The long anticipated pay-per-view rematch between Josh Taylor and Jack Catterall has been pushed back by Sky Sports, and is now expected to take place in late February or March, as per BoxingScene.
The broadcaster are believed to want a longer time period between the fight and it’s first pay-per-view offering of 2023 – Chris Eubank Jr vs Liam Smith, which takes place on January 21st.
The second meeting between the pair was originally due to take place on February 4th, almost a year on from their controversial first fight earlier this year.
Taylor, who was undisputed champion at 140lbs at the time, went in as an overwhelming favourite in what was his first fight in his native Scotland since he won the IBF title against Ivan Baranchyk in Glasgow in 2019.
However, Catterall had clearly not read the script, putting in a career best performance to make a mockery of the bookmakers’ odds behind enemy lines. Despite doing enough in the eyes of most observers, Catterall was not to be crowned world champion that night, with the judges awarding ‘The Tartan Tornado’ a split decision victory.
Neither man has fought since then, instead trading blows across social media as opposed to in a boxing ring. Both have harboured resentment over what took place in the Hydro Arena – Catterall over the undisputed crown he believes he was robbed of, and Taylor due to what he views as biased media coverage against him.
Fans will hope this minor pushback is the last delay to what is one of the biggest fights to be made in British boxing. Due to issues with governing bodies, only one world title will be up for grabs as opposed to the original four, yet still it feels there is much more on the line second time around.