Former undisputed super-lightweight champion Josh Taylor has responded to Jack Catterall’s claims that a rematch between the domestic rivals has been agreed.
Taylor and Catterall have long been linked as foes following the pair’s controversial 2022 fight at the OVO Hydro Arena in Glasgow.
Taylor was awarded a split decision victory over Catterall to retain his world titles despite suffering a knockdown and receiving a point deduction during the fight.
The decision was not well-received, with many observers believing Catterall should have been declared the winner and the new undisputed champion at 140-pounds.
Taylor no longer holds any titles, vacating the WBC, WBA and IBF throughout 2022 due to negotiations between himself and Catterall. The pair and promoters Boxxer agreed to a rematch for a March 2023 rematch. However, injury curtailed that possibility alongside the WBO mandating Taylor to face Teofimo Lopez in a defence of his WBO title.
Lopez defeated Taylor over 12 rounds at the Theater, Madison Square Garden in New York.
iFLTV interviewed Taylor regarding Catterall’s comments that a deal had been agreed, which Taylor dismissed as false.
Taylor stated he wants to be paid his market value for a rematch and that he is not going to fight for ‘chocolate buttons.’
“You know, I just wanna fight, but I wanna get paid fairly,” Taylor told the YouTube channel.
“You know, so, I’m not gonna fight for buttons. You know, I’m not gonna fight for chocolate buttons. If I’m gonna fight, I know what I’m worth and what sort of money I should be thereabouts in the fight. You know, and don’t get me wrong, I know when you take a loss, you take a pay cut. That goes without saying. The sport is just like that. But the offer that they first gave me was [not good]. So, I’m not gonna fight for chocolate buttons, that’s for sure.”
Taylor also revealed that Top Rank had rejected a previous offer from Catterall’s promoter, Matchroom Boxing, without consulting Taylor.
Negotiations between all parties are ongoing, with Taylor looking for a more satisfactory deal.
“Hopefully, we’re close,” Taylor added, optimistically. “You know, but well, I’ll obviously leave it [in the hands] of my lawyer to settle all the nitty-gritty bits. But all this [talk of] three offers and all this is a lotta nonsense. I had one offer and Top Rank didn’t even come to me with it because it was a crap offer. So, they didn’t even come to me and say, ‘Look, this is what they’ve come with.’ They just said, ‘We’ve had an offer. We’ve rejected it.’ And from me, I went, ‘Well, what was it?’ And then they told me and I was like, ‘Oh well, yeah, fair enough.’ You know what I mean?”
