Regis Prograis says he’s ready to defeat Jack Catterall in front of the “crazy UK fans” on August 24th to put himself in position for a world title shot against one of the champions at 140.
Prograis has an excellent chance to win this fight because Catterall’s stamina is terrible, and he’s a six-round fighter. He fights hard for six rounds, then holds and runs in the second half. If Prograis can cut off the ring and fight through the clinches to hammer Catterall with clubbing shots each time he holds, he wins.
Former WBA/WBC light welterweight champion Prograis (29-2, 24 KOs) and Catterall (29-1, 13 KOs) met today for their kickoff press conference to promoter their headliner event on August 24th at the Co-Op Live in Manchester, England. The event will be shown live on DAZN.
Prograis’ Must-Win Fight
Prograis, 35, admits that it’s a “must-win” fight for him because he lost his WBC 140-lb title to Devin Haney last year on December 9th, losing a wide twelve-round unanimous at the Chase Center in San Francisco.
Some fans feel that Prograis was given a bad deal in that fight due to Haney reportedly rehydrating an enormous 25 lbs from 140 to 165 lbs, which put Regis behind the eight ball, fighting a super middleweight and having to deal with a big-size disadvantage.
Against Catterall, Prograis won’t have to worry about size, but he will have to deal with his Shakur-esque style, which includes holding, hitting, and running, as well as a highly defensive approach.
Additionally, it could be difficult for Prograis to win rounds unless he puts it on Catterall due to the fight in the UK, which works well for Jack, the British fighter, but is not good for Regis.
It would be smart for Prograis to be focused on looking for a knockout to take the judges out of play in this fight because you never know. Top Rank promoter Bob Arum hit the roof after his fighter, Josh Taylor, found himself on the losing end of what he felt was a controversial 12-round unanimous decision on May 25th in Leeds, England. What really incensed Arum was the wide scores in favor of Catterall.
The judges scored it 117-111, 117-111 and 116-113. Catterall appeared to gas out after six rounds and was getting walked down and bombarded by the Scottish fighter Taylor, who was working him over and dealing with his nonstop holding from the sixth round on. The referee should have deducted points for all the holding that Catterall was doing, but he didn’t do anything, so it left Taylor helpless to throw for much of the time.
Prograis’ Strategy and Challenges
“I feel like me and Jack is the biggest fight we can make in the division without a belt. We were actually supposed to fight a few years ago. It just never happened, so now we’re here. This is the best time now,” said Regis Prograis during today’s kickoff press conference for his fight against Jack Catterall on August 24th on DAZN.
It’s a must-win for you at this time around,” said promoter Eddie Hearn to Prograis.
“Yeah, it’s a must-win. I have a goal now. Every time I have a belt, I don’t care about it, but now I have a goal again. I want to be a three-time champion, and this is the man that I have to get past,” said Prograis.
“Do you rate this guy [Catterall] as one of the top guys in the division?” said Hearn.
“I think Catterall is one of the biggest names in the division right now. It’s stacked. The 140-lb division right now,” said Prograis. “Like I said, me and him is the biggest fight they can make without a belt being on the line.”
“The last time you were over here at the O2 [against Josh Taylor] in an incredible fight that you felt that you won, but a very close fight and a great arena and ready to do it again in front of the crazy UK fans,” said Hearn.
“Ready to do it again in front of the crazy UK fans, yep,” said Prograis.
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