A Closer Look at Josh Taylor

By Donald “Braveheart” Stewart

Scotland likes the little guy.

As I am trying my darn hardest to catch a super bantamweight to interview him – elusive wee guys so they are, I am reminded that we don’t do heavyweights very well. After all Gary Cornish, 24-2, 12 KO’s, has not quite managed to gain that British title despite two attempts! To be fair one was against Anthony Joshua, 20-0, 20 KO’s!

But Scotland does little guys who can box and bang very well.

The past has brought us lightweights like Ken Buchanan, 61-8, 27 KO’s and James Watt, 38-8, 27 KO’s, as well as the recently well disposed 3 weight world champion who is Ricky Burns, 41-7-1, 14 KO’s.

They all are now taking a step to the side to make way for the media attention being showered on a new guy with some pedigree who is taking centre stage in our affections. He had even been mentioned as a fighter who could face and beat the aforementioned Burns in a showdown that would have had similarities to the time Buchanan had met new guy Watt and beaten him in a British title fight. Or when Alex Arthur, 31-3, 21 KO’s, took on Burns. In both we saw one generation face another.

This time round, there is unlikely to be a meeting of Ricky Burns and Josh Taylor, 11-0, 10 KO’s, but there are plenty who think that Taylor is going to go on and not just match Burns but become the best boxer Scotland has ever produced.

He was on display to the world in the UK on Saturday the 11th of November in Edinburgh when his promoter and management team at Cyclone Promotions – the McGuigan’s – showed tremendous faith in this young kid and I have to say it was very much justified as he faced a massive test – and passed it.

Taylor faced up to former Mexican world champion Miguel Vazquez, 39-5, 15 KO’s, and defended his recently acquired WBC silver super lightweight crown in what was a cracking fight; for the first time in his professional career Vazquez was stopped.
Make no mistake, Vazquez was a massive step up for Taylor. Taylor has now shown that he is more than ready for whatever comes next. Every challenge he has been given he has faced with skill and courage the likes of which makes boxing punters and ordinary people in Scotland alike, proud and hot in anticipation.

Vazquez came into the fight after having won 4 times since his last loss in 2015 with 39 wins out of his 44 professional contests. He has held the IBF belt with distinction, and though, he is ranked only 21st at Boxrec whilst Taylor, weighs in at number 12, this was not a fight he was expected to lose and Taylor expected to win in the manner in which it happened.

Taylor has been here before.

His previous fight saw the mouth from the South, Ohara Davies, 16-1, 13 KO’s, sent to the canvass and stopped in a contest built around the antics of the Englishman. Taylor prodded and probed him before the fight and Davies, normally a volcanic and explosive man and fighter tried to maintain his cool. Davies’ approach was to fall spectacularly short and many questioned his career after his loss to Taylor. He has since got back to banging and winning ways and the crisis is past, but Taylor stops anyone getting past him.

Let us not forget that the young Scots boxer, in only his 11th professional fight, beat a former world champion. But beating the odds has always been his style.

The “Tartan Tornado” came to the professional ranks after an illustrious amateur career where he was a taekwondo champion, won a silver medal at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi (losing to Englishman Thomas Stalker), qualified for the 2012 Olympics, (being the first Scot to do so in 52 years!) and then winning Gold for Scotland at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

From his pro debut in 2015 he has seen some exceptional challenges faced and beaten. In his 7th fight he won the Commonwealth light welterweight belt in a 5th round stoppage, meaning all 7 of his first fights had ended in stoppages.

His second defense of that belt was successful and he also took the WBC silver title by beating Ohara Davies. In between he boxed at the MGM in New York to showcase his skills to an American public on a Carl Frampton/ Santa Cruz undercard; he won but was disappointed with his performance – such is the standards he sets himself.

This is guy going places and we in Scotland have got strapped in for the ride!

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