Josh Taylor was once great – but a career in turmoil poses an uncomfortable question
Josh Taylor was the undisputed champion of the world only three years ago and now those years seem ancient.
On Saturday night, in front of a capacity crowd in Glasgow, Taylor was in the fight of his life to save his career against Ekow Essuman. He lost for the third time in a row.
At the bitter end of twelve torrid and bloody rounds, all three judges went for Essuman, Taylor just dropped his head; it was tight, but just. And now Taylor has some serious decisions to make about a career in turmoil.
In many ways it was a perfect storm of injuries, delays, tough fights, Covid restrictions and a hard career combining to send Taylor tumbling from his pedestal in 2021. Beyond the fall, his status is secure as British boxing's only undisputed male boxer in the four-belt era. Taylor is in the very best company.
Taylor has never been hurt, smashed, beaten badly or suffered too much damage in his 22 fights, but they were hard fights from the very start of his career. Also, his sparring routine was once equally brutal, which is an established fact and not an accusation.
In 2019 Taylor won the first of his four world title belts in just his 15th fight. It was a great win, the second in a sequence of six fights against unbeaten boxers, including five for world titles.
Later that year, Taylor was majestic against Regis Prograis at a sold-out O2; Prograis was heavily fancied, an unbeaten American champion and part of a quality gang of fighters. Taylor took his belt and took his heart and soul. It possibly cost Taylor a bit of his own future, to be honest - it was a savage fight, Taylor at his finest.
Then Covid slowed him down, stopped a few big fights from happening and he finally became undisputed champion at light-welterweight in 2021, but it was behind closed doors. That night in Las Vegas against Jose Carlos Ramirez was the last of the best of Taylor. It was just his 18th fight and he was only 30.
He has fought four times since; beating Jack Catterall in controversy, then losing to Teofimo Lopez in New York, losing the rematch to Catterall and finally falling short against Essuman. There is no shame in that losing sequence, but Taylor will know in his heart that the old Taylor could have won all three fights.
Against Essuman, who had been overlooked on both sides of the ropes, there were moments when Taylor was as sharp as ever and that is not an exaggeration. In the opening two rounds, Essuman was made to look vulnerable and struggled against Taylor's accuracy and variety. It was just two glorious rounds; the next ten were attritional and that is what Essuman likes and does so very well.
Taylor thought he had done enough to win and in the privacy of his dressing room, surrounded by the men who care for him and prepared him, he talked about the end. However, dressing room declarations are emotional outbursts and are often reversed once the boxer returns to normal life.
In the corridors at the SSE Hydro close to midnight, there were many prepared to whisper that perhaps it is time to walk away, to end one of modern British boxing's truly exceptional careers. The men in the Taylor business will hold their tongues, keep their feelings private until the boxer decides - that's the classy way.
Taylor is not finished as a fighter but he is finished, at just 34, at the level he reached; his sequence of wins before and then during his world title reign is special. It is his decision now to decide how much he has left to chase what he will never get back; fighters get hurt and damaged hunting down a lost cause. Taylor deserves better and has already lived his boxing dream.
Essuman is a very good fighter, worthy of a world title shot, but Taylor knew going in on Saturday night that even scraping a win would not be enough. It was unspoken, but understood that he had to win well and that might seem harsh on Essuman. In the last six months or so, fighters with shakier credentials than Essuman's record, have fought for versions of the welterweight world title and it is time he was shown some love, cash and respect.
And Josh Taylor? Well, his position as a modern great is secure - his future less clear.
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