Josh Taylor targets fight with USA superstar Terence Crawford

[Spicoli]

Come on fellas where do we draw the line? A fighter is ready to step up when they say so, not us. If he doesnt, then we can clown him and say he is taking the easy way.


Floyd got a world title shot inside 2 years , 13 out his next 15 would be for world title fights. I dont ever remember anyone asking was Flyd ready- not as if he was crowned a gold medal olympian destined to break the bank. Under Arum he was just another good fighter seeking to move up & prove himself.

Lomachenko- we know the drill he began his shift taking hardest fights possible.
Holyfield won a world title fight in 12 bouts, 6 of next 8 were all world title bouts.

These 3 guys may be considered far more skilled than Josh, but only from an amatuer standpoint if we review their time moving up & compare them to Josh.
This dude isn't green.


Do we think if Josh fought 40+ fights as Canelo did, he would somehow gain the skills to be ready for Crawford? Who would provide that skillset?
what would that make Josh? Can anyone envision him gaining something more? or does he at this tenure in his career have little to learn, rather how to hone what skills he has...in over 6 years' time.

IMO he aint gonna ever beat a Terrence Crawford, so that gives me a respect for him that I don't have for those carrying titles. he's steppin up when time says so, not when he thinks he is ready.

6 years pro per a dozen str8 title fights & the last 3 for world titles. yeah he's ready. Ready to show he is a solid champ, that would never give Crawford or a Spence calibure of champ a fight of their life.


Amazing to me how the most talented, skilled fighters in this day only hold a belt or two, and this Josh kid holds the WBC, WBA, WBO & IBF belts. BUT!!!
Crawford who IMO is way more superior in skillsets hasnt held 2 belts same time since 2017.

Boxing was/is & will always be corrupt, but it has never ever been this dissected, diluted & turned upside down where the best fighters in this era only has to hold a belt or 2.
So the hardworking average fighters collect all the other belts while the best haggle over or out of .

How did Josh become only the 5th fighter to do this and be considered not ready for world class opposition?

I don't think there's any question he's proven self to be more than solid champ and capable of collecting respected scalps. What get's me is for both of these guys there is work to be done and attractive fights to be made where they're at. Collecting trinkets is fine but let's not be blinded by the shine. I'd love to see Teo come up with the beef already kicked off because honestly I think he's going to wallow and be almost a co main chasing the whole Twiller carnival stuff. You have Davis set to debut at 140 and become Taylors 'co champ' doing it. Then again Davis going to 140 to me is a lark..(the whole work to be done where he's at thing)..so guess yuck it cannot up . As a begrudging aka impatient Bud fan I think it's a bad look for him with Spence about to go legacy adding (?) world stage status and talent like Ortiz and Ennis lurking on his doorstep. But if fairness I know they lack the Taylor proven levels and accomplishments thus far. I dunno I just thought Crawford would strafe like a meteor when he started making a name moving up and always want a guy to clean out his house..at least demand promotion try..and he hasn't come close to it. Frustrating as all hell. Ask me the wheel really is in Taylors hands to do what he wants and Bud feels like a spectator.

[Master]

Teofimo Lopez is the man to challenge newly-undisputed world champion Josh Taylor

Taylor beat Jose Ramirez to become undisputed world challenge and has called on Lopez to face him later this year says Barry McGuigan.

Teofimo Lopez makes his much-anticipated return in June, ten months after his career-defining victory over Vasyl Lomachenko.

Lopez defends his WBA, IBF and WBO lightweight titles against George Kambosos in Miami in what I suspect will be his final trip at 135 pounds.

He is already calling out the undisputed super lightweight champion Josh Taylor, who unified the belts last week against Jose Ramirez.

Taylor made ESPN’s pound-for-pound list for the first time this week coming in at seven, two spots below Lopez at fifth.

Congratulations to Taylor for his achievement but if he really wants to be remembered he has to step out against someone with a stellar reputation.

That opponent is Lopez, the man who beat Lomachenko. Imagine having that on your CV, the man who beat the man.

I love the way Lopez fights and takes guys out. He is huge for the weight and it’s not surprising when he hits them they retreat into their shells.

Loma looked chastened, afraid to take a risk.

It limits what you do and how you perform. That’s the reality of big time boxing.

If you exchange you run the risk of getting tagged and knocked out.

