Josh Taylor: The Scottish Winds Are Violently Wailing-Brace Yourselves For The Tartan Tornado.

Good interview from this week

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SCOTLAND’S Josh Taylor will make “a huge statement,” if he beats Viktor Postol in a WBC final eliminator at the Hydro in Glasgow on June 23.

It’s an ambitious move for Taylor who has only had 12 professional contests. In contrast Postol is a 30 bout veteran and a former world champion. But this will be a final eliminator for the WBC super-lightweight title. The winner will find themselves in line to challenge Jose Ramirez for the world title.


Taylor however insists that it is his time to move to a new level. “We’ve been speaking about it for a number of weeks. It was in the pipeline, I always knew it was an option. With him pulling out of the [Regis] Prograis fight we knew that we could get a good fight in and it would be a great step up in class. A genuine world class fighter. I’m really looking forward to getting in there,” Taylor told Boxing News. “I know I’m at this level.

“I’ve been telling you for a number of years now that I believe in my own ability. I’m ready to take on the challenge.”

Taylor has plenty of admiration from Postol, who dismantled Lucas Matthysse, a feared puncher, to win the WBC title in 2015. “I think he’s great. His footwork, he’s got great footwork like all the top amateurs have. He’s got the great moves, feet in and out, sharp with his right hand. He lines you up with that pawing jab and his right down the middle. So it’s a really decent fight for me and I’m really looking forward to it,” Josh said. “It could be a really hard fight. It’s up to me to make sure I’m on top of my game.


“He’s a great, great fighter.”

“I know that I’m mentally strong,” Taylor continued. “I’m not bothered about his past fights, I’m just focusing on this fight. I know I’ve got it in me to dig deep when the going gets tough.”

Postol has only lost to Terence Crawford, one of the finest fighters in the world. It’s hard to read much into that defeat. “The only person he’s lost to is Terence Crawford, so a top fighter,” Josh mused. “It’s definitely not a disgrace, not at all… Crawford’s the best on the planet at the minute. I know I’ve got my hands full, I’m looking forward to getting in there and doing the job, I cannot wait.”

Although Taylor’s professional experience is comparatively limited, he believes he has had the lessons he needs to prepare for Postol’s style. “The fight against [former world champion Miguel] Vazquez, he was really tricky and unorthodox, unpredictable. I got to him in the end, once I hit him and hit him hard I got to him in the end,” Taylor said. “But again my amateur experience, I’ve fought top Russians, I fought top guys from Eastern European countries. So I’m feeling very much ready for this.”

Victory “would be a huge statement”. He continued, “I am ready for mixing it with the top guys in the world.

“That’s how I want to move. I’m in this game to be in with the best and be world champion. You’ve got to beat the best guys to be the best. I’m relishing this challenge and I really can’t wait.”

“If I win hopefully the next fight is then a world championship,” he concluded. “I believe I can do it as well.”

 

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*To quote the late great Max Kellerman: ''Real recognizes real''

Rougarou on JT::


''Prograis could see them meeting in the WBSS’ 140-pound final, depending on the tournament’s structure.

“I think that’ll be a real big fight in the future, me and Josh Taylor,”

“I think he’ll beat Postol,” Prograis said of Taylor. “Postol has been sitting for a while, but he only has one loss, also, so I’m not sure what Postol is bringing right now. He didn’t fight in a while, so I don’t know. We don’t know how that’s gonna go. It might be a good fight. I don’t know yet. But in my personal opinion, I think Taylor should beat Postol.”

“If Josh Taylor doesn’t go in the tournament,” Prograis said, “it’ll be because if he beats Viktor Postol that means he’ll be the interim champion. He can stay out of the tournament and then he can fight Ramirez. I think he’ll definitely beat Ramirez. I don’t know if [Taylor will want to] run around with Ramirez and his manager and Bob Arum, with them trying not to fight him. I think they’ll try to hurry up and get that belt from Ramirez. I don’t think Ramirez would beat Josh Taylor. Of course, I can be wrong and he can surprise me, but I just don’t think so.”

Prograis hopes, however, that Taylor enters a tournament that also is expected to include WBA champ Kiryl Relikh (22-2, 19 KOs), who’ll meet mandatory challenger Eduard Troyanovsky (27-1, 24 KOs) in the quarterfinals, Ryan Martin (22-0, 12 KOs), and Ivan Baranchyk (18-0, 11 KOs), who’ll compete against Anthony Yigit (21-0-1, 7 KOs) for the vacant IBF title in the quarterfinals.

“He’s real good,” Prograis said of Taylor. “He can do a lot of different things. He’s tall, he’s long, he’s southpaw, he’s fast, he’s strong. He looks like he has a good outside game and a good inside game. So that’d be a real good fight. From what I’ve seen, he’s good. He can definitely fight.”