Josh Taylor... a very basic fighter, nowhere near world level. Not even close. All he has is size.

A total force is a stretch.

 

He never had that wow factor to me. Never understood what was the big deal. Good fighter but very forgettable.

 

Thurman is shot to pieces and basically retired. Taylor would beat the crap outta current version of Thurman. A prime Thurman would beat Taylor, but not the 2023 Thurman.

The rest of those guys would stop Josh, yes.

 

Holy overreaction! Taylor is not shot, nor did he look shot on Saturday. Fimo is just better. I know it's hard for you to wrap your brain around that, but it's reality.

 

Taylor a journeyman? Lol. You're clearly a troll.

 

Not sure how anyone can say taylor wasnt elite prior to his last 2 fights. To do what he did in 18 fights is incredible. He was brilliant to watch as well. As usual a couple of bad performances and ppl come crawling out the woodwork and start claiming he was rubbish all along.
If you cant acknowledge how impressive taylor looked in his first 18 fights then you either didnt watch him or you just dont like him. He literally had all the tools and skills to reach the top and won his fights with style and amazing performances.
Hes looked poor in the last 2 fights and something is not right. He needs to sort his problems out and try and rebuild his career back up otherwise hes done at the top level which is a shame because it looked like he could genuinely spend 5 or 6 years being a top 10 p4p boxer.

 

He’s hit the age where he’s too old to be blowing up. Doesn’t look to be on any steroids and looks like the kind of person that might’ve enjoyed/enjoys a drink. Nothing that bodes well for longevity.

 

Josh is a quality fighter, but you're overrating his tools and his ability.

 

Sorry i am confused, whats the point your making?
I think theres a good chance that taylors career at the very top level might be over. I am happy to admit that. Before the caterall fight i would have predicted josh to be in and around the top 10 p4p for a few years at least. It now looks like he wont and thats a shame because he looked brilliant up until the last 2 fights.
Not sure what the issues are as hes still only 32 and should be near his peak.
Also i disagree that he might of enjoyed a drink or drinking session too much. He seemed like a dedicated fighter in terms of living clean and not drinking. I think the cocaine was a one off and the blow up in between the ramirez and caterall fight was one of the rare times i have seen that happen with him. For most of his career which i have followed closely hes been in great shape inbetween fights. I think lopez was a bad match up and switching trainers constantly has fukked him up. Maybe theres other issues as well.
I am also willing to concede that perhaps he wasnt quite as good as what myself and others maybe thought and i have always said that he had flaws defensively which i think lopez exploited brilliantly.

 

I dont think i am overrating him, i just dont understand ppl claiming he was never any good or wasnt anywhere near elite level. Anybody with half a brain who watches boxing and followed taylors career should be able to acknowledge that he looked elite level in his first 18 fights.
The last 2 fights taylor has looked average/poor and needs to sort that problem out otherwise he wont get to elite level ever again. Wether he does or not will be seen but trying to rewrite him as an average fighter who was never anywhere near elite is bull**** imo.

 

The OP is trolling, but it's true that Taylor has no future at 147. He's likely to get hurt.


Taylor is a world class fighter who never was as good as his best fights, and he's not as bad as his most recent bouts. He never was and never will be PfP, and that's okay. I hope he rebuilds and gets back into the mix at 140.

 

Not sure taylor necessarily gets hurt at 147. Maybe 147 would be better for him. Hes maybe draining himself too much at 140 which is causing the poor performances. Taylors chin has always been solid as well.
I would like to see taylor stay at 140 and set the record straight against caterall but if hes struggling at 140 then maybe 147 is worth a try.

 

I've been a big critic of Taylors due to the sheer overrating of him on this forum, he was never a top 10 P4P fighter in my opinion. He was simply just another good quality world class champion who happened to be fighting in a weak division who got the opportunity to unify all the belts.

His skillset is kind of basic but he's technically sound at least up close, and he knew how to use his size which is a skill in itself. But his defence was very average. No head movement, poor movement in general due to such a wide stance, low lead hand which is a cardinal sin for me for a southpaw, you literally throw away one of your greatest strengths as a southpaw by keeping the lead hand so low.

If he is shot, which I don't think he is, then it's in part down to his porous defence and taking so many shots which with his physical dimensions is baffling as he should be able to keep opponents at arms length but because of his flaws he simply doesn't box well from a distance.

Yes 147 would be a bad idea for Taylor. He talked about moving up before but that seemed to be an excuse to avoid giving Catterall a quick rematch. I would be surprised if he moved up, I think he's smart enough to know his reliance on his size at 140 would be utterly negated at 147 much like how Ricky Hatton's physical style which made him such a force at 140 didn't translate well to 147.

 

I agree with most of what you have said there but saying his skillset is basic is unfair imo. Technically he looked excellent in his first 18 fights. He looked skillful and could box on the inside and outside. His boxing ability was brilliant and exciting to watch at times.
His main flaws seem to be his defense. He gets caught alot and walks into big shots easily.
Also saying that he wouldnt have any size advantages at 147 is strange imo. Hes easily a 5ft 10 guy and he killed himself to get to 140. At 147 he would still be taller than many opponents and would be carrying extra muscle/power himself.
Trying out the 147 division against relatively weak opposition would be best imo. See how he gets on against the lesser names at that division and if he does well then chase some bigger fights.
It just depends if this is a blip or wether hes done at the top level for good. If its the latter then hopefully he can fight a few winnable fights and retire with his head held high.