Overview
We have an incredible boxing fight being set on Saturday night inside of The OVO Hydro Arena in Glasgow, Scotland, as Josh Taylor will be making his first undisputed light welterweight title defense against his WBO mandatory challenger Jack Catterall.
This will be Taylor’s first fight as undisputed champ, and this was a mandated defense for Taylor as he would have been stripped if this defense did not happen, despite people wanting a rematch against Jose Ramirez.
Fighter records
Catterall is entering this fight as an undefeated champion as he has an 18-0, 13 KOs record and is coming off a unanimous decision that lasted 12 rounds back in May of 2021 against Jose Ramirez, where he won the WBC and WBO light-welterweight titles as well.
Jack Catterall is also undefeated with a 26-0 record with 13 KOs. He last fought Abderrazak Houta in November 2020, where he won by a split decision.
Matchup Information
- Time/Day: Saturday, February 26 / 5 pm ET
- Location of the fight: Exhibition Way SEC Glasgow 8YW
- Stadium: The OVO Hydro Arena
Catterall vs Taylor Betting Analysis
Jack Catterall Betting Analysis
Catterall has been deemed the number one contender for the undisputed world junior welterweight champion and is seen as a massive underdog in this fight, despite being a more experienced fighter without a single loss to his name.
The biggest issue is the lengthy amount of time between fights and the fact he is giving up the height and reach in this fight to the champion.
Josh Taylor Betting Analysis
This will be Taylor’s first defense of his undisputed crown, and it definitely helps as it is in front of a hometown crowd. His last fight in Scotland was against Ivan Baranchyk, which he scored a decision victory back in May 2019.
Having that emotional boost of the crowd being behind you could be a great sign of things to come for the champion here. This fight was originally slated for December 18, but it had to be postponed as Taylor recovered from a knee injury.
Fighter Updates
The biggest thing to keep an eye out on is Taylor’s knees, as this fight was postponed for eight weeks as he was recovering from a knee injury while training back in late October. The severity of the injury has not been disclosed, so it will be interesting to see how it fares throughout the fight itself.
Jack Catterall vs Josh Taylor Betting Prediction
Josh Taylor is considered to be a heavy favorite in this fight as most places are listing him at -1200 while Jack Catterall is being listed at +650 to pick up an underdog victory.
The long layoff is going to take its toll in the later rounds for Catterall and make him a bit more lethargic as the fight continues.
Jack Catterall vs Josh Taylor Prediction
This should be a very entertaining fight with the crowd backing its hometown fighter in Scotland. I am a tiny bit concerned that this could be a little bit of him taking his mind off things and looking ahead to his next challenger or a potential rematch with Ramirez, but that would definitely be foolish on his part.
Catterall has power and poise in the ring and also is entering with absolutely nothing to lose and everything to win. He could view this fight as Taylor trying to avoid fighting him as it had to be mandated; otherwise, Taylor would have been stripped.
However, Taylor is ranked fifth in all of boxing according to “The Ring,” and that could be a sign of his ability to control the fight and keep it at his pace.
Bet on the hometown champion because if he was not taking Catterall seriously, he would have fought through his knee injury in December.
With an extra eight weeks to heal up and train, the advantage seems to be in his favor so go with Josh Taylor to defend his championship with an eighth-round knockout.
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