HATEFUL GREAT
Jack riled by rival’s ‘sniggering face’
THE fight’s tagline is ‘Hate Runs Deep’ and Jack Catterall knows a rivalry like this is just what he needs.
This isn’t quite Chris Eubank against Nigel Benn or near the scale of Carl Froch and George Groves, the latter packing out Wembley.
But British boxing rivalries have something about them and they generate interest.
This weekend’s rematch between Catterall and Josh Taylor has sold out Leeds Arena, neutral territory for two warring rivals.
So, while Catterall’s controversial defeat in February 2022 may have been a crushing moment for him personally, when he didn’t get the decision he – and many others – believed he deserved, he knew his name had suddenly been shot into people’s thoughts. For too long the talented Chorley southpaw was working away quietly on undercards.
It was why when Catterall travelled to Glasgow to take on Taylor, the then undisputed light-welterweight champion, few gave him any hope of ending the Scot’s unbeaten run.
But after a controversial decision, the fallout came as the bitterness which had been bubbling between the fighters boiled over.
“Hate is a strong word,” said Catterall. “But I certainly really, really dislike him. He doesn’t like me so what better way to settle this than with a fight?
“What is it that I don’t like? It’s the way he carries himself, it is his little sniggering face. We’ve seen rivalries in the past when they’ve gone on and got on good terms. You never say never but right now he is public enemy No.1.”
Catterall is wise enough to know such bad blood is good for business.
“I understand that rivalries sell,” he said. “The first fight was a massive night for me, nobody had given me the opportunities before.
“British boxing needs these rivalries, there are a lot of good fights going elsewhere in the world like Saudi, but we need these big nights here too.
“I know I’m just one half of the dance but there’s not many fighters selling out arenas here at the moment.”
It’s taken a while to get here. Done deals which fell through and injuries causing the bout to collapse.
Taylor has lost world titles in and out of the ring since, the last of which was against Teofimo Lopez last year. Even this version of the bout had a four-week delay after the Scot picked up another knock.
“There are times when I thought, ‘This has been and done’ and I need to move on,” said Catterall, whose only loss in 29 fights is that controversial defeat by Taylor.
“But the demand from the fans has made sure that this is still what people want to see.”
The winner of this will be fired back into world title contention and the riches which come with it.
But Catterall is only thinking about this revenge mission.
“This is for pride, this is for ego,” added Catterall. “Is it worthy of a world title? Yes, of course. But I’m just focused on putting this rivalry to bed.”