Jack Catterall has made his prediction ahead of Josh Taylor’s world title defence against Teofimo Lopez – but he still doesn’t like either of them.
Taylor puts his undefeated record and WBO belt on the line against Lopez in New York this weekend, and is in need of a statement performance following the Catterall fight 15 months ago.
Despite the Scot’s undeniable and elite talent, many in the sport had him losing to Catterall on that night in Glasgow. The judges gave it the champion’s way, though, and he now finds himself facing his next challenge.
Not too long ago and thanks to a victory over Vasiliy Lomachenko, Lopez was being discussed in the same breath as the sport’s brightest stars.
He lost those titles to George Kambosos Jr in his next fight, and two average performances since moving up in weight haven’t done much to help his claim that he’s one of the greatest.
Speaking to Boxing Social, Catterall believes the Brooklyn native will be handed his second loss this weekend after being unable to cope with the championship pace of the division. Somewhat reluctantly, he’s tipping his Scottish rival for the win.
“They are a pair of numpties, but if I have to pick a winner I’ll go with Josh Taylor points. I think he will wear Teofimo Lopez down. After seven or eight rounds, Lopez is going to feel the pace of super lightweight.”
Catterall will have a keen eye on proceedings. He’s now on his own path to collecting one of the belts at 140lbs, but a rematch with Taylor simply must happen down the line if they both remain at the weight.