane McGuigan or anybody else.
A serious a part of the issue might be that Taylor has outgrown the tremendous light-weight division, having boiled his leviathan body all the way down to the load since his debut in 2015. Or not: a cursory look on the recorded poundage exhibits he scaled between 141 and 143 for his first half-dozen outings earlier than having to make the contracted restrict for a Commonwealth tilt towards Dave Ryan in 2016. Little doubt making weight has change into extra punishing because the years have passed by and his metabolism has slowed. A transfer to welterweight might be overdue and, whereas hindsight is 20/20, Taylor is probably cursing himself for not doing so instantly after the Ramirez win.
That mentioned, reinventing oneself in at present’s welterweight division seems a harmful mission. Terence Crawford and Errol Spence sq. off for alpha-dog standing subsequent month, whereas the unbeaten pair of Jaron “Boots” Ennis and Vergil Ortiz Jr hardly resemble straightforward pickings. And so what does Josh Taylor’s roadmap appear to be? Clearly he wants a confidence-boosting victory, however teeing off on some outgunned journeyman serves no-one’s pursuits. Delight will dictate that the “Twister” finds its option to a title shot earlier than lengthy, although throwing down the gauntlet to the aforementioned names on present kind is akin to exhibiting as much as a gunfight with a billy membership.
Choices, there are all the time choices. And the perfect of them, no less than to my thoughts, are as follows. An all-British confrontation towards Conor Benn – one which would wish to happen within the Center East because of the latter’s British Boxing Board suspension. A rematch with Catterall, this time at welterweight. Or lastly, a 147 pound sequel towards Prograis, who absolutely expects to show the tables 4 years after their good first assembly. All three characterize dwell challenges ample to inspire Taylor, assuming he doesn’t have already got all of the motivation he wants after the Lopez drubbing.
No matter he elects to do, Taylor has already carved out a repute as a throwback who takes on all comers and often emerges victorious. His profession doesn’t essentially want an excellent Second Act, but when he can carry it about, properly, rattling, that will probably be one thing. –Ronnie McCluskey
