Jack Catterall has agreed to step aside to let the two lightweight champions Jose Ramirez and Josh Taylor to fight for the undisputed 135-pound championship in 2021.
Taylor says he’ll give Catterall his title shot once he captures the WBO title from Ramirez. That’s a surprise comment from the two-time Olympian Taylor, as it was thought that he would relinquish all four titles [IBF, WBA, WBC, and WBO] after he beat Ramirez.
Taylor and Ramirez have talked of moving up to 147 to go after the titles in that division. But it appears that Taylor will hold onto all four of the light-welterweight titles, should he win them, long enough to defend against his teammate Catterall.
Catterall (25-0, 13 KOs) is the WBO mandatory to WBC/WBO light-welterweight champion Ramirez (26-0, 17 KOs).
Taylor: Let’s let this massive fight happen
If Catterall (25-0, 13 KOs) hadn’t stepped aside, Ramirez would have been required to face him in either late 2020 or early 2021; it’s better for Ramirez that he did get out of the way because he needs to rest from his grueling fight last September against his WBC mandatory Viktor Postol.
Catterall is a good fighter, but he would have been little more than a speed bump for the talented Ramirez, who is fighting on another level than him.
Catterall, 27, may have received a step aside, but that hasn’t been confirmed. IBF/WBA champ Taylor (17-0, 13 KOs) is glad that Jack aside can take this big with the unbeaten 2012 Olympian Ramirez.
Taylor destroyed his IBF mandatory Apinun Khongsong by a first-round knockout last month on September 26th at York Hall in Bethnal Green. Many boxing fans didn’t know what to expect from the hard-hitting Khongsong, but Taylor didn’t let him get his offense in gear.
Josh looked impressive against Khongsong
After a brief clinch, Josh tagged Khongsong with a shot to the breadbasket, and it left him on the canvas. That was all she wrote. Khongsong couldn’t get back up, and the fight was halted.
Ramirez didn’t have such an easy time in his last fight, going tooth and nail to defeat his WBC mandatory Viktor Postol by a 12 round majority decision on August 29 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The fight was close enough to where a massive amount of boxing fans on social media cried robbery.
Taylor was among the fans who weren’t impressed with Ramirez’s performance, and he’s now further convinced he’ll beat him with ease on the night in early 2021. There still isn’t a date for the Taylor vs. Ramirez fight, but we should know soon when the two will get it on.
