Eddie Hearn has seen his share of bitter rivalries in British boxing.
As well as sparking the seismic clashes between Scott Quigg and Carl Frampton, Tony Bellew and Nathan Cleverly, and Carl Froch and George Groves, the latter’s rivalry, which culminated in a sold-out Wembley Stadium, has a claim to have transformed the game 21st century wrestling game in the UK: Matchroom boss Hearn also looked like a paralyzed young man when his father Barry helped organize the fights between Chris Eubank and Nigel Benn. Those two decisive nights stopped a nation.
Josh Taylor and Jack Catterall may not be as outspoken as the names mentioned above, but their long-awaited super lightweight rematch in Leeds on Saturday night will take place under the banner “Hate Runs Deep.” Although both insist that they would not give their rival credit for such emotional intensity, the enmity is palpable.
“It’s on par with those fights commercially. But the difference with this one is that I have never met two people who wanted to attack each other on sight,” Hearn told The Jugo Mobile.
LOOK: Josh Taylor vs. Jack Catterall 2, exclusively on ESPN+ in the US.
“In those fights you just mentioned (Quigg-Frampton, Froch-Groves, Bellew-Cleverly) when they confront each other there is no threat of violence unless one provokes the other. These two come together to break up.”
At both press conferences to launch this fight in February, the combatants laid hands on each other. No harm was done, the British Boxing Board of Control (BBBofC) was frowned upon and Hearn tried to hide his delight at the inevitable box office pidend.
“It really hasn’t changed much. I want to beat him up, I want to hurt him,” Catterall told The Jugo Mobile this week. “He has said many things. I think I won the first fight, he thinks he won it. We have to figure it out on Saturday, so let’s do it.”
What happened in the first fight between Josh Taylor and Jack Catterall?
When the couple met in Glasgow in February 2022, Taylor was the golden boy of British boxing and a pound-for-pound star. His exceptional victories over Regis Prograis and José Ramírez complete a dizzying rise to pound-for-pound status for the 2014 Commonwealth Games gold medalist.
The then undefeated Catterall had fought his way to mandatory status with the WBO, but was widely seen as an opponent who would simply mark time for Taylor before the Scottish superstar moved on to big nights in the United States. Terence Crawford was not infrequently mentioned as each man shared a promoter at Top Rank at the time.
“I’m taking it seriously this time,” Taylor said. boxing news. “I never took Jack seriously the first time. No one, including all of you in the media, gave Jack a chance in the first fight. Including me. That’s the mistake I made.”
LOOK: Taylor vs Catterall 2 worldwide on DAZN
Although Taylor raised his hand in a split decision, that mistake caused him to receive a cut around his left eye and go down in the eighth round. Unfairly, since boxers have no control over what the ringside judges decide at the end of the night, his reputation changed overnight.
Controversial decisions are an occupational hazard in boxing, but Taylor vs. Catterall really felt like an all-time howler. The BBBof C demoted Ian John-Lewis due to the 114-111 score he returned in favor of Taylor.
The megafights took a backseat and Taylor gave up belts while negotiations for a rematch dragged on. A proposed matchup for March 2023 was postponed and then scrapped after Taylor suffered a foot injury. Instead of rescheduling with Catterall, the 33-year-old headed to New York to face Teofimo Lopez with the WBO and Ring Magazine belts on the line. He lost them too.
Catterall and his team had to worry about the fact that they should have been crowned outright. That opportunity is probably lost forever. There are no belts on the line at First Direct Arena this weekend. To recall Jerry Izenberg’s famous quote about Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier, Catterall and Taylor are fighting for each other’s championship.
“Even now it kicks you in the balls because we are where we are,” Catterall assistant coach Nigel Travis told DAZN. “[The first fight] You haven’t changed your life to an unrecognizable position and you should have. “All roads lead to Saturday night.”
How much weight does Josh Taylor have against Jack Catterall?
While much is made of the nearly two-and-a-half-year wait for closure, Catterall only boxed once in the two years leading up to the initial fight with Taylor, waiting in line as the “Tartan Tornado” cleaned up the pision.
“There was a big period of inactivity before the first fight, but I don’t believe in all that related to inactivity. We are boxers, we stay in the gym. You’re in the gym every day. Of course, it’s not the same as a fight night with the small gloves, but it’s what we do every day.”
Both Travis and head coach Jamie Moore speak glowingly of Catterall’s status as the most diligent of professionals. As such, there was no real concern when he stepped on the scale Friday and came in two ounces under the 140-pound limit.
Taylor was two ounces lighter and seemed relatively more exhausted of the two all week. At the time of his first fight, there was talk of Taylor moving up to welterweight, but he is quick to dismiss concerns about his ability to make 10 stone.
“In New York [against Lopez] I made the perfect weight. It’s the same this week,” she said. “That’s why I’m so relaxed. I have prepared diligently. This time I have had no restrictions in the camp.
“I feel great. It’s just another boxing match on Saturday. I’m going to go in there to have a game plan, have fun and come out with the win.”
Their initial contest had high shock value due to how much Catterall upset Taylor and the controversy that followed. But in terms of pure entertainment value, it was a complicated affair.
The hope is that this one catches fire, and the familiarity breeds fury. From the blows they exchanged to the endless delays and unfinished business, Taylor and Catterall have taken an unreasonable amount of time for each other. That all ends on Saturday, with pride and global careers on the line.
