Boxing fans will have to wait a bit longer to see Josh Taylor back in action. Mike Coppinger of ESPN has reported Josh Taylor will no longer fight Jack Catterall on February 4, 2023 in Glasgow, Scotland as previously expected. Instead, Taylor and Catterall are expected to fight in Glasgow, Scotland one month later.
As explained by Boxing Scene, the decision to postpone the title bout was driven by Sky Sports. The sports network is already developing a pay-per-view broadcast that will feature Chris Eubank Jr. and Liam Smith on January 21, 2023 in the United Kingdom. Therefore, Sky Sports hopes to put some distance between pay-per-view broadcasts to avoid asking fans to pay large sums of money in short periods of time.
This is not the first time that both Catterall and Taylor have dealt with delays. Initially, the two boxers were set to meet last December. However, the bout was delayed two months and the two fighters met in February 2022. Once the two fighters were in the ring, Catterall proceeded to challenge Taylor for the undisputed super lightweight title. While many onlookers argued that Catterall won the fight, the judges awarded a split decision victory to Taylor.
“It wasn’t my best performance, and I’ve put a lot of pressure on myself being heavy favorite and boxing back at home, but once I started catching him, I believe I got the win 100 percent,” Taylor said, per ESPN.
“I know I won the fight; overall I scored the bigger shots and the more meaningful shots. He put up a good fight, but he never won the fight. Second half of the fight I took control.”
Since the first fight concluded, both fighters have remained inactive, pursuing a rematch. In March, both fighters will have one more shot to settle the score on the cards and in the eyes of fans.
