Josh Taylor Wants Three Big Fights – ‘The Future’s Looking Bright’
Josh Taylor has set his sights on having three big fights this year following his loss to Teofimo Lopez.
The former undisputed champion at 140 came out second best to Lopez as he lost his WBO junior welterweight title. That was the first defeat of Taylor’s career, but it followed the Jack Catterall performance. The Scot beat Catterall via a split decision, but most of the boxing community felt he lost. After the Lopez defeat, Taylor stated he was moving up to 147. But his following comments suggest that he has not ruled out staying at 140.
Taylor’s Plans
“I can still do 140-pounds. I’m big enough and strong enough for 147 as well. [Crawford is] unrealistic just now for me. Get a good fight at welter and then hopefully get in for a title shot. Crawford vacating his belts and the belts all become fragmented and then I can get a shot hopefully at a title,” Taylor said
At 140, Taylor could target big fights with Devin Haney or Subriel Matias. They are two champions in the weight class, and a win for them would boost their resume by having a win over a former undisputed champion. As for a move up to 147, reports indicate that Terence Crawford could vacate his WBC title.
That makes the current interim champion, Mario Barrios, the full champion. A fight against Barrios is winnable, but Taylor could also face other opponents to get himself ready for the welterweight division. The WBO interim champion Giovani Santillan has been mentioned. A fight with Santillan makes sense since they are both with Top Rank. It also places Taylor closer to a title shot if the belts become vacant in the event Crawford moves up.
Taylor Vs. Santillan
“That’s one that could be in-house. It would be made pretty easily as well. There’s a lot of big fights out there at 140 and 147lbs. The future’s looking bright. I want to get back in as soon as possible and get the momentum going. Then get out hopefully in the summer and then maybe once at the end of the year. Definitely two times next year, hopefully three,” Taylor said
A move up to 147 will test Taylor’s skills. He performed poorly at 140 in his last two fights. But at 147, he will be facing the big hitters. Jaron Ennis, Crawford, and Eimantas Stanionis are just some of the few. Taylor is not known for being a knockout artist, with three stoppages in his last eight fights.
But to gain the respect of the other welterweights, Taylor will have to double down on his power shots. But given that he is a former undisputed champion, does he have the hunger to tackle a new weight class? His following comments suggest that he does.
“I still feel that I can still achieve more and I’ve still got more to give. I can do everything without restrictions now, there’s no excuse why I can’t get back to my best,” Taylor stated
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