Josh Taylor (left) and Jack Catterall during the press tour event on Oxford Street, London
AN ELITE fighter operating in his prime reminds us of the wondrous potential of the human mind and body when elevated to its fullest potential. Watching a prime Sugar Ray Robinson, Sugar Ray Leonard, Ken Buchanan, Muhammad Ali et al in action is to experience vicariously what it’s like to touch transcendence.
On Saturday night in Glasgow Josh Taylor will climb into a boxing room in Scotland for the first time since achieving the high status of undisputed champion against Jose Ramirez in Las Vegas in May last year. In so doing he can look forward to the kind of reception that has been long overdue up to this point, given his achievements in the sport and the speed at which he has achieved them.
Watching him shadowboxing during the ritual media workout on Wednesday was to watch a fighter who has perfected his craft. Blistering hand-speed combined with beautiful footwork and balance suggests that his undefeated challenger, England’s Jack Catterall, will have to box out of his skin just to survive, never mind win.
Amid riots, strikes and Thatcher’s Britain, Frank Bruno fought not just for boxing glory, but for a nation desperate for heroes, writes JOHN WIGHT
In recently published book Baddest Man, Mark Kriegel revisits the Faustian pact at the heart of Mike Tyson’s rise and the emotional fallout that followed, writes JOHN WIGHT
As we mark the anniversaries of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings, JOHN WIGHT reflects on the enormity of the US decision to drop the atom bombs
From humble beginnings to becoming the undisputed super lightweight champion of the world, Josh Taylor’s career was marked by fire, ferocity, and national pride, writes JOHN WIGHT
