Crolla next up for Burns as clash with compatriot Taylor is overlooked
● Both fighters coming off world defeats ● Joshua lands criticism from trainer
Former three-weight world champion Ricky Burns has avoided a potential allscottish showdown with compatriot Josh Taylor – at least for now.
Burns’ promoter Eddie Hearn has announced that the Coatbridge fighter will box Anthony Crolla, another former world champion, at lightweight on Saturday 7 October at the Manchester Arena as they attempt to rebuild their careers following defeat.
Burns, 34, lost his WBA light-welterweight title to the classy Julius Indongo in April and returns to the division in which he secured his finest wins.
Similarly, the 30-year-old Crolla lost his WBA lightweight title to Jorge Linares last September and then their rematch in March.
A further defeat for either fighter would likely take a return to world level beyond them, and at a time when there is optimism fellow British lightweight Luke Campbell can win the WBA title against Linares next month.
However, in the wake of Edinburgh fighter Taylor’s seventhround stoppage of Ohara Davies at Braehead last month, a victory that confirmed 26-year-old Taylor as No 1 in the British rankings at 140lbs, it had been hoped a matchup between the Scottish duo could be made before the end of the year.
However, Burns said: “I’ve been making 140lbs too easily and I’ve had enough notice for this fight.
“Although those last pounds will always be tricky I’m happy to be back down at 135lbs.
“I’m always saying to Tony (Sims, his trainer) I’ve got two or three more years left. At this stage of my career I don’t see the point in getting an easy win. I’d rather go in with a big name.
“If I win, I’m going to progress and hopefully get another title shot.”
Meanwhile, Crolla said: “A win puts us back in the mix for titles. I’m not going to say the loser has nowhere to go, but it’s going to be a tough road back.
“We’re both coming off losing our world titles and the incentive is to win the fight and get back in the frame.
“I could have a tune-up fight on the undercard of somewhere and an easier opponent to get me back into things and then a big fight after but I’m not interested in that.
“(A fight between us has) nearly happened before a good few times, a few years ago at super-featherweight and again at lightweight.
“It’s been talked about for years now.”
Meanwhile, Anthony Joshua’s trainer criticised his performance in the victory over Wladimir Klitschko on the fighter’s first morning back in the gym. Despite winning what was widely considered the finest world heavyweight title fight since the 1990s so conclusively that Klitschko has since retired, Rob Mccracken sought to maintain Joshua’s focus. The 27-year-old WBA and IBF champion became Britain’s latest darling with the 11th-round stoppage victory in front of a 90,000-strong crowd at Wembley, and has since largely experienced only praise.
He returned to the gym only four weeks after the 29 April date in an attempt to “tick over” until confirmation of his next fight, expected imminently against Bulgaria’s Kubrat Pulev for either 28 October or 11 November.
When he did so, however, Mccracken, also Team GB’S performance director, immediately told him he needed to improve.
“It was like I was a novice,” Joshua said. “We ticked the entertainment factor, but from a coaching point of view there was a lot of mistakes made, and a lot of things we could do better, and that’s what he looks at.
“He was straight up: ‘Yeah, great, whatever, but that was four weeks ago; we’ve got to start preparing for the next three years. Not only are there tougher fights in front of you, there’s other people gunning for you to beat you, so you’ve got to get serious’. You’ve got to get back on it now. Your left hook was bad’. I was still living off the adulation, thinking: ‘What? This guy’s taking the Mick’. But I’m over it now.
“That’s why I went with him when I turned pro, because I knew I needed a lot of experience, and he knew me for who I am in the gym.
“After the Olympics certain people would have thought: ‘This kid’s unbelievable’ but Rob was like: ‘No, you’re a novice, you’ve done well, but...’ – he’s always been really grounded.”