Taylor says he want to fight Terence Crawford next. I would caution against that. Why take that big a gamble when Lopez, who is untried at super lightweight, is holding out his hand?

Taylor emerged at a time when the 140 pound division was light on big names. We rushed him through to get him into position to fight for a world title in his 16th fight.

His toughest fight to date was Regis Prograis, a good fighter and a close contest.

He deserved his victory last week and the accolades that followed. But the truth is, it is not a particular strong division at this point in history.

When Lopez steps up that picture changes. He wants Taylor. He has no interest in warm-ups.

I believe Lopez can be competitive at junior welterweight and welterweight.

He is slick as well as aggressive, as good on the back foot as he is on the front. And he doesn’t get hit for such an attacking fighter.

I don’t see anybody getting in Crawford’s way. Lopez is a mammoth challenge too for Taylor but one that at least gives him a chance to go one better against a marquee name.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/boxin...newly-24206979

[Master]

Josh Taylor hits out at ‘Mickey Mouse’ WBA super-lightweight title fight in Atlanta

Taylor’s win against Jose Ramirez in Las Vegas last month saw him crowned undisputed world champion in the super-lightweight division.

The unanimous points victory over the Mexican-American saw him add Ramirez’s WBO and WBC titles to his own WBA and IBF belts.

It is only the fifth time that a boxer has held all four main world title belts simultaneously.

However, a fight on Saturday night between Gervonta Davis and Mario Barrios in Atlanta is being billed as a WBA super-lightweight championship contest. Both Americans are unbeaten but Taylor is unimpressed.

“Mickey Mouse title,” he tweeted. “There’s only 1 champion at Light welterweight!”

Speaking at a press conference in London on Tuesday morning, he added: “How can there be a world title fight on Saturday in this division that doesn’t include me? Whoever wins on Saturday night can’t call themselves a world champion.”

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/sport/boxi...rtan-ntp-feeds

[TitoFan]

I like Bud Crawford. But enough of this "he said/she said" crap where fingers point in all directions as to why Crawford hasn't fully entered the fray with the elite fighters at welterweight.

The clock continues to tick, and Bud is in danger of becoming a "what if" footnote in the annals of boxing.

At this point I'll take ANYBODY from ANY WEIGHT coming up or down to fight Crawford.

[Master]

Josh Taylor has named Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez and Naoya Inoue as his two favourite active boxers to watch at this moment in time.

The undisputed super-lightweight champion sits comfortably at number five on the Ring Magazine pound-for-pound list after a stellar display against Jose Ramirez in Las Vegas last month.

Taylor boxed well off the back foot at times, yet was able to showcase his trademark tenacity and power on the inside to score two knockdowns en route to a convincing points win.

Victory for the Scot confirmed his place as the best in the world at 140lbs and one of the elite in the world altogether.

The 30-year-old is a student of the sweet science himself and grew up idolising Manny Pacquiao whilst he was starting his own career as a teen in Prestonpans, East Lothian.

Yet with the Filipino taking his time between fights due to his age, there are two other fighters who have caught Taylor’s eye.

Mexican superstar Canelo is a four-weight world champion who is arguably the biggest star of this generation, while Inoue is a diminutive wrecking machine.

Compared to Mike Tyson for his formidable punching power and knockout ratio, Taylor is a huge fan of the Japanese bantamweight.

“I like watching Canelo,” he told talkSPORT.com. “I think he is brilliant.

“I think he is amazing; the way he moves and he is so calm and collected. I think he is brilliant and I love watching him.

“I like watching Inoue as well; he is a little monster as well!”

Even at the age of 30 and with just 18 professional fights to his name, there is not an awful lot Taylor has not achieved.

The WBA, WBO, WBC and IBF world champion initially started taekwondo as a youngster before falling in love with boxing, where he medalled at the Commonwealth Games.

Despite his crowning moment last month, Taylor still lists the gold medal won in 2014 in his home country as the proudest moment of his career.

“Right below it and certainly on par with winning my world title,” he said when asked where becoming undisputed world champion ranked.

“If it had been in normal times and I had been able to take my friends and my family over and my travelling support, it would have been up there by far – by miles.

“But I think just doing that for myself and my country at the Commonwealth Games in 2014 was a really proud moment for me.”

https://talksport.com/sport/boxing/9...ue-mike-tyson/