Jack Catterall believes he’s earned a world title shot following his lopsided twelve round win over the past his best former undisputed light welterweight champion Josh Taylor last Saturday night in Leeds, England.
Catterall got the win by the scores 116-113, 117-111 & 117-111, but he looked tired after the first five rounds and spent most of the second half clinching. He was visibly fatigued and holding nonstop. It was ugly to watch.
In round eleven, he landed a solid left hand that got Taylor’s attention, but he still held and moved quite a bit.
Hearn’s Hesitation: A Red Flag
Promoter Eddie Hearn rattled off several champions that he could potentially line up a fight for Catterall (29-1, 13 KOs) next, but he didn’t seem so optimistic about it. The way Hearn hesitated when he rattled off names of champions was code for, ‘You’re not good enough, Catterall.’
That tells me that Hearn knows Catterall ain’t ready to be thrown to the wolves, and he doesn’t want to wreck his earning potential on the domestic scene in the UK by putting him in with one of the champions at light welterweight.
Catterall’s Niche: Not Among the Elite
He’s looking out for Catterall’s best interest by not putting him in with any of the champions, but he’s not built to swim with the sharks. Catteral is designed for older, washed ex-champions like Taylor and Jorge Linares.
He’s not built for top tier competition. Throw Catterall in with any top-15 contender at 140, and it would end badly for him.
Hearn seems to want a trilogy between Catterall and Taylor. He knows the fight will sell in the UK, and it’s Catterall’s level. He knows it’s a guaranteed money-maker in the UK, and it keeps Catterall’s career alive a little longer.
Taylor is the only notable guy that Catterall can beat. If Hearn throws Catterall in with virtually anyone in the top ten at 140, he gets chewed up. I don’t see anyone Catterall can beat, and the champions are on another level.
Catterall is clearly not good enough to beat the champions, Teofimo Lopez, Subriel Matias, Devin Haney, or Isaac Cruz. He lacks enough power, and his gas tank is too limited.
Catterall vs. Matias: A Recipe for Disaster
Of those champions, the only one that would even consider fighting Catterall is Matias, and that’s only because he’s not as popular as the other champs. Matias would agree to fight Catterall just for the money.
It would end badly for Catterall if he were destroyed. Matias is way too powerful for Catterall, and he could chase him down and finish him off. All the holding that Catterall doesn’t wouldn’t stop Matias from bludgening him to bits.
Catterall would run around the ring, trying to hold Matias off with jabs and nonstop clinching. It would be a slaughter.
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