GLASGOW, SCOTLAND — Josh Taylor is still the undisputed light welterweight champion of the world, but he shouldn’t be. "The Tartan Tornado" got a controversial split-decision victory on home turf Saturday night in front of an electric Glasgow crowd after an incredible performance by underdog Jack Catterall.
As unfathomable as it would have been, Catterall should have added himself to an elite list of names comprising Bernard Hopkins, Jermain Taylor, Saul "Canelo" Alvarez, Oleksandr Usyk, Terence Crawford and Taylor as the only men to become undisputed in the four-belt era. Instead, he returns south of the border with a first career loss.
Taylor came into the fight as arguably Britain's top pound-for-pound fighter right now. Saturday night was meant to be a procession; an occasion to leave fans with no doubt over his standing as not only the best in the land but also among the top three in the world.
The buildup bubbled away nicely during the week, with the weigh-in and press conference clashes adding the extra little spice we needed. In a huge February of boxing in Britain, there was a risk of this being an afterthought, an anticlimax after the circus of Chris Eubank Jr. vs. Liam Williams and Amir Khan vs. Kell Brook.
Of course, it shouldn't have been — this had far more at stake. Taylor was the reigning champion at 140 pounds, having captured all the marbles against Jose Ramirez in the U.S. last year. He had everything to lose.
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But this Catterall contest was a long time coming — the Englishman previously stepped aside to allow for the Ramirez showdown despite being Taylor's mandatory challenger at the time.
Catterall's enormous preparation time wasn't in vain. Despite being embroiled in an absolute cauldron, he didn’t feel the heat. The 28-year-old opened the bout the stronger man from the first bell, looking unfazed. He edged a cagey first round, Taylor bit back in the second, but then Catterall took charge superbly in the third and fourth.
Of course, the feeling at that stage was that ultimately, the champion would prevail, that the underdog would get fatigued and unravel. But he didn’t. Catterall connected with a cracking combination to show his quality in the fifth, and the sixth went his way too.
The home fans did their part for the titleholder. Every step forward for Taylor raised the noise by a few decibels; every punch landed not only on Catterall, but also on the roof. The bad blood from the week was boiling over by Round 7 as the battle became very spiteful, with constant warnings from the referee.
Round 8 seemed to have the pivotal moment of the fight with Taylor knocked down. That 10-8 would surely prove too much for the titan in the tartan trunks, unless he could salvage a knockout from nowhere.
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Taylor won the ninth and 10th, with the latter seeing a point taken off Catterall for persistent holding. Taylor seemed to be getting away with more from the official, as one would expect in front of these raucous fans, but he did eventually have a point taken away himself in Round 11.
By the time the final bell rang, the general sentiment was that Taylor had won four rounds at a push. There was a nervousness in the air for the neutrals in the arena, that once again we may witness a "robbery," with the scoring of a fight in the UK again under the spotlight.
And that’s exactly what transpired. Despite the visitor not only passing the eye test but also outlanding his esteemed foe 120-73 according to Compubox, the scorecards read 113-112 Catterall, 114-111 Taylor, 113-112 Taylor.
With the split decision, Catterall became the sixth successive undefeated opponent for whom Taylor etched the first line on their "L" tally. Catterall was 26-0; the previous foes were 26-0, 16-0, 24-0, 19-0 and 22-0. But the feeling remains that if this fight took place anywhere other than Scotland, the streak would’ve ended at five.
Taylor will still leave the division behind and now surely seek out a path to Crawford, but he leaves with a sour taste.
