The past and the future were showcased this past weekend at the SSE Hydro in Glasgow, Scotland. Josh Taylor continued his descent as he suffered his third consecutive defeat at the hands of Ekow Essuman. While Moses Itauma continued his ascension up the heavyweight rankings by blowing out Mike Balogun in two rounds.
The partisan crowd for Taylor had hoped to see a revitalized version of 'the Tartan Tornado' in what was his welterweight debut. After a decent start that saw him beat Essuman to the punch, Taylor jumped out ahead in the first half of this 12 round main event. However, he faded badly down the stretch and could not hold off the sturdy and steady Essuman.
DAZN ***)
While Taylor was a new welterweight, as the night went on, he looked more and more like an old fighter. Even in the early stages where he had some of his better moments, Taylor's punches simply didn't have that same power and snap as he did at his apex as a junior welterweight. But what was more alarming -- and really the evidence of a faded fighter -- is that he simply couldn't get out of the way of the oncoming right hands of Essuman. Taylor saw punches oncoming, and couldn't do anything about it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtlVrT0aROk
Heading into the late rounds, there was this uneasy feeling that things were slipping away. Did Taylor bank enough early rounds to hold off the late rally of Essuman? And this being boxing, would the judges reward the consistent work of Essuman who from round six on seemed to take more and more control of the action? As the final bell sounded, you got the sense that it was Essuman who won more rounds, but this being boxing, you always had the specter of a 'house decision' being rendered.
As the scorecards were revealed, they read: 116-112, 115-113, and 116-113 for... Essuman. The judges to their credit overcame any biases or pressure that are normally in play in situations like this and just simply made the right call.
Queensberry Promotions
In light of his most recent loss (and you could argue he has actually dropped his last four contests) there was a lot of hypothesizing on what caused Taylor's rapid downfall. Certainly his lack of activity in recent years hasn't helped. Also, a rather less-than-Spartan lifestyle, combined with some tough fights during his road to undisputed at 140, has probably led to this precipitous downfall. As I like to say, it's never just one thing, but a bit of 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 that led to his current plight.
Taylor isn't just on the back nine, but really in the clubhouse.
On the flip side, Itauma showed once again why he is the most highly regarded young heavyweight in the game as he blasted out Balogun with a display of precision power punching.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59JCrZTB3bs
At just 20 years old there is a real buzz surrounding Itauma. But is Moses ready to part the heavyweight seas?
DAZN ***)
He can punch and is very athletic. While he's only 6'2 (and he came in at a career-high 254 pounds on Saturday) Itauma has a dexterity in his movements that most other heavyweights lack. It probably helps that he's a southpaw, to boot.
But keep this in mind, he only has a dozen bouts under his belt (12-0, 10 KOs) and he has not exactly faced 'King Kong', or 'Godzilla' much less an Everett 'Big Foot' Martin or Jimmy Thunder. Even some of his most ardent supporters like my buddy, Mychal Thompson (yes, the 'Kevin McHale Stopper', who won two NBA title rings with the Lakers) wants to see him step up.
As of now, he is not ranked by Ring Magazine, but there are more than a couple of guys in their ratings that I would favor Itauma to beat, right now. Admittedly, that is a projection on my part, but hey, that's part of this job. What's interesting is that the WBO is all-in on him. They have him ranked number one in the division.
Yes, he's unproven but there's also a lot to like. Itauma isn't just a legitimate power, but is also a well-schooled technician. We know he can pitch, now the question is: how does he catch? Beyond that, he hasn't talked of retiring from the sport in his mid-20s. At the moment Itauma seems to have the needed temperament to have sustained success in the game.
Itauma has a real future.
