Games hero Taylor boxed for two years with a broken hand
JOSH TAYLOR merited all the adulation which came his way when he won light-welterweight gold for Scotland at last summer’s Commonwealth Games.
However, the 24-year-old from Prestonpans might have been acclaimed as the outstanding athlete of the event had it been known that standing on the podium represented the conclusion of a two-year period where he had been boxing with a broken hand.
Taylor admits that, while regularly in considerable pain during that time, he wasn’t aware of the extent of the damage being done.
National team-mate and fellow gold medallist Charlie Flynn has already turned pro, winning his first contest in December and fighting again in Newcastle next month.
Taylor, by contrast, had dropped off the radar, but now after recovering from the extensive surgery required to rebuild his hand, he revealed he is also about to join the professional ranks
‘I went to hospital to have my hand examined,’ he explained. ‘They discovered that not only was there damage to my joints and ligaments, there were also two or three fractures.
‘I had to have an operation in October to repair the damage. That involved the doctors grinding the bones in my hand down, taking a bone graft from my hip and fusing that to my hand.
‘I had to wait for that to heal but I was back in the gym in January and I can finally hit the punchbags as hard as I want.’
That makes a pleasant change for a boxer who endured as much pain as he inflicted in attempting to improve on the silver medal he won at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi.
‘It all started just after the Olympic Games in 2012,’ he explained. ‘I fought the Italian Domenico Valentino and my left hand was sore afterwards.
‘I expected the pain to go away over time but it didn’t. After a bout, my hand would swell. Basically, I fought one-handed through 2013 and 2014.
‘That was a problem for me because I’m a southpaw and my left hand is my main one I use for punching.’
Taylor’s primary concern, though, was to find a way of continuing to compete and achieve his amateur ambitions.
‘When it came to tournaments, I would have cortisone injections to numb my hand,’ he said. ‘That would usually get me through.
‘However, when it came to the European Championships in Minsk two years ago, I’d sparred just twice in the eight weeks leading up to it.
‘I then came up against a Russian in the first round and lost on a split decision. I was raging because I knew that I’d beaten him out of the park but it turned out to be a blessing in disguise.
‘When I took my gloves off at the end my hand had just ballooned, so it was just as well I didn’t have to box on.’
Boxers spend more time and energy training than they do fighting and Taylor came up with ingenious solutions to the problems posed by his preparations.
‘I should have had the hand looked at earlier but competitions were coming thick and fast and I wanted to just get through them,’ he admitted.
‘As a result, I would mainly do shadow boxing instead of sparring. I would only punch the pads with my right hand — I used water bags for my left because that wouldn’t put pressure on it.
‘It helped me in one sense because I had to develop as a boxer and find a different style.
‘I’m now a much better switchhitter than I was before the injury. In fact, the right hook has become my strongest punch.
‘The downside was the mental aspect because I would always be worried that my hand might go during a fight.
‘I’m raring to go again but my next contest will be as a pro. I can’t say too much about that now but it should be finalised shortly.